Digging In

The demolition industry has long been a supplier to the recycling industry through the generation of scrap metal, concrete, wood and other debris from demolition sites. Demolition contractors rely on activities in both the private and public sectors to fund the projects that support their businesses. With budget issues plaguing governments, tightening of lending among banks and the resulting decline in construction activity, demolition contractors have had to contend with many challenges to their businesses.

The leading trade organization for the demolition industry, the National Demolition Association (NDA), Doylestown, Pa., elected a new president to lead the organization in May. As the CEO of Rachel Contracting, St. Michael, Minn., Don Rachel brings a wealth of experience to the position of president and more than 20 years’ worth of involvement with the NDA. Before becoming president, Rachel also served as chairperson of the NDA’s Environmental and Safety committees as well as vice president, secretary and treasurer.

As president, Rachel says he plans to focus his energy on ensuring the more than 1,000 members of the organization are taking advantage of the tools available to them as members. He also plans to increase awareness among the public and government officials regarding the sustainable practices of the demolition industry.

Recycling Today had the opportunity to ask Rachel about his new role with the NDA as well as to gain his perspective on the demolition industry.


Recycling Today (RT): What goals do you hope to accomplish in your new role as president of the NDA?

Don Rachel (DR): There is a long list of things to accomplish. If I had to prioritize them, my main goal is to make sure the association is offering value in a deliverable format to our members. I am obviously very involved in the association, so I understand all the tools that are there and available to help member companies. My main goal is to further educate the membership to take advantage of all of the tools that are there and provided by the association to help them better their own businesses.


RT: What NDA initiatives are you most excited about?

DR: I would have to say it is our efforts on education and sustainability. Our members have been recycling for a long, long time. Most of our members could be classified as recyclers since day one, but our job is to educate them on the sustainability part of our industry and, secondly, to educate the general public, government and construction industry that we were green before green was out there. It was not because we are smarter than anyone else, but it was driven by the market. If you weren’t recycling, then you probably weren’t very successful.

We are having educational and training sessions. We have had a Safety Academy once a year for the last several years. This year we are shifting our efforts to having three educational training sessions across the country. These educational sessions are open to the public and nonmembers in the industry. We hope they will sit in and gain an understanding of what we are trying to accomplish.


RT: What are the most pressing legislative or regulatory issues affecting the demolition industry and what is the NDA doing as an organization to support its members in addressing them?

DR: We are not a big lobbying organization so we usually don’t involve ourselves in legislative issues unless it is tied to an EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) or an OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) issue. The biggest issue legislatively, quite frankly, that we see is the economy, the federal budget and getting banks back to lending again so we can get projects going. Legislatively, that is the biggest thing we focus on.

A big part of our business is driven by commercial construction, and that is all locked in with the financial reform bill. It needs to loosen up so that banks can start lending again. There is a big backlog of projects waiting to happen. It is just that the funding hasn’t freed up to get these projects moving forward.

We are dealing with EPA and OSHA every day. The NDA is updating our current Demolition Safety Manual, and OSHA is reviewing that for us right now. While we continuously update our Demolition Safety Manual, we are in the process of a complete overhaul. Part of that includes a C&D (construction and demolition) recycling facility section for C&D recyclers, since a lot of our members are C&D recyclers.

We are adding 80 pages as it relates to our Demolition Safety Manual driven by OSHA that deal with some of the newer issues out there that hadn’t been addressed before. The NDA is taking charge and addressing issues such as hexavalent chromium that have not been addressed before. There are no big changes lurking in regard to asbestos and lead paint.

In addition, there are many recycling initiatives that are currently in limbo due to budget cuts within the EPA.

RT: How has the demolition industry had to evolve as a result of a decline in construction activity, and do you see the situation improving?

DR: The decline in construction activity has been very difficult for our industry. It has been crippling to large and small companies alike. We have seen little improvement in the country. 2011 was, in theory, supposed to be a growth year within our industry; but, with the economy and the banks still tight, it’s not. We are hoping for 2012 to be a growth year, but 2011 looks like it is going to be flat. However, things can only sit for so long and something has to break through.


RT: Where do you see opportunity within the demolition industry?

DR: I think that demolition contractors are having to diversify into other areas or other market areas. You are seeing a lot more regional contractors moving around looking at different opportunities than they normally would have. I wouldn’t necessarily call this opportunity; I would call it survival.


RT: How big of an emphasis is recycling and recovery of materials in demolition projects?

DR: The recycling and recovery of material is what drives a demolition project. There have been some growth areas in the recycling arena basically to further use some of the products, but they have got to be economically feasible, and the legislature has to allow them to happen.

I don’t doubt that any given demolition project can be in the 90 to 95 percent recycling range, given we have the equipment and the technology; but, we don’t always have the market or we are restricted legislatively.


RT: Have higher metals prices over the last several months affected how much separation and recovery of metals for recycling is done at a job site?

DR: Most demolition contractors maximize their recovery no matter what metals markets are doing. What this rise in metals prices has done is make some projects happen that may not have happened with a lower scrap value. This is good because it is creating more work for our industry in this economy. Currently, there are particular projects out there where there is more value in the scrap than the cost of the work itself, which generally is not the case. I don’t think this is causing any more separation or recovery of recyclables, I just think that it is helping making projects happen.


RT: How has the U.S. Green Building LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) building rating system contributed to the way in which demolition contractors handle projects?

DR: I don’t think demolition contractors are changing what they have been doing, because, as I have said before, we were green before LEED came around. What LEED has done is it has forced many demolition contractors to [understand LEED certification], and that helps us through the demolition portion of a project to get the LEED points owners need for the projects. The accountability is there because the marketplace has forced that, so the recycling, recovery and waste management portions of the projects have to be maximized.


Don Rachel is president of the National Demolition Association and CEO of Rachel Contracting, St. Michael, Minn. More information on the NDA is available at www.demolitionassociation.com.