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From the Archives – Turning a Decommissioning Challenge into Opportunity| Ilkeston

Industrial decommissioning of former pipe manufacturing plant in Ilkeston by RVA Group

From time to time, we like to look back on some of the projects from RVA’s earlier years, reminding ourselves of the challenges we encountered and the lessons that continue to shape our approach to decommissioning today.

Today, we came across a case study from one of our major industrial decommissioning projects at Stanton-by-Dale in Ilkeston, where RVA was brought in to help Saint-Gobain PAM UK find a safe and commercially viable solution for two mothballed manufacturing plants.

With the former Central Melting Plant and adjacent Hallam Plant having been out of production since 2006, the initial view was that deplanting and demolition could prove prohibitively expensive. RVA was asked to investigate the available options and, through detailed feasibility work, identified an approach that could generate sufficient value from recovered materials to fund the project.

The project is a great example of how taking a different perspective on decommissioning can turn what initially appears to be a significant financial liability into an opportunity — while maintaining the focus on safety, quality and effective project delivery.

Read the full case study below to find out more about how RVA helped make this major decommissioning project possible.

To learn more about RVA’s experience in decommissioning and demolition projects, or discuss your own requirements, we’d be happy to talk.

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RVA Group Hosts Safety in Decommissioning Webinar to Share Industry Best Practice

Last week, the Safety in Decom Network, Step Change in Safety, and Decom Mission hosted a webinar bringing together professionals from across the decommissioning sector to share experiences, lessons learned, and practical safety insights from major projects.

The objective of these networks is simple but important: to promote the sharing of good practice, learning, and innovation that helps improve safety performance across decommissioning projects.

Steve Andrew, Technical Director of RVA Group and Co-Chair of the Safety in Decom Network, had the pleasure of hosting and facilitating the session.

We were privileged to hear excellent presentations from:
🔹John Kruse (Adura) – Nelson Derrick Removal Project
🔹Alex Hadden (Brown & Mason Group Limited) – The CDM journey from cessation of production through to onshore demolition
🔹Gareth van Heerden and Nigel Wright (Nuclear Restoration Services) – Trawsfynydd Height Reduction Project

The diversity of the case studies, spanning offshore decommissioning, onshore  demolition , and nuclear decommissioning, demonstrated how effective planning, workforce engagement, risk management, collaboration, and learning from experience can help prevent incidents and improve safety outcomes across high-hazard industries.

A common theme throughout the session was that safer outcomes are achieved when organisations share knowledge openly and learn from both successes and challenges.

At RVA Group, drawing on our experience of delivering more than 1,000 decommissioning and demolition projects, we strongly believe that continuous improvement in safety depends on collaboration, knowledge sharing, and the willingness to learn from experience throughout the decommissioning lifecycle.

Thank you to everyone involved in organising the webinar, and to all the presenters and participants who contributed to such an insightful and valuable discussion.

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RVA Group to Share Decommissioning Expertise at Aging Assets & Decommissioning 2026

RVA Group has been appointed to share its specialist decommissioning and demolition expertise at the Aging Assets & Decommissioning 2026 conference in Brisbane, Australia, taking place from 19–21 October 2026.

As part of the event, RVA will deliver a presentation examining “Deliberate Collapse and Explosive Demolition: Identifying Potential Failure Modes and How to Mitigate”, exploring the critical considerations required to plan and execute complex demolition activities safely.

The presentation will form part of the conference’s programme focused on planning, executing, and delivering successful decommissioning projects. It will consider key factors including understanding structural behaviour, selecting the appropriate demolition methodology, developing robust risk assessments and method statements, and preparing effective contingency arrangements.

RVA will also facilitate a full-day interactive workshop titled “Expert Perspectives on Decommissioning Best Practice Through the Asset Life-Cycle, from Site Concept Through Operations, Decommissioning and Repurposing.”

The workshop will explore how effective decommissioning strategies can be developed and refinedfrom conceptual design to the end of an asset’s lifecycle, rather than being considered only when an asset reaches the end of its operational life.

Participants will examine critical decisions, planning requirements and stakeholder considerations that influence successful outcomes from initial site concept and operations through to decommissioning, dismantling, demolition, disposal, remediation, and repurposing.

Key areas of discussion will include:

  • Determining the appropriate level of decommissioning planning and cost estimation at each stage of an asset’s lifecycle
  • Understanding regulatory requirements and the timing of engagement with regulators, communities and other stakeholders
  • Developing safe, sustainable, and commercially viable asset valorisation strategies
  • Maximising circular economy opportunities and aligning decommissioning with waste management best practice
  • Defining the scope of decommissioning, dismantling, demolition and disposal (DDDD)
  • Establishing clear project end points, remediation requirements, and rehabilitation objectives
  • Identifying the appropriate parties to undertake different phases of a decommissioning programme
  • Delivering projects safely, efficiently and responsibly while maintaining environmental, programme and cost objectives

The workshop reflects RVA’s longstanding approach to decommissioning: successful end-of-life asset management starts with effective planning, informed decision-making and risk management well before physical work begins.

With three and a half decades of international experience across complex industrial environments, successfully delivering over 1,000 projects, RVA provides independent engineering, safety and project management expertise across decommissioning, decontamination, dismantling, demolition and site remediation projects. The team has deliveredsuccessfully across the power generation, oil and gas, petrochemical, chemical, pharmaceutical, nuclear and industrial sectors, supporting asset owners with independent technical, safety, environmental and commercial challenges associated with complex end-of-life planning.

RVA is pleased to contribute its experience to this international forum and to support greater knowledge-sharing around safe, sustainable and commercially effective decommissioning.

To book onto the event use the following link: https://www.marcusevans.com/conferences/aging-assets

Find out more about RVA Group’s decommissioning and demolition expertise or discuss your project with our team.

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Market trends don’t shape the future—how we respond to them does.

Across the industrial, energy and manufacturing sectors, we’re seeing a clear shift. Asset owners are increasingly looking beyond demolition as an end-of-life activity and recognising decommissioning as a strategic business decision.

Early planning, independent technical expertise, robust risk management and sustainability are no longer optional—they’re becoming essential for delivering safe, commercially secure and environmentally responsible outcomes.

At RVA Group, we’ve always believed that successful decommissioning starts long before work begins on site. The right strategy, informed by engineering excellence and objective advice, creates value, reduces risk and enables smarter decisions throughout the asset lifecycle.

As industrial assets continue to evolve, organisations that adopt a strategic, engineering-led approach to decommissioning will be best placed to maximise value, minimise risk and support long-term sustainability goals.

RVA Group continues to support clients across the industrial, energy and manufacturing sectors with independent technical expertise, helping them plan and deliver safe, efficient and commercially successful decommissioning projects that create lasting value.

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Audit Success for RVA Group

RVA is delighted to share it has successfully passed their latest certification audit for:
• ISO 9001 – Quality Management
• ISO 14001 – Environmental Management
• ISO 45001 – Occupational Health & Safety Management

Even more pleasing, the audit concluded with zero non-conformances, zero observations, and more than 30 commendations across our management systems.

This outstanding result reflects the hard work, professionalism, and commitment of our team, who continually strive for excellence in everything we do. It demonstrates the effectiveness of our management systems and our dedication to quality, safety, sustainability, and continuous improvement, all of which remain central to how we deliver projects and services for our clients.

The RVA Management System has been specifically developed to manage high-hazard industrial decommissioning and demolition projects, providing a robust framework that supports safe, efficient, and quality-driven project delivery in some of the most challenging industrial environments.

A huge thank you to everyone involved in preparing for and supporting the audit. Your commitment continues to demonstrate what excellence looks like in practice and is a credit to the entire RVA team.

We’re proud of this achievement, but we’re even more focused on what it means for our clients—consistent, safe, and high-quality project delivery.

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RVA Travels to Norway to Support Oil and Gas Asset Retirement Obligation Study

RVA Group Director of Engineering Services Mark Taylor travelling to Norway for an oil and gas ARO study

RVA has delivered projects for clients on every continent so far in 2026 except Antarctica. This Week, RVA’s Director of Engineering Services, Mark Taylor, is travelling to Norway to support an Oil & Gas Operator with the development of an Asset Retirement Obligation (ARO) Study.

With over 35 years of experience and more than 1,000 successfully completed decommissioning, dismantling, and demolition projects, RVA has built a unique database of actual project costs and outcomes. Every ARO we produce is benchmarked against this real-world data, helping deliver robust and defensible cost estimates.

Unlike many estimating approaches, RVA develops AROs from the bottom up, mirroring the way a contractor would plan and price the work. The result is a realistic and transparent estimate that meets operator expectations while complying with AACE International Recommended Practice No. 18R-97.

If your organisation requires support with ARO development, decommissioning planning, or demolition cost estimating, we’d be pleased to discuss how we can help.

Contact RVA for more information

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A Decade of Growth as RVA Strengthens Its Position in the Middle East

For more than a decade RVA has been supporting owners and operators of complex process and production assets in the GCC and the wider Middle East. From the early days from getting to know the culture, establishing relationships and finding reliable partners, to seeking out potential clients, securing and delivering a range of varied complex projects; the experience has been both exciting and educational.

Winding forward 10 years, and having provided a wide range of decommissioning, dismantling and demolition related services in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE, RVA is now fully established as the gold-standard specialist engineering supplier to many of the region’s largest companies. These include global players in the power generation, chemical, water, desalination, petrochemical, oil and gas sectors.

By leveraging its 35 years hard earned experience gained from successfully completing over 1,000 decommissioning projects, RVA has continued to expand its operations and widened its presence in an area where opportunities continue to grow.

The journey began when RVA was contacted following a serious fire on a refinery site in KSA, with RVA’s role being to support the client in sourcing and engaging with contractors who could safely dismantle the fire damaged assets without further HSE incident. Working closely with the client’s team and regulators, RVA’s site and remotely based engineers ensured the project was completed as planned and importantly, without any disruptions to continuing critical operations.

RVA has established formal agreements with a number of country-based engineering partners who provide a local presence, additional engineering services, and make sure there is total compliance with the regulatory frameworks. Every region has specific cultural and procedural standards and RVA remains conscious that these must always be respected and complied with.

Across its projects, RVA has provided a wide range of services, including but not
limited to:

 Asset evaluation and monetisation strategy plans
 Client support with regulators, landowners and offtakers
 Decommissioning plans
 Feasibility and options studies
 Decommissioning and demolition estimates
 Scope of work and tender package compilation
 End of asset useful life evaluation
 Contractor section and procurement support
 Development of project specific risk assessments and HSE plan
 Review of method statements, risk assessments and other safe systems of work
 Contractor onboarding, induction, and compliance verification
 In-country execution phase project, HSE management and ‘intelligent friend’
capability
 Management of asset dismantling for relocation

Richard Vann, managing director is quoted as saying “The opportunities for RVA in the Middle East make it an area where our vision is clearly focused. We see the market growing at a greater rate over the next couple of decades, perhaps than anywhere else in the world.”

Our aim is to strengthen and consolidate our presence in the region, while continuing to engage with both existing and prospective clients. Most importantly, we seek to share the knowledge and experience gained through many years of project delivery, helping clients achieve safe, efficient, and cost-effective decommissioning, decontamination, dismantling, and demolition outcomes’.

If you would like to discuss a decommissioning, dismantling or demolition project in the Middle East or GCC region, we would be pleased to help.

Contact RVA for more information

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From the Archives – RVA Emergency Rescue | Turkmenistan Refinery Demolition

RVA Group emergency recovery on a failed refinery demolition project in Turkmenistan

From time to time, we like to look back on some of the projects from 25 years ago just to remind ourselves of some of our early days’ experiences.

Today we came across a case study of our first experience where RVA was parachuted in by the client to recover a failed project. Not only had two operatives suffered fatal injuries but also the ongoing safety management regime was unfit for purpose, and the work was significantly behind programme.

RVA’s team made a number of visits to Turkmenistan and helped the client and contractor who was working with antiquated plant and limited resources to complete the project without further incident.

To learn more about RVA’s experience in decommissioning and demolition projects, or discuss your own requirements, we’d be happy to talk.

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From First Project to Trusted Partner: 15 Years Shaping Safe Demolition in Singapore

Jurong Island, Singapore, site of RVA Group's high-hazard process plant demolition projects

Summary:

Matthew Waller, RVA Group’s Operations Director is back in Singapore this week to hold meetings and inspect our projects currently underway in the country; a country where RVA first set foot over a decade and a half ago.

For 15 years, RVA has been at the forefront of high-hazard process plant demolition in Singapore—building trusted partnerships, transferring critical expertise, and helping shape safer industry practices. From a single project with INVISTA, a part of Koch Industries, to becoming a recognised partner across Asia, this journey reflects a commitment to precision, collaboration, and delivery.

Article:

From First Project to Trusted Partner

Celebrating a journey of expertise, collaboration, and impact in one of the world’s most advanced industrial landscapes.

Fifteen years ago, RVA arrived in Singapore to support a long-term client, INVISTA, with a highly specialised challenge: the decommissioning and demolition of a high-hazard process plant.

From the outset, it was clear that Singapore offered something exceptional. With world-class capabilities in the high-hazard process sector and a highly skilled workforce, the foundations for success were already in place. However, in relatively new and rapidly expanding industrial regions, demolition and decommissioning are often not fully considered, when growth is the main driver. At some point however, the need for specialist support is required and with it, a distinct level of expertise—one that RVA was uniquely positioned to provide.

“It was immediately clear we were working in a fantastic country, with wonderful people and deep technical experience,” RVA reflects. “But there was also an opportunity to contribute something new.”

Building Expertise and Trust

That first project marked the beginning of a long-standing presence in Singapore. Over the years, RVA has worked with leading organisations including Jurong Town Corporation (JTC), Teijin Polycarbonates, Tate & Lyle, Total and other major clients across the region.

Each project has required a careful balance of engineering precision, risk management, and operational discipline. Demolition in high-hazard process environments is inherently complex—demanding a deep understanding of structures, process risks, and potential failure modes.

Yet, beyond technical delivery, RVA’s most meaningful achievement lies in collaboration.

“One of our proudest contributions has been working alongside local Singaporean contractors and their Malaysian teammates—supporting them in developing the knowledge and confidence to safely deliver demolition in high-hazard environments.”

Overcoming Challenges Through Communication

Early on, one of the key challenges was bridging the gap between conventional demolition practices and the strict controls required in high-hazard industrial settings.

The solution was not just technical—it was cultural.

“These experiences reinforced a fundamental principle: success depends on clear communication and shared understanding. When expectations are properly defined and truly understood, projects are set up for success.”

This approach has become a cornerstone of RVA’s work in Singapore—ensuring alignment across teams, disciplines, and cultures.

A Unique Working Environment

Singapore’s dynamic environment has also played an important role in shaping the journey. The balance of urban energy, coastal landscapes, and green spaces creates a unique backdrop for both work and life.

Moments of cultural exchange have also left a lasting impression. One early experience involved arranging a hot works permit to allow a shrine and ceremonial fire as part of a team’s spiritual practice—an example of mutual respect and cultural understanding in action. Another early day’s ‘moment’ was explaining to a group of contractors that the wearing of harnesses for working at height are of no value if not secured to suitable fixed points.

A Defining Milestone

The successful completion of the first project marked a turning point. Recognition from JTC and other Singaporean clients established RVA not just as a specialist provider, but as a trusted partner.

That trust has been built and reinforced over many years of consistent delivery, collaboration, and shared learning.

Looking Ahead

Today, Singapore remains a key part of RVA’s future.

“It’s a great place, with great people and significant opportunity. We continue to see strong potential here.”

As RVA looks ahead, its commitment remains clear: to support safe, efficient, and expertly managed demolition and decommissioning projects—while continuing to strengthen partnerships across Singapore’s industrial sector.

Nothing has changed over the years, and the mission remains the same:

Keep everyone safe, deliver excellence, build trust, add value and help shape safer practices in one of the world’s most demanding environments.

If you’d like to learn more about RVA’s experience in high-hazard decommissioning and demolition projects, or discuss your own requirements, we’d be happy to talk.

Explore RVA’s specialist services

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Driving Clarity in Complex Refinery Decommissioning

PRAX Lindsey Oil Refinery, Immingham, site supporting RVA's decommissioning and demolition study

RVA is proud to announce the successful delivery of an independent study supporting the preparation for decommissioning and demolition works at the PLOR – PRAX Lindsey Oil Refinery, Immingham.

Operating within the downstream oil & gas and refining sector, this strategically significant project demanded a clear, defensible understanding of end-of-life liabilities, asset retirement obligations, and redevelopment potential.

RVA delivered a robust, fully auditable programme and cost assessment, enabling the client to make confident, data-driven strategic decisions.

By combining deep expertise in industrial decommissioning, demolition engineering, with commercial insight and brownfield redevelopment, RVA continues to support clients across the oil & gas, petrochemical, and heavy industrial sectors—helping them mitigate risk, unlock value, and transition assets with confidence.

Read the full project summary

Read the original LinkedIn post here

Planning a refinery shutdown, asset retirement, or site redevelopment? Get in touch with RVA about how we can support your strategy.

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