D&Ri100 2018 published

At first glance the d&ri100 for 2018 echoed its predecessor of the year before. Indeed, a drop in its total value of US$30 million when spread across so many companies could be viewed as encouraging given the challenges faced by the industry in the previous 12 months.

As ever the excitement was in the twists, turns and changing fortunes that brought this collection of global demolition contractors together.

Once again, US contractor NorthStar leads the d&ri100. But for a second consecutive year, there is less of a gap than there had been 12 months earlier.

CEO Scott E State summed up the year as follows: “During 2017 we focused our business mix towards large opportunities we had in the coal ash remediation space.

“In addition, emergency response from the unprecedented storm season diverted resources to those segments.”

The result was a decrease in turnover of more than $75 million, and the figure for 2019 will be eagerly awaited.

Just as the top company stayed the same, so did the chasing pack.

Keltbray retained second place, increasing turnover by close to $50 million and more than halving the differential between NorthStar and itself in the process, with demolition playing a leading part in an overall turnover increase for the group of 15%.

Erith Contractors, in third, celebrated 50 years in business during 2017 and marked its progress with a series of high-profile demolition job in its native south east of England – including the World Demolition Award-winning Marble Arch place in London – and the similarly honoured bulk pharmaceutical plant project across the Irish Sea for Bristol Myers Squibb.

The company backed this up with a £2 million ($2.7 million) investment in what it called “sustainable, technologically advanced plant”, adding that; “The past year has left us well placed to continue our better than best practice in 2018.”

The three positions below Erith were all US companies – with fourth-placed Brandenburg climbing two places and breaking the $200 million barrier in the process after a year that included the demolition of the retired 800 MW John Sevier fossil coal-fired power plant in Tennessee. This meant all the top six places were occupied by American or British businesses, but mainland Europe restored some sort of balance by filling three of the next four, including a 15% revenue rise for Netherlands-based Beelen Sloopwerken that took the company three places up the list to seventh.

• The full D&Ri table appears in the May-June 2018 issue of Demolition & Recycling International. To download the issue, please visit https://www.khl.com/magazines/demolition-and-recycling-international
• To register to receive the magazine on a regular basis, please visit www.khl.com/subscriptions