3-5 November 2026 – Join us in Madrid, Spain
3-5 November 2026 – Join us in Madrid, Spain
2026 CATEGORIES
3-5 November 2026 – Join us in Madrid, Spain
Recognising excellence and best practice, as determined by an international judging panel of leading industry experts.
Award Nomination Guidelines: The following are the award categories for the 2026 World Demolition Awards. Judging will be based on the nomination information provided, and on the industry knowledge and experiences of the judges. Judges will look at the nominations received for each category and rank them accordingly. The quality of the nomination information received is extremely important, as it will be the primary basis on which the judging selections are made.
This category is for specific high profile demolition projects with a contract value below US$1 million that imposed major challenges to successful completion or which required an innovative demolition approach. Entries should demonstrate these challenges and how they were successfully overcome, on time, within budget and safely.
Submissions should include demolition methodology statements, site waste management plans and any other relevant project documentation that will allow the judges to validate the Award Statement. Client testimonials concerning the work carried out should also be supplied if possible.
Who can enter? Open to all demolition contractors.
Safety and training go hand in hand. Entries should clearly show how the company established an effective methodology on a specific project to ensure safety during its daily operations through a company-wide safety and training ethos.
Entries should include information on lost-time incidents and injuries, and training programmes instituted and undertaken on that project.
Who can enter? Open to all demolition contractors.
Tell the judges why your confined space or urban demolition contract should receive an award. It may have been unusually complex or demanding. It would have been delivered on time and budget, and completed safely. A client testimonial is expected, and control of noise, pollution and disturbance will be considered. Primary criteria against which entries will be assessed are:
Professionalism/Expertise; Impact Minimisation; Neighbourhood Relations Management; Client Satisfaction. Depending on the number of entries this may be split into two sections as in the past few years.
Who can enter? Open to all demolition contractors.
Tell the judges why your civil engineering/infrastructure demolition contract should receive an award. It may have been unusually complex or demanding. It would have been delivered on time and budget, and completed safely.
A client testimonial is expected. Primary criteria against which entries will be assessed are: Overall Professionalism/ Expertise; Overcoming the Specific Challenge; Financial & Schedule Management; Safety Record; Client Satisfaction.
Who can enter? Open to all demolition contractors.
Tell the judges why your industrial contract should receive an award. It may have been unusually complex or demanding. It would have been delivered on time and budget, and completed safely.
A client testimonial is expected, and control of noise, pollution and disturbance will be considered. Primary criteria against which entries will be assessed are: Professionalism/ Expertise; Hazard Remediation – Approach and Success; Approach to Recycling; Client Satisfaction.
Who can enter? Open to all demolition contractors.
This category recognises innovation in the design and engineering of new plant and equipment, attachments, hand tools and other products that meet the specific requirements of the demolition and recycling industries. Entries must have been introduced to the market between 1 July 2025 and 30 June 2026.
Submissions should objectively demonstrate what is special or unique about the product/solution and include background development, design requirements and full specifications.
Open to all manufacturers and solutions providers.
This category is for specific high profile demolition projects with a contract value in excess of US $1 million that imposed major challenges to successful completion or which required an innovative demolition approach. Entries should demonstrate these challenges and how they were successfully overcome, on time, within budget and with an exemplary safely.
Submissions should include demolition methodology statements, site waste management plans and any other relevant project documentation that will allow the judges to validate the Award Statement. Client testimonials concerning the work carried out should also be supplied if possible.
Who can enter? Open to all demolition contractors
This award recognises demolition projects that demonstrate outstanding achievement in the recovery, reuse and high-value recycling of C&D materials.
Entries should show how the project maximised material recovery, promoted circular economy principles and delivered measurable recycling outcomes through effective planning, innovation and execution.
Note: Environmental impacts related specifically to site operations (such as fuel use, emissions, noise, dust, biodiversity, etc.) will be assessed in the Environmental Award category.
Open to all demolition contractors.
This award recognises demolition projects that demonstrate outstanding reduction of environmental impact during operations.
Entries must provide evidence of measurable improvements in emissions, energy use, noise, dust, biodiversity protection and overall site sustainability achieved through strong planning, innovation and execution.
Note: Recycling performance and material recovery are assessed separately in the Recycling Award category.
Open to all demolition contractors.
Tell the judges why your blow-down contract should receive an award. It may have been unusually complex or demanding. It would have been delivered on time and budget, and completed safely. A client testimonial would normally be expected, and control of noise, pollution and disturbance will be taken into account.
Primary criteria against which entries will be assessed are: Professionalism/ Expertise; Contract Complexity; Impact Minimisation & Neighbourhood relations; Client Satisfaction.
Who can enter? Open to all demolition contractors.
This award will be made to contractors involved in specific projects that required a high degree of collaboration between all parties involved, including demolition contractor, main contractor and client. Entries should show the levels of collaboration achieved and the benefits that these generated to achieve a successful outcome.
The judges will require statements/information from all involved parties concerning their individual view of the success of collaboration, along with full project details indicating any elements whereby collaboration was essential in achieving successful completion of the overall project and/or specific phases.
Who can enter? Open to all demolition contractors.
The international judging panel will make an overall award to the entry that they believe to be the best across all categories. This award is not open to entries.
Project Director, Environmental and People, at COWI, Denmark
With more than 25 years’ experience as a consultant within the field of environment and handling demolition projects, Henrik has extensive experience related to building contamination and the handling of demolition materials.
His experience ranges from mapping building contamination and preparing tenders for remediation, to developing strategies for the reuse of materials and devising methods for carrying out demolition works.
Henrik holds a master’s degree in environmental science and has extensive experience in managing major, complex projects, addressing environmental issues and coordinating with multiple high-level stakeholders.
An expert in environmental remediation and demolition, he has served as a special inspector for the Danish Demolition Association since 2004.
During his career at COWI, Henrik has been involved in numerous international projects; the most notable of which saw him serve as the head of the company’s environmental department for the design of two international airports in Oman, where he was stationed for four years (from 2008 to 2012) to complete the project.
Manager of Cerise Family LLP
Leonard has over 42 years of experience and was the owner and president of Cherry Companies, which specialised in demolition services for the commercial, residential, and industrial sector, as well as providing recycling services alongside roll-off and transportation services.
His hands-on-approach to leadership resulted in the company’s turnover rising from US$ 500,000 in 1985 to over $175 million in 2020 – by which time it had become one of the 10 largest demolition companies in the US and was believed to be the largest construction and demolition waste recycler in the state of Texas.
Over the years, Leonard has been an active member of multiple industry bodies – including the Association of General Contractors (AGC), the Construction & Demolition Recycling Association (CDRA), and the National Demolition Association (NDA) serving as its president.
Today, Leonard heads up Cerise Family LLP, which was formed in 2020 after the sale of Cherry Companies. Cerise provides demolition consultancy services utilising the knowledge and expertise that Leonard and his team cultivated through the growth of the original Cherry family business.
Independent demolition consultant
Francisco was born in Spain in 1956. He holds a degree in information sciences and in law from the Complutense University of Madrid (Spain). He has been a practicing lawyer since 1983.
As founder of the Spanish Association of Demolition Contractors (AEDED), Francisco served as its first executive director for nine years.
At European level, Francisco’s involvement with the European Demolition Association (EDA) spanned more than four decades, having first joined in 1980. He served on the board of directors from 2008 to 2019 and was the president from 2018 until June 2022.
Francisco also contributed to the establishment of the European Decontamination Institute (EDI), founded in 2012, and is a past president of this institute.
Founder and president of Costello Dismantling Company (US)
Dan is the founder and president of Massachusetts-based Costello Dismantling Company, Inc., which has served the demolition, dismantling, environmental and recycling needs of clients for more than 40 years.
He has served on both national and local boards of directors for various industry associations, contributing his expertise and leadership to the advancement of the field.
In addition, he has participated on numerous advisory committees, offering guidance on a wide range of issues pertaining to demolition practices, safety and innovation.
In recognition of his longstanding contributions and impact on the industry, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame by the Construction & Demolition Recycling Association (CDRA) in 2022.
Director of Liberty Industrial (Australia)
Clinton is the founding director of Australia’s leading industrial deconstruction company, Liberty Industrial. He is a highly regarded industry expert and has been involved with the successful execution of some of the world’s largest and technically complex demolition undertakings.
A civil engineer specialising in large project demolition and remediation, Clinton has more than 25 years of demolition project delivery and leadership experience, and prior to launching Liberty Industrial, held a variety of consulting, engineering, project management and other senior roles within the demolition industry.
Clinton’s leadership and expertise have been critical to the growth and direction of Liberty Industrial, a specialist deconstruction and remediation contracting business known for its ability to deliver demolition projects of the largest scale and highest calibre.
Over the years, he has been a regular speaker at the World Demolition Summit, presenting high-profile and complex demolition projects. He is regularly featured in the industry media as a subject matter expert.
Director of major projects at Cardem (France)
Patrick has been involved in the demolition industry since 1986 and is currently international director at Cardem, a French demolition and decontamination contractor within the Vinci Group. His role is strongly focused on innovation, the development and sharing of best practices, and technical support for complex demolition projects.
In addition, Patrick is the current president of the European Demolition Association (EDA), which provides regular exposure to European-level discussions on demolition practices, innovation and safety.
Principal, executive vice president at Winter Environmental (US)
Jim serves as the executive vice president of the Winter Construction Company, LLC., and its self-performing abatement, demolition and remediation division, Winter Environmental, where he has been since 1994.
With more than 48 years of experience in environmental remediation, he has managed over 3,500 CERCLA, RCRA, TSCA environmental projects at sites throughout 30 states and the Caribbean.
Jim’s project involvement is numerous and varied. It includes decontamination and remediation of facilities contaminated with herbicides, pesticides, PCBs and other organic chemicals; asbestos, heavy metals and mould; select, structural and marine demolition; industrial decommissioning/dismantling; radiological clean-up; and catastrophic response.
Clients have included the federal government, department of defence, USEPA, USCG, and department of energy; utility and power generation entities; commercial and industrial petrochemical manufacturing; healthcare; mining and state and local municipalities.
Jim has also been involved in the development of remediation technologies, including the successful adaptation of a de-watering technology that was originally used in the mining and industrial markets and two thermal incineration technologies.
He is an annual volunteer in support of the Georgia Special Olympics and has served as chairperson for the summer games. Jim is also on the advisory board for United Cerebral Palsy of Georgia and on the Georgia Brownfield Association board of directors.
In addition, Jim is currently the co-chair of the City of Duluth, Georgia’s Downtown Development Authority and serves on the board of directors for the National Demolition Association (NDA).
Vice president, Hayden Wrecking (US)
Ben is the current president of the National Demolition Association (NDA). He is also a leader at Hayden Wrecking in East Saint Louis, Illinois, a company founded in 1945 by his grandfather, William R. Hayden.
Ben joined Hayden Wrecking as operations manager and is part of the current leadership team alongside his brothers, Brian and Nick Hayden.
Hayden Wrecking specialszes in full-service demolition, dismantling, asset recovery and concrete saw cutting. The company has a long history in the industrial sector and emphasises safety and quality in its operations, with a strong commitment to training and experienced personnel.
Ben has a deep understanding of the demolition industry, having grown up in a family business within the sector. His involvement with the NDA progressed from committee work to board membership, then to treasurer, and ultimately to president.
As NDA president, he is focused on workforce development, safety and membership growth. He advocates for attracting new talent to the industry, emphasising the importance of education and training, and aims to expand the association’s local chapter presence and the number of certified demolition supervisors.
Director of business development, Trifecta Services Company (US)
Scott has been involved in the demolition industry for 45 years, starting at a family-run business as a demolition burner and labourer, before working his way up to managing the family operation.
He holds a certificate in demolition management and a foundation qualification in construction engineering from Springburn College of Engineering in Scotland.
Throughout his career, Scott has gained experience across the US, from small companies to becoming project manager at Independence Demolition, in Ohio, which is the fifth-largest company in the industry.
More recently, he became director of business development at Trifecta Services Company where he works to drive strategic growth and sales initiatives for the Charlotte, North Carolina-headquartered demolition contractor.
Scott has been a member of the National Demolition Association (NDA) for nearly 25 years. He served on the board of directors for six years and was the first to act as convention chair for two consecutive years.
Independent demolition consultant (US)
After graduating with a degree in environmental safety and safety management, Bill spent the first 15 years of his career as a construction safety engineer for an insurance company.
He joined US-based contractor Brandenburg Industrial Services in 1985.
Brandenburg was one of the NDA’s charter members and the company’s owner, Tom Little, was president in the 1980s. In 2001, Bill himself became president of the NDA. He was also chairman of the association’s safety committee for over 10 years.
Now retired after 28 years at Brandenburg and a further eight working part-time at ERM Corporation, Bill works as an expert witness for demolition, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and safety-related legal cases.
During his career, Bill has devoted much of his time to educating the next generation of deconstruction leaders. For more than ten years, he served as a guest lecturer at Purdue University – the world-renowned public research university in Indiana, US, where he taught demolition risk management and demolition equipment safety.
Today, Bill continues to be active member of the industry. He also spends a great deal of time volunteering for the non-profit organisation, Habitat for Humanity.
CEO, O’Rourke Wrecking Company (US)
Michele is CEO of O’Rourke Wrecking Company, a US-based demolition and environmental contractor established in 1962. The company is consistently ranked among ENR’s top 15 demolition firms and recognised for its work in technically demanding urban environments, with a strong focus on safety, planning and execution.
She brings more than 30 years of experience in the construction industry and has led the company since 2019, overseeing complex, high-profile demolition and remediation projects across the US. She is one of the few female CEOs in the US demolition industry.
Michele is actively involved in industry leadership and workforce development initiatives and serves on the National Demolition Association awards committee, the State of Ohio governor’s workforce board, and the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) Ohio board, in addition to the boards of Allied Construction Industries, the Spirit of Construction Foundation, and the American Heart Association.
Safedem (UK)
David Sinclair is a demolition engineer with over 55 years of extensive experience in all aspects of the industry. He is regarded as a leader in the global demolition industry and has been recognised for his focus on training and education of demolition operatives in the UK, Europe and the US.
During his career, David has received lifetime achievement awards from the National Federation of Demolition Contractors (NFDC), the National Demolition Association (NDA) and the European Demolition Association (EDA). He serves as a director and a board member of NDA and is a past president of the NFDC and the EDA.
As well as being an honorary fellow of the Institute of Demolition Engineers (IDE), David is also a member of the European Federation of Explosives Engineers (EFEE) and of the EDA’s Club of Honour.
David was engaged by the UN Office of Project Services to assist on location with the preparation of a “Master Plan”, for the demolition and recycling of suitable materials arising from hundreds of damaged buildings and structures in Port-au-Prince, Haiti following the devastating earthquake in 2010.
Director – product development & marketing, Kobelco Construction Machinery USA, Inc.
With more than three decades of experience in the heavy equipment industry, Dan has held leadership roles across sales, parts, service, product development and marketing – at both dealer and manufacturer levels.
His career has included a number of overseas assignments and began in the parts and service department of a dealership through a high school work programme.
For the past 10 years, Dan has focused on developing new excavator products tailored to the demands of the demolition sector. At Kobelco USA, he plays a key role in launching customer-driven and application-based machines for construction, recycling and demolition.
In addition to his work at Kobelco, Dan is an active member of the National Demolition Association (NDA) in the US and currently serves on the organisation’s growth committee.
Industrial segment lead, demolition, Caterpillar, Inc.
As the demolition segment lead at Caterpillar, Jean-Christophe is responsible for advancing demolition solutions across Europe, including machines, hydromechanical attachments, technology and services.
With 26 years of industry experience – 18 years in construction equipment and 8 years in automotive – he began his career as a design engineer, working on hybrid systems development and providing technical support for excavators.
Jean-Christophe has managed machine development and product line management teams across Europe and Japan, before leading the global business strategy and implementation of Caterpillar’s purpose-built machines.
He holds a degree in electromechanical engineering from the University of Liège, Belgium, with a focus on power systems, and has been a member of the European Demolition Association (EDA) for the past two years.
Working gear product marketing manager, Komatsu UK
Simon is the working gear product marketing manager at Komatsu UK, based at the company’s crawler excavator manufacturing facility in northeast England. He has been with Komatsu for nearly 26 years and holds a degree in mechanical engineering from Brunel University London, where he specialised in fluid mechanics.
With more than 20 years of experience working in the demolition industry, Simon has seen Komatsu introduce a range of major innovations, from the standardisation of tilting cabs for demolition excavators and the introduction of the first powered pin boom change system to the K100 boom change technology.
He has developed a great understanding of the challenges faced by demolition contractors and is continually impressed by the skill, expertise and innovation demonstrated across the industry.
Simon says that he particularly enjoys engaging with contractors, listening to their experiences, understanding their operational needs and learning about the challenges they overcome on complex demolition projects.
Director of national accounts – demolition & forestry, Volvo Construction Equipment in North America
With a career spanning over 28 years in the construction equipment industry, Tony began as a mechanical engineer in product development after graduating in 1998.
He holds a master’s degree in engineering management and spent a decade in design before transitioning to sales to build closer relationships with customers and gain a broader perspective on the business.
Tony has supported customers across nine states in a regional sales role and now works with Volvo’s strategic accounts team based in Shippensburg, Pennsylvania, home to the company’s North American sales headquarters, manufacturing facility and customer demonstration center.
Outside of work, Tony is an avid cyclist and loves repairing and building projects. He and his wife Angela, his high school sweetheart, live in Carlisle, PA. They are proud parents of two daughters: Kaitlynn, a Kent State graduate with a degree in zoology, and Emma, a landscape architecture student at Colorado State University.
Senior vice president demolition, Americas, Steelwrist
Walter brings more than 50 years of experience in the construction equipment industry to the role as judge. He began his career in 1971 after serving in the US Army’s infantry maintenance division and went on to work for an IH dealership throughout the 1970s, where he helped build the company’s footprint in the excavator and attachments markets.
In 1981, Walter joined Akerman excavators, rising from a workshop role to sales and eventually depot manager, before remaining with the company during its 1989 acquisition by Volvo.
He formally joined Volvo in 2001, taking on leadership roles including excavator product manager, attachment manager and director of demolition, before retiring from the company in 2020.
He now provides consulting services to companies across the demolition equipment sector and serves as senior vice president demolition, Americas, for Steelwrist.
awards Host
Matt Dawson was a scrum half and a key part of the England rugby team that won the 2003 World Cup. One of England’s most capped players of all time, he’s now as well known for his media appearances from A Question of Sport to Masterchef.
As a player, Matt played over 70 times for England, and famously his pass in the dying moments of the World Cup final resulted in the kick that won the game. He also captained England and played on three Lions’ tours. As part of the world-beating team he was involved in a revolutionary set-up that introduced new ideas and professional attitudes. He witnessed first-hand the organisation and team structure, the handing of responsibility to individuals and coaches, the culture of team and player accountability and the analysis of performances.
Since his retirement, Matt has developed two parallel careers: in media and in business. In the former he’s a regular commenting on live matches for BT Sport and BBC 5Live. He was also the longest serving team captain on the BBC perennial A Question of Sport, where his banter with opposing captain Phil Tufnell became a popular feature of a show that’s been on air for over four decades.
In business, Matt is an Exec Director at JLL specialising in Strategic Clients in EMEA. Working in outsourcing and real estate for the last 20 years has given him an insight into global businesses, how they run, the expectations of clients, and how to deal with everyday challenges from getting groups to work together to accountability for results.
Constantly challenging himself, Matt won his series of Celebrity Masterchef (which has seen him develop a sideline in food-related books and programmes including Mitch and Matt’s Big Fish) and finishing runner-up in Strictly Come Dancing. He’s also appeared on Would I Lie To You?, The Wright Stuff, and celebrity editions of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? and The Chase.
Matt applies lessons from the pitch and dressing room and combines them with his commercial knowledge to deliver messages on everything from staff engagement to leadership culture. As well as serious business insights he is also an accomplished presenter, adding humour and understanding to awards and to conferences. He also pairs up with his QoS sparring partner Tuffers for an evening of light-hearted chat and anecdotes.
Organising the World Demolition Awards is huge task, and nothing is more important to us than ensuring that all award entries are judged fairly and on their own merits.
Our award judges are experts in the field of demolition and dismantling, and collectively have over 300 years of demolition industry experience.
Each year the judging panel consists of around 10 individuals, who are based in different locations around the world.
They follow a strict Code of Conduct.
The judging process we employ is one of independence and confidentiality.
Once the deadline for entries closes, the WDS programme organiser assigns three judges to each award category.
NO judge is ever given an award category that includes a company with which they are or have previously worked for.
We securely send each of the judges the award entries for the category they are judging.
NO judge has access to the entries sent to another judge, even if they are judging the same award category.
If a judge is marking more than one award category, which most do, these are also sent separately.
The judges review each project on its own merits, with consideration given to overall professionalism and technical expertise, how each project’s specific challenges have been overcome, financial and schedule management, safety, innovation, team management and client satisfaction.
Without comparing one project entry to another in its category, the judges then assign a mark out of 100 to each entry. This mark is based on what they feel, based on their expert knowledge and years of experience, is reflective of the entry.
Once each of the judges have finished marking an award category, they securely send their marks and any specific comments to the WDS programme organiser.
AT NO TIME, during the judging process or even after the awards have been given out at the World Demolition Awards ceremony, do the judges see how another has scored a project in any category.
This ensures that the integrity and independence of the judges’ expertise and opinions – and of the World Demolition Awards themselves – is maintained.
The WDS programme organiser then takes each of the judges’ marks for each project entry and adds them up. Thus, the project with the highest score is declared the award winner.
This process ensures that not even our judges know who has won any of the awards, until they are announced at the World Demolition Awards ceremony.
Only the WDS programme organiser knows who the winners are.
This information is kept strictly confidential, with relevant members of the KHL events and production team (around three to four individuals) only being told the names of the winners a few weeks before the ceremony, so that they can order the trophies and make the required graphics for the award ceremony.
This is why our industry awards are the most coveted and highly respected in the world.
Serving the global demolition and recycling industry since 1999, D&Ri is established as the first-choice media platform for contractors and manufacturers.
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The World Demolition Summit 2026 is created and organized by Demolition and Recycling International magazine and its publisher KHL Group, in partnership with the European Demolition Association and with the support of the National Demolition Association.
Novotel Madrid Center
O’Donnell Street, 53. 28009 Madrid, Spain
3-5 November 2026:
Welcome drinks reception
Conference and Awards
All the latest product and market news from the global demolition industry in digital format.
