ashbritt environmental , commonly referred to as ashbritt or ashbritt , inc. , is located in deerfield beach , florida and is a company specializing in disaster relief operations .

ashbritt

ashbritt <EOT> fema officials have yet to determine whether the rates charged by ashbritt are reasonable .

cbs : lion ' s share of katrina money went to politically connected ashbritt .

the corps eventually approved an emergency supplemental contract for ashbritt worth about $ 800 million .

he said about 70 percent of the contractors hired by ashbritt are from new jersey .

let’s first review some background about how florida - based ashbritt came to new jersey .

allowing their executives and lobbyists to reap large profits at the expense of taxpayers . ashbritt

ashbritt and their subcontractors do not abide by the rules . the occupational safety and health

death of a teenage worker . another subcontractor hired by ashbritt was a convicted felon with

ashbritt’s contract was , in fact , awarded through a competitive process involving 22 bidders .

ashbritt environmental is a national turnkey rapid - response disaster recovery and special environmental services contractor .

ashbritt maintains some of the strictest operational and management safety guidelines in the industry . learn more .

ashbritt , located in deerfield beach , florida , is a company specializing in disaster relief operations .

broward county government officials expressed similar concern about ashbritt’s fees . a letter from an assistant director in the facilities department questioned why ashbritts work had no written authorization . he added , “the pricing appeared unreasonably high and unfortunately because these services were outside the scope” of services to be provided by ashbritt .

to the extent that ashbritt’s disaster recovery work produced controversy , perkins chalks it up to naked politics .

ashbritt cited in race for rep . patrick murphy ' s u . s . house district 18 seat

establish an independent testing and monitoring program . ashbritt is responsible for environmental restoration of both public and leased sites . ashbritt will also remove all debris from sites for final disposal at landfills prior to closure .

the army corps of engineers confirmed that ashbritt worked briefly in new orleans before moving east to mississippi .

we also checked with the gao about ashbritt’s alleged role , and the agency confirmed that neither ashbritt nor any other disposal company was referenced in their report . the gao is the investigative arm of congress .

ashbritt was the biggest debris removal contractor in mississippi after katrina . ashbritt won a competitive contract with the corps of engineers to do the corps’ clean - up in mississippi , and this turned out to be a great blessing for our state . ashbritt did a tremendous job , subcontracted work to many mississippi companies and provided jobs to hundreds of our workers . originally i was skeptical of the corps bringing in an outside company , but ashbritt proved me wrong , and we will always be grateful for ashbritt in our state .

christie used a contract already in place between connecticut and ashbritt as the model for the new jersey contract .

ashbritt august 2015 , title sponsor for the overtown youth center “day of service – save our sons initiative” .

congressman chip pickering ( r - ms ) , however , pulled no punches describing ashbritt’s work after katrina .

barbour , who is a close friend of christie and helped shepherd his political career , personally suggested ashbritt .

brittany perkins is the chief executive officer at ashbritt environmental and a member of the company’s board of directors . brittany oversees the company direction and strategy of ashbritt . she directly manages business partnerships and client relations . after being named ceo in 2016 , brittany oversaw ashbritt’s response operations to the blue cut fire in san bernardino read more

still , perkins points to ashbritt as a shining example of how he could apply his business skills in congress .

ashbritt is well versed in collecting , managing , and disposing of mixed construction and demolition debris . learn more .

doherty was the target of a corruption investigation over the ashbritt contract , though no charges were ever brought against him . he was also accused of terminating another debris removal contract and awarding it instead to ashbritt due to political considerations .

subcontractors claimed in more than a dozen lawsuits that ashbritt didn ' t pay them all or part of the money they were owed for katrina cleanup work they did in mississippi . ashbritt and the plaintiffs settled most cases — confidentially .

ashbritt officials declined to comment on the hurricane katrina contracts . jean todd , a federal contracting officer who helps oversee the ashbritt deal for the army corps of engineers , said she was determined to ensure that the price was fair .

in mississippi , ashbritt conducted debris removal , hazardous tree mitigation and demolition services in 17 jurisdictions , covering over 8 , 400 square miles ( 22 , 000 km 2 ) and over 175 miles ( 280 km ) inland . ashbritt collected , hauled and processed 21 million cubic yards of debris and wreckage . ashbritt staffed , managed and operated 49 debris management sites . ashbritt hauled over 700 , 000 loads of debris , using 12 , 400 certified operational vehicles .

ashbritt’s critics contend it artificially drives up costs and takes advantage of officials in desperate circumstances , intimidated by washington bureaucracy .

the state contract allows the towns to hire ashbritt without bidding out the work and frees them of some environmental regulations . unlike any other contractor , ashbritt is allowed to bring in subcontractors that don’t have a state license to transport waste .

ashbritt general counsel jared moskowitz called tittel’s claim about the company’s role in new orleans and louisiana " hocus pocus . "

former gov . haley barbour of mississippi — a founding partner of ashbritt’s washington lobbying firm — told the star - ledger he recommended that christie use ashbritt . christie took barbour’s advice , and 43 towns also hired the firm without bidding .

ashbritt was the initial response prime contractor for the usace in both louisiana ( la ) and mississippi ( ms ) . within the first 30 days following contract activation , ashbritt initiated debris removal operations in 11 louisiana jurisdictions as well as the causeway on highway 90 . additionally , usace assigned ashbritt , by task order , to service 16 separate jurisdictions in mississippi covering over 8 , 400 square miles providing debris removal operations from the coast to over 175 miles inland . in louisiana , ashbritt :

christie ' s spokesman , michael drewniak , said that the ashbritt contract was a temporary and fast solution to a crisis .

ashbritt has already made the commitment that all of our marketing proposals and internal documents will be printed on recycled paper . whenever applicable and possible , ashbritt encourages and performs paper - free transactions , eliminating paper completely for internal and external business transactions .

ented ashbritt’s ownership status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

coburn said he was concerned about high fees ashbritt claims to have paid subcontractors with federal and state taxpayer money . coburn questioned whether ashbritt was taking advantage of taxpayers like other environmental restoration companies did after hurricane katrina struck the gulf coast in 2005 .

over the years , ashbritt’s political ties cannot have hurt when it has sought out state contracts . randal perkins , the founder of ashbritt , has close ties to former gov . haley barbour of mississippi , one of gov . chris christie’s early supporters .

as a result , ashbritt is dominating the debris - removal market in parts of the state ravaged by sandy . but some local officials and haulers say ashbritt’s pitch is nothing more than a scare tactic to lure local officials to pay its higher premiums .

in long beach township , ashbritt was paid $ 719 , 309 to collect and haul 7 , 149 tons of debris — at a rate of $ 100 a ton — according to records provided by ocean county , which has encouraged towns to use ashbritt .

doherty and other new jersey officials , including gov . chris christie , who awarded contracts to ashbritt said their primary concern was a quick and effective sandy response . christie was fast - tracking a $ 100 million contract for ashbritt even before sandy made landfall .

he admitted that he had an ownership interest in one of ashbritt’s subcontractors on the sandy job , and another after hurricane katrina .

local mayors who have employed the company in sandy’s aftermath said they had little time to search on their own and welcomed ashbritt .

drewniak pointed out that towns were not obligated to use ashbritt . they could have hired their own cleanup crews , he said .

ashbritt is capable of performing salt and sand spreading services through utilization of our diverse , nationwide , subcontracting partners . learn more .

tittel acknowledged , however , that he had no evidence ashbritt was doing the same things that were questioned in the federal report .

taking the advice of former mississippi gov . haley barbour , christie awarded ashbritt a no - bid contract two days after sandy struck last october . barbour is a founding partner in the lobbying firm that has represented ashbritt’s interests in washington for a number of years .

seaside heights mayor william akers said ashbritt has subbed out the work to a local contractor who already was helping the town with debris removal . " they were on the site anyway , they agreed to ashbritt’s price and they’re still working today , " akers said .

ashbritt also was a co - defendant in an unrelated lawsuit brought by former ambassador lewis lucke . the suit accused ashbritt and partner gb group of breaching their contract and owing lucke $ 492 , 000 for consulting services in the aftermath of the 2010 haiti earthquake .

the army corps of engineers awarded ashbritt a contract worth $ 850 million to remove hurricane katrina debris in mississippi , with an option to increase the dollar amount to one billion dollars . ashbritt had already been activated under a preexisting contingency contract for $ 150 million .

ashbritt does very little debris removal itself , but hires an army of subcontractors and pays them a fraction of the state’s contracted rates .

ashbritt is constantly considering new technology to divert waste away from landfills and into recyclable and sustainable streams of commerce . ashbritt always follows best management practices in reducing , diverting , and disposing of all disaster - generated debris to maximize the potential for recycling and beneficial use .

ashbritt is a provider of emergency clean up services . they have a history of using political connections and pure force to make money .

" these questions need to be answered and i look forward to hearing from ashbritt tomorrow , " ramos said at the news conference .

but perkins is aware he’s going to face a good deal of negativity because of controversies over ashbritt’s contracting and political contributions to republicans .

new jersey gov . chris christie ' s administration awarded ashbritt a no - bid contract to clean up after hurricane sandy in 2012 . before that , ashbritt had hired a lobbying firm founded by former mississippi gov . harley barbour , whom christie called a " mentor . "

once the ashbritt trucks start removing household items , caldwell said he expects they will have to make multiple passes through the hardest hit neighborhoods .

the fourth contractor , crowder gulf of alabama , whose rates are closest to ashbritt’s , are charging $ 16 . 30 a cubic yard .

but while a full picture has yet to form , anecdotal evidence shows towns that did not use ashbritt spent less than those that did .

we encourage safety through our “safety pays” program to reward workers for continued support and compliance with osha and ashbritt safety procedures . learn more .

ashbritt is proficient in the removal of derelict , abandoned , and submerged vessels / vehicles and the management of aggregation sites . learn more .

tittel said christie did not do the due diligence on the contract , adding that does not mean " getting advice from ashbritt’s lobbyist . "

soon after perkins met with the dccc , perkins and ashbritt were the subject of a whisper campaign concerning the debris - removal company’s work after disasters like hurricanes katrina and sandy , as first reported friday in politico florida’s playbook . critics over the years have accused ashbritt of using its political influence to secure contracts or of over - charging the government – charges ashbritt has denied and that have never resulted in criminal charges .

in recent actions , the federal government went after local governments after reviewing cleanup costs . fema has not sought money from contractors like ashbritt .

a day after hurricane sandy struck new jersey , the christie administration awarded ashbritt a $ 100 million no - bid emergency contract to help clean state roads and waterways , also allowing towns to hire the firm without bidding . the contract allowed ashbritt to bypass several business and environmental regulations .

similarly , ashbritt points to alleged inaccuracies in the j & a , including several which it says are found within the portion of the j & a document ashbritt describes as the crux of the agency ' s justification .  protester ' s comments at 12 . this passage states :

as it did in new jersey , ashbritt cultivated high - level political connections as it eyed lucrative contracts after the hurricane struck the gulf coast .

description : ashbritt is a provider of emergency clean up services . they have a history of using political connections and pure force to make money .

we turn first to ashbritt ' s contention that the use of a set - aside is beyond the authority provided agencies by the stafford act .

[ 12 ] we also note for the record that we have heard no suggestion from ashbritt that the exercise of this option by the corps was improper or not needed because the corps had wrongly determined that it was approaching the $ 500 million ceiling applicable to ashbritt ' s base contract .

yet critics claimed ashbritt benefited from its inside connections in the christie administration . ashbritt charged towns $ 21 . 25 per cubic yard to gather roadside debris , nearly double the $ 11 . 70 asking price of another florida company , according to a 2013 asbury park press review of municipal bills .

the pressure local officials felt to open up contracts for bids stemmed from controversy over the rates that ashbritt charged for some of its debris removal services .

as a result , ashbritt has nearly all of the contracts in the county . and fear of losing out on federal dollars helped drive its success .

ashbritt offers client - specific pre - planning , and considers this one of the most advantageous steps in disaster response and recovery operations . learn more .

in addition to osha and other jurisdictional safety requirements , ashbritt continually updates and promotes our incentive driven ‘safety first’ and ‘safety pays’ programs . learn more .

ashbritt is well versed in all waterway debris operations to include floating debris , submerged debris , and sediment removal such as dredging operations . learn more .

u . s . sen . tom coburn ( r - ok ) on wednesday questioned the propriety of a no - bid contract ashbritt obtained from new jersey gov . chris christie . christie awarded ashbritt a no - bid contract last november to remove debris in the wake of extra - tropical storm sandy . late last month , the chairman of ashbritts lobbying firm appeared to be returning the favor , hosting a fundraiser for christie at his virginia home .

schito said his middletown - based company m & s ; waste services was replaced in sea bright by ashbritt after he already had started to haul debris for half the price . he also said local contractors are not getting work while ashbritt and the companies they brought into the state are reaping the rewards .

all of the towns in new jersey that used ashbritt and subsequently contacted by the star - ledger said they were pleased with the company’s speed and efficiency .

ashbritt provides full - service emergency snow and ice support operations to include loading , hauling , sand / salt spreading , and site management . learn more .

the legislators warned that the work being done by the firm , ashbritt inc . of pompano beach , may also pose a danger to the state’s environment .

" the reason she called [ hearings on ashbritt’s contracts ] was political , but she absolutely had an absolute right to do it , for the record . "

perkins boasts that ashbritt pays 100 percent of its employees ' health insurance and has transferred about 25 percent of the company ' s shares to some of them .

this claim caught our eye since ashbritt received a no - bid contract from new jersey to handle the bulk of the hurricane sandy cleanup . even more eye - catching ? the nearly 40 - page gao report cited by tittel not only never mentions ashbritt , it looks only at debris disposal in the new orleans area .

moskowitz said ashbritt was only in louisiana for a couple of weeks after katrina before the army corps of engineers moved them to do debris removal work in mississippi .

finally , ashbritt mounts several challenges to the j & a used here to justify the agency ' s decision to limit competition . specifically , ashbritt contends that the j & a does not fully comply with far requirements , contains factual errors , and does not logically support the limited competition approach selected by the agency . we have reviewed each of ashbritt ' s contentions in this area , and find that none of them lead to a conclusion that the agency has acted improperly here .

“ashbritt , as well as any company , will use every available resource to stay competitive . we are proud of the work we do , ” moskowitz added .

the investigation by the office of inspector general with the department of homeland security was disclosed in a state comptroller’s report released tuesday focusing on whether ashbritt overcharged eight shore towns . the report found the towns were mistakenly overcharged more than $ 300 , 000 , but the errors were made by a group debris monitors , not ashbritt .

a 2006 congressional investigation into fraud and waste in the hurricane katrina cleanup found ashbritt ' s $ 500 million contracts were considered wasteful and mismanaged . ashbritt charged the federal government 44 percent more than a local contractor testified he would have charged . the resulting house minority report found “the people doing the actual work were paid just a fraction of the contract price . ” the company paid subcontractors on average $ 10 of the $ 23 ashbritt was paid per cubic yard , according to the report .

it also allowed ashbritt to engage in a practice that critics would later describe as " double dipping . " perkins was a partial owner of some of the contractors to which it delegated work , meaning in some cases he was making money both from the fee that ashbritt took off the top and the funds allocated to its subcontractor .

a review of the company’s contract with new jersey , obtained by the star - ledger under the state’s open public records act , shows where the ashbritt magic lies .

beaufort county contracted with ashbritt environmental , a company that specializes in disaster recovery services , to find and extract the abandoned boats . they will go to a landfill .

officials insist they can manage two large cleanups at once . throughout the weekend , disaster specialist ashbritt inc , drc emergency services and waste haulers , including waste management (

[ 6 ] we note for the record that ashbritt ' s home office is located in broward county , florida . protester ' s comments at 2 , 10 .

ashbritt has been criticized by local media and members of congress for its cleanup work during hurricane katrina , after accusations that the company was inflating costs of debris removal .

ashbritt is able to provide snow management operations for communities when snow fall gets past the point of simple road maintenance . from plowing to removal , salt spreading to transporting , each event can require a different combination of techniques to clear the rights of way ; ashbritt is a full - service contractor that is able to address each client’s snow / ice support needs . ashbritt assisted over 43 clients during the halloween snowstorm event in 2011 , and most recently assisted more than 10 clients for winter snowstorm jonas .

a week after katrina made landfall , ashbritt , which already employed the lobbying firm founded by mississippi gov . haley barbour , brought on another lobbyist : mike parker , who until just a few years prior was the bush administration official in charge of the army corps of engineers . ashbritt employed parker’s son at the time , perkins noted .

randal “randy” perkins founded ashbritt as a florida corporation in 1992 . randy sets the vision for the organization through his leadership of the ashbritt board of directors . with 25 years of industry leadership , randy has in - depth knowledge of the disaster response and recovery process and stakeholders . randy has completed course work at the university of read more

during catastrophic events , ashbritt can provide necessary services from emergency power , to food , water and ice supplies through the establishment of full man - camps . learn more .

in mississippi , we collected , hauled and processed 20 . 5 million cubic yards of vegetative debris and wreckage while staffing , managing and operating 52 dms . ashbritt specifically :

michael drewniak , a spokesman for the governor , questioned the timing of the news conference , a day before democrats have called a joint legislative hearing on the ashbritt contract .

christie’s decision to award a no - bid contract to ashbritt , described in a series of articles in the star - ledger , has come under fire from democratic lawmakers .

dow knight is a graduate of the united states merchant marine academy in kings point , new york . his maritime and inter - modal experience , both ashore and at sea , provides ashbritt with the logistics and transportation experience necessary to conduct large scale operations for both domestic and international response requirements . for over a decade , ashbritt has applied read more

quinn said the new contracts would give local officials options if disaster strikes again rather than having to choose between ashbritt or cobbling together their own plan , which happened after sandy .

perkins defended ashbritt’s approach to government contracting , which he admitted entailed getting involved in the political process to sway lawmakers and regulators in charge of doling out billions in government aid .

ashbritt had been recommended to christie by haley barbour , the former republican governor of mississippi who oversaw the cleanup there from hurricane katrina , according to state sen . bob gordon .

" former governor haley barbour , a friend of ( christie ' s ) , contacted governor christie and told him he would recommend a company called ashbritt because of its work related to katrina . we later learned that mr . barbour has a business relationship with ashbritt , " said gordon , who spoke on behalf of state senate democrats to abc news .

ashbritt is exclusively a disaster response and recovery contractor . we are tenured in collection , removal , reducing , hauling , and disposal of disaster generated debris streams . learn more .

ashbritt ' s contention in this area is based on the premise that the agency is making multiple awards so that it will later be able to hold mini - competitions for this cleanup work . under this rubric , ashbritt argues that the far restrictions above should have led the agency to conclude that it could not reasonably make multiple awards under this solicitation .

ar , tab m ( j & a ) , at 3 . in this regard , ashbritt argues that this statement wrongly includes obligations for roofing and temporary building contractors as part of the justification for awarding a new contract for debris removal , and wrongly implies that local contractors were not ready to compete earlier but are ready now - - even though ashbritt claims that two of the three large mississippi contractors that the j & a identifies as able to compete here , in fact , submitted proposals in the earlier competition that ashbritt won .

" ashbritt has to be used in order to maximize the fema reimbursement , " david breeden , the ocean township ( ocean county ) administrator , told the town council when it was weighing other options , according to minutes of the meeting . " if the township does not use ashbritt , it jeopardizes the fema reimbursement regarding solid waste collection and disposal . "

the christie administration did not use ashbritt to clean up state roads , but the contract allowed municipalities , 53 in all , to hire the firm without bidding . christie has said it gave towns devastated by sandy speedy options to accelerate the recovery efforts . the oig is investigating debris removal costs in at least two municipalities that employed ashbritt : belmar and beach haven .

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joining with jeff tittel , head of the new jersey chapter of the sierra club , legislators called attention to a 2008 federal report that criticized ashbritt’s handling of debris after hurricane katrina .

in 2012 , new jersey governor chris christie came under scrutiny after his administration awarded ashbritt a no - bid contract to clean up the aftermath of hurricane sandy . a federal investigation found that christie did not break any laws , but public outrage centred around the cost of the contract and ashbritt ' s significant political donations to organisations such as the republican governors association .

ashbritt is able to conduct removal , transport and disposal of abandoned vehicles , boats and other vessels to include aggregation staging ; inventorying and indexing for easy location and retrieval ; information dissemination ; owner contact ; and supplemental investigations for proper disposition will be conducted . ashbritt also conducts decontamination and recycling of vehicles and vessels and has a significant amount of experience removing abandoned vehicles .

jared moskowitz , a vice president with ashbritt , said last night the oig audits " all disaster operations " and its inquiry in new jersey was expected and not indicative of potential trouble .

ashbritt’s moskowitz stressed that new jersey used the same prices the company charged connecticut in 2011 following a massive snowstorm , and that connecticut used a competitive bidding process that attracted nine other companies .

ashbritt’s practical experience , in addition to our extensive fema training , allows us to conduct and apply the lessons learned to our clients through annual on - site training opportunities . learn more .

ashbritt argues that the agency ' s decision to limit this competition to mississippi firms exceeds the authority granted by the stafford act . specifically , ashbritt contends that the preference envisioned by the act does not include the authority to use a set - aside , and that the use of a set - aside , without express statutory authority , violates the competition in contracting act . ashbritt also argues that the stafford act does not permit limiting the preference to firms located in only one state , to the exclusion of firms located in other states similarly affected by the same major disaster , in this case , hurricane katrina . finally , ashbritt argues that the j & a prepared here does not support the agency ' s decision to limit competition to mississippi firms .

ashbritt has come a long way since 1992 , when it received its first subcontract from brown & root ( a halliburton subsidiary ) after hurricane andrew . the company also employs top lobbyists , including former representative james a . hayes , d - louisiana , and mississippi governor haley barbour’s former firm , barbour griffith and rogers , which helped ashbritt get work after the 2004 florida hurricanes .

ashbritt , right now , is focused on removing that vegetative material that will eventually be taken to nine mile road landfill where it will be ground up to reduce its volume , caldwell said .

in two major categories — cleaning up construction and demolition debris along with trees and other vegetative waste — ashbritt’s rates in most cases were more than double those charged by other companies awarded contracts .

belmar eventually awarded ashbritt a no - bid contract for debris removal in the town . moran and doherty insisted that they never discussed the contract and that their marriage was irrelevant to its award .

he said he is not concerned , like other local officials , that wall would lose out on the maximum fema reimbursement — 75 percent of cleanup costs — if he didn’t go with ashbritt .

perkins said christie skipped the time - consuming bidding process because he had to act fast in light of the devastation , and the contract was modeled after a connecticut contract ashbritt won after bidding .

but critics say that the speed with which ashbritt was ushered in to help the state meant that 40 - plus municipalities also quickly agreed to hire them , using the emergency contract christie approved .

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perkins ' issues extend beyond ashbritt . two contractors accused perkins and his wife , saily , of not paying for part of the work the contractors performed at the couple ' s broward county home .

but gordon , who was among the democrats who requested the records and asked the ashbritt ceo to testify to the state legislature recently , said that towns felt confident adopting a state - approved contract .

ashbritt environmental is a u . s . based disaster recovery and special environmental services contractor . since 1992 , we have managed and executed more than 230 disaster recovery missions and numerous special environmental projects .

ashbritt provides vessel recovery ; underwater welding and salvage ; debris removal from canals and waterways ; deployment of divers ; deployment of remote operated vessel ( rov ) ; deployment of barge and landing craft as work platforms for equipment and supply transport ; mechanical and hydraulic dredging of canals , marinas and navigable waterways . in 2012 , new jersey tasked ashbritt to remove vessels from the bay following hurricane sandy .

ashbritt raises three other challenges to the solicitation here . first , it contends that regardless of whether the agency acted within its discretion in conducting this procurement as a mississippi set - aside , the solicitation is improperly ambiguous because it fails to provide clear guidance on what constitutes residing , or primarily doing business , in that state . second , ashbritt argues that the agency has failed to comply with the far regulations that govern the use of multiple - award contracts . third , ashbritt contends that the solicitation impermissibly fails to include an estimate for the demolition work that will be covered by the contract .

“ashbritt has been , is and will continue to be the leader in our industry . we have done more disaster cleanup work than any other company in our industry over the last five years and we are responsible for the largest cleanup ever done by a single company after hurricane katrina devastated the state of mississippi , ” said jared moskowitz , ashbritt’s general counsel and executive vice president of business development .

when the state did go out to bid last month , ashbritt’s prices in key areas were significantly higher — sometimes more than three times as much — than the three other firms that won work .

ashbritt is well - versed in all aspects of debris management operations . this encompasses emergency push operations for critical facility and priority route clearance ; right - of - way debris collection ; curbside segregation ; dms reduction , recycling and final disposal ; permitting ; dms site closeout ; and final reconciliation and auditing . ashbritt understands that operations with the client must be conducted in a symbiotic manner with full transparency .

even at that lower price new jersey has paid ashbritt , the contract has drawn criticism , with some local officials arguing that local waste disposal companies could have done the job at an even lower price .

ashbritt environmental 565 east hillsboro blvd . deerfield beach , fl 33441 tel : 954 . 725 . 6992 tf : 1 . 800 . 244 . 5094 fax : 954 . 725 . 6991 response @ urltoken

ashbritt provides training opportunities to our clients in order to learn and adapt to experiences and trends . they are customized to meet specific client needs , often after direct input and inquiry from the client . from hurricane katrina and hurricane sandy , to winter storms across the us , to trends taking place in fema and other federal agencies , ashbritt continues to evaluate and compile lessons learned for our clients and staff .

mokowitzs deerfield beach - based company is no stranger to controversy . in 2010 , an auditor determined ashbritt received $ 765 , 000 in overpayments from the broward county school board for cleanup following hurricane wilma .

the company hired george gilmore , then the chairman of the republican party of ocean county , where a gop - controlled county board offered to pay towns for sandy cleanup costs if they awarded contracts to ashbritt .

a large mound of clean sifted sand on the beach in seaside heights made as part of the cleanup contracted by the state to ashbritt , inc . ( photo by tony kurdzuk / the star - ledger )

perkins parlayed his lawn maintenance business into one of the nation ' s largest privately held debris cleanup companies , ashbritt environmental inc . , after getting a small contract to clean up after hurricane andrew in 1992 .

new jersey , for the most part , is hiring its contractors directly , with about 15 communities already selecting ashbritt environmental , a contractor based in florida that also played a major role in the hurricane katrina cleanup .

ashbritt itself does very little , if any , actual debris removal . instead , it uses a mix of local and out - of - state contractors and pays them a fraction of the state - contracted rate .

days before sandy struck , former mississippi gov . haley barbour advised christie to go with the firm based on his experience with them after katrina . barbour is a founding partner in a lobbying firm that represents ashbritt .

hurricane sandy slammed new jersey on oct . 29 , 2012 , causing widespread damage here , in new york and connecticut . hours after the storm , gov . chris christie awarded ashbritt a no - bid contract that piggybacked off one the company had with connecticut . the decision has drawn public scrutiny for a variety of reasons , such as higher - than - usual disposal costs to towns for which ashbritt has handled debris disposal .

ashbritt has cleaned up debris for fema and other government agencies after other hurricanes . besides possessing a huge roster of subcontractors and the logistics expertise to route hundreds of trucks , the company is also politically well connected .

that angered mr . perkins , ashbritt ' s owner , who said the new contract would not benefit small companies , which he said were already getting more than 70 percent of money his company spent in mississippi .

“we’re not restricted [ from posting subcontracts ] , ” ashbritt’s perkins says . “we submit all our contracting data to the army corps on a weekly basis and that’s all available from them if they so choose . ”

perkins also has ties to top south florida democrats like former miami heat star center alonzo mourning , intellectual - disabilities activist anthony shriver and lobbyist ron book , who all run charities that perkins and ashbritt have supported .

the contract and the multiple waivers ashbritt got were meant to speed up a monumental cleanup task , making life easier for mayors and local officials flooded with work in a post - sandy world , the governor’s office said .

ashbritt assures that any jurisdiction in which we operate a dms it will be properly remediated . there will be significant costs associated with this operation as well as close scrutiny by the local press and environmental groups . site remediation will go smoothly if baseline data collection and site operation procedures are followed . ashbritt has operated more than 50 dms sites at one time and is able to consider all environmental factors that may be affected by the project .

in the end , the town paid bergeron $ 753 , 959 to remove about 64 , 000 cubic yards . if ashbritt was hired , the same job would have cost $ 1 . 36 million , bowden said .

in 2016 , the republican party aired attack ads against ashbritt ' s record after ceo randall " randy " perkins ran as the democratic party candidate for the treasure coast - palm beach congressional seat in florida , usa .

ashbritt also contributed $ 136 , 224 to the republican governors association since 2011 , according to a 2013 newark star ledger report concerning sandy . the star - ledger also reported ashbritt contributed $ 150 , 000 to the democratic governors association , since 2011 , and that perkins personally gave “ $ 218 , 500 to federal candidates or committees since 2001 , with nearly every dollar going to republican causes , according to the center for responsive politics . ”

" i’m probably one of the most politically astute people in any business industry , let alone my own industry , " said perkins , owner and ceo of disaster relief contractor ashbritt inc . , in a wednesday evening interview .

so far , ashbritt , working directly for about 50 local jurisdictions in new jersey , has collected and disposed of about three million cubic yards of debris , at a total cost of about $ 150 million , officials said .

the company , ashbritt , left new contaminated sites in its wake as it did cleanup along the gulf coast after 2005’s hurricane katrina , jeff tittel said in a feb . 22 opinion column he wrote for njtoday . net .

when sandy hit new jersey in late 2012 , the company enlisted the services of leading political operatives in the state , some of whom had direct connections to local officials who signed off on millions of dollars in payments to ashbritt .

perkins downplayed the role of ashbritt’s political operation in securing the initial sandy contract , but admitted that the company took advantage of that operation in order to ensure that it retained its position as one of the state’s dominant sandy contractors .

the company was already under contract with the u . s . army corps of engineers , the agency tasked with the government’s immediate response . but given the scale of the disaster , the financial potential for ashbritt was far higher .

ashbritt’s comprehensive going green program reduces our organization’s adverse impact on the environment through activities such as reductions in waste generation and carbon emissions . our long - term goal is to lessen the amount of carbon generated from our recovery operations .

according to his official florida house webpage , moskowitz is the director of government relations and general counsel for ashbritt environmental . the company claims to be the “national turn key rapid - response disaster recovery and special environmental services contractor . ”

susan greatorex , a fema spokeswoman , said last week the agency has yet to determine whether ashbritt’s prices are " fair and reasonable , " saying those conclusions will be made in the months ahead as towns submit for federal reimbursement .

on dec . 27 , the town wrote ashbritt a check for $ 4 . 62 million for collecting and hauling an estimated 108 , 430 cubic yards of debris , according town financial records obtained under the state’s open public records act .

it also hired maggie moran , once an aide to former gov . jon corzine and the wife of belmar , n . j . , mayor matt doherty . moran crafted a marketing strategy designed to sell city officials on ashbritt’s services .

for example , the emergency contract with the state pays ashbritt $ 400 for every tree it removes from the roadway , but the company can hire a subcontractor who is willing to do it for $ 200 and then pocket the difference .

an ashbritt subcontractor hauls away katrina induced debris , feb . 16 , 2006 in pass christian , miss . the u . s . army corps of engineers announced friday , march 21 , 2006 , that a $ 150 million award to gulfport - based necaise brothers construction had been sidelined by protests from other companies . in the end , the beneficiary will be pompano beach , fla . - based ashbritt inc . , which earlier had been awarded a $ 500 million contract .

the senate democrats have requested all correspondence among christie and his top administration staff as they decided in october 2012 to fast - track a contract for the firm ashbritt to clean up sand , roads and other debris in the wake of sandy .

yet government watchdogs maintain that there’s much more to the game than pure merit - based competition . companies like ashbritt are able to anticipate potentially lucrative opportunities because they have hired former fema and corps officials who can guide them through the process .

barbour himself faced questions in new jersey in the weeks and months after the hurricane because his political lobbying firm represented ashbritt , the florida - based company that was awarded a lucrative emergency contract by christie to perform debris removal after the storm .

audits of the work by hurricane katrina contractors — although not necessarily ashbritt — found instances where the companies had been paid twice for collecting a single load of debris or overestimating how many miles they drove to dump it , resulting in higher fees .

the christie administration once again disputed the characterization that it was a no - bid contract , noting it " piggybacked " off a competitively bid contract by the state of connecticut . ashbritt beat out nine other bidders in connecticut , the administration notes .

ashbritt , which is headquartered in florida , is a client of barbour ' s lobbying firm , bgr group . christie attended a february fundraiser at the home of bgr ' s chairman , ed rogers , according to the center for public integrity .

after beating out the competition , like so many contractors , ashbritt’s ability to maintain its advantage in the future will continue to depend upon its ability to anticipate opportunities and develop a cozy relationship with the army corps of engineers and other government bureaucracies .

new jersey democratic legislators set up hearings last month to investigate ashbritts no - bid contract . the newark star / ledger reports democrats questioned whether taxpayers are getting the best deal and whether the decision may ultimately jeopardize reimbursements from the federal government . ”

the administration chose the connecticut contract because it is " regionally comparable , both economically and geographically , " drewniak said . the connecticut towns that used ashbritt saw the maximum reimbursements by fema , and drewniak said new jersey towns can expect the same .

jeff bertrand , the administrator for wall township , said ashbritt officials made their pitch to him days after the storm . they drove around town and estimated it would cost $ 2 million to remove the downed trees and other debris that had piled up .

" a report by the us general accountability office ( gao ) in 2008 found that the disposal of katrina wastes by ashbritt in the south resulted in the creation of contaminated sites along the gulf coast and two new superfund sites in new orleans . "

the investigators are asking how much money ashbritt will collect and , in turn , what it will pay subcontractors performing the work , said a house investigator who did not want her name used because she was not authorized to speak publicly about the matter .

but three communities in mississippi , which found their own contractors rather than accept the terms offered by ashbritt , have negotiated contracts of $ 10 . 64 a cubic yard to $ 18 . 25 a cubic yard , including collection , processing and disposal .

ashbritt is central to his rags - to - riches campaign story , as he said he was a father who once relied on food stamps . today the company has branched out to provide demolition services , as well as environmental mitigation and public works services .

christie hired the firm for up to $ 100 million of work two days after the storm devastated much of the jersey shore and rampaged through the northeast . the total earned by ashbritt could be more , since new jersey towns hired the firm as well .

randy sets the vision for the organization through his leadership of the ashbritt board of directors . with 25 years of industry leadership , randy has in - depth knowledge of the disaster response and recovery process and stakeholders . randy has completed course work at the university of central florida in business administration and the university of miami in global business concepts . he holds seats on the board of directors of several national charitable organizations and is very active in state and local charitable endeavors . he sits on the ashbritt foundation board .

ashbritt , which has won the biggest share of those contracts , is being paid about $ 15 per cubic yard to collect and process debris , federal officials said . it is also being reimbursed for costs if it has to dispose of material in landfills .

a bulldozer contracted by ashbritt , inc . piles debris being collected in a temporary dump at the base of the route 37 bridge in seaside heights in the wake of hurricane sandy ' s destruction . ( photo by tony kurdzuk / the star - ledger )

christie’s no - bid contract with florida - based ashbritt inc . — which gave the firm unequaled access to local towns stricken by the storm — borrowed wholesale , or " piggybacked " from the company’s 2008 contract with connecticut to help speed up recovery efforts .

following hurricane katrina in august 2005 , as the united states army corps of engineers ( usace ) advanced contracting initiative ( aci ) contractor for u . s . region 3 , ashbritt was the initial response contractor for both louisiana and mississippi . ashbritt was ultimately tasked by the usace as the prime contractor for the entire debris mission in the state of mississippi . owing to the severity of the damage , this mission proved to be the largest debris cleanup and recovery by a single company in u . s . history .

the company was a lead government contractor working chiefly on debris removal after two of the country’s most devastating recent natural disasters : hurricane katrina and superstorm sandy . in both cases , ashbritt flexed its political muscle in order to maximize its piece of ensuing procurement opportunities .

jared moskowitz , legal counsel for ashbritt , told abc news that there was nothing amiss in the company ' s dealings with new jersey . in times of crisis or disasters , states don ' t have time to put contracts out for bid , he said .

according to senate filings , ashbritt paid about $ 40 , 000 in the first half of 2005 to barbour griffith & rogers , the washington lobbying firm co - founded by governor barbour of mississippi , who is also a former chairman of the republican national committee .

in a conference call with the record on wednesday , they said they are getting plans in place to help people like the husers . the county has a contract with disaster recovery contractor ashbritt environmental to help remove " all storm - related debris , " caldwell said .

ashbritt’s chief draw in new jersey and elsewhere was its contracting model : rather than doing the work itself , the company brought on subcontractors and took a fee from the awards delegated to them . that allowed for a high degree of coordination , but it swelled costs .

a dec . 6 news release from toms river describes ashbritt as a " fema - approved " contractor . asked about the toms river statement , albert pillot , a spokesman with fema , said , " fema does not endorse , approve or recommend any contractors . "


fireproof studios is a british video game company formed in 2008 and based in guildford .

the company is best known for the bafta award winning and multi-million selling the room which it published in 2012 , the game was developed by sub-label fireproof games .

fireproof studios

fireproof studios <EOT> fireproof studios is a british game studio that provides outsourced assets for other developers .

fireproof studios : fire ( proof ) sales : the room games surpass 11 . 5m copies sold

fireproof studios : fireproof games ' the room series generated $ 3 . 3 million from each game in their first 12 months of release

fireproof studios ltd . free business summary taken from official companies house information . free alerts . registered as 06687549

fireproof studios ltd © 2018 . fireproof games is a division of fireproof studios ltd reg . in england co . reg . no . 6687549 . registered under the data protection act reg . za055154 . ' fireproof ' , ' the room ' , ' omega agent ' and the ' x ' logos are registered trademarks of fireproof studios ltd - all rights reserved . all other trademarks , logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners

fireproof studios , creators of the room and the room 2 , talk about how they created their games and the future of mobile gaming . stuff talks is a series of interviews with tech makers , mavericks and creatives , sponsored by sony and brought to you by stuff . for more stuff talks , visit urltoken for more on fireproof studios , visit urltoken

fireproof games is an independent studio from guildford , united kingdom . find out more at urltoken follow us @ fireproof _ games find us on facebook

sleeper hit ios puzzler the room has accrued over 2 million sales since its september 2012 launch , fireproof studios commercial director barry meade announced at today ' s game horizon conference , as reported by joystiq .

“the room three is fireproof games’ most ambitious , rewarding puzzle game yet . ”

so what next ? fireproof studios now has 12 artists and two programmers on its team , and will continue its outsourcing work – not least because the room has been a great showcase for the company ' s skills in that area .

chinese puzzle boxes are amazing objects that fireproof studios has made not one but two entire games about . with the melding of touch controls and intricate 3d imagery , the room and the room 2 games use lovecraftian atmosphere to create a sense of menace and tension , which only serves to crank up the atmosphere of an already absorbing pair of games . show host chris oregan chats to barry meade of fireproof studios about the room games as well as barrys own history in developing games , which started in the early 1990s .

some have taken this as a sign that paid apps are history , but british developer fireproof studios would disagree . the company tells the guardian that it has sold more than 1m copies of its ipad physical - puzzler the room since its release in september 2012 .

described as " gun - porn 2 . 0 , " bodycount is codemasters studios guildford ' s arcade style first - person shooter for the xbox 360 and playstation 3 .

the fireproof games division of the company is dedicated to in - house development of original games .

the room developer fireproof games has revealed its upcoming fourth entry in the puzzle series called . . .

earlier this march , fireproof games announced the shock reveal of the upcoming and much awaited next . . .

fresh off the release of the room : old sins , fireproof games ' barry meade chats with gamasutra about . . .

fireproof games has released the room : old sins , the long - awaited fourth entry in its wonderfully spo . . .

graduating in computer animation from teeside university in 2000 chris worked in many roles from storyboards to scene modelling & animation before joining criterion games in 2005 . while working on burnout revenge , burnout dominator & burnout paradise he progressed from graduate artist / tea monkey to track & gameplay designer / artist before leaving in 2008 to co - found fireproof studios .

“exactly what fans have been hoping for , fireproof games has knocked it out of the park once more . 4 . 5 / 5”

the room : old sins is the title for fireproof games ' next masterpiece for ios . it will be the fourth . . .

each game in fireproof ' s the room series earned roughly $ 3 . 3 million during their first 12 months aft . . .

british studio fireproof games , reports today ( via infographic ) that it ' s sold over 11 . 5 million copi . . .

fireproof is flexible on this point , though , as its adoption of a freemium model for the iphone version of the room shows .

welcome to the room : old sins , the new 3d puzzle adventure by fireproof games , creators of the award winning ‘the room’ trilogy .

and if you want to keep up - to - date with all things fireproof then follow us on twitter and / or like us on facebook .

dave started his video game career in sep ' 2003 when he moved to guildford after he was hired as a graduate artist at criterion games . he cut his teeth on burnout 3 : takedown , and went on to make burnout revenge & burnout paradise as a senior environment artist . he was also a level lead on criterion ' s first fps , black . dave left criterion games in 2008 to form fireproof studios with 5 other mates .

after studying architecture & engineering at strathclyde university mark realised that 3d modelling was far more interesting than building regulations and bredem calculations , so he applied for a job at criterion games . with an offer of a no guarantee placement mark quit and left sunny scotland behind . at criterion he moved up through the ranks from junior artist on burnout 3 to senior artist on burnout paradise before leaving in 2008 with 5 other senior artists to form fireproof studios .

derek entered the games industry in 1998 at bits studio and worked on constantine and die hard vendetta . he then joined the environment team at criterion games in 2005 creating artwork for burnout revenge , burnout paradise and harry potter & the half blood prince for ea bright light . in 2009 derek joined slightly mad studios where he worked on need for speed shift and need for speed shift 2 unleashed . he then joined fireproof in 2011 and made the magic happen .

lyndon studied games design at teesside university in 2000 . his first games job was at reflections in newcastle in 2003 working on the fmv sequences and animation for driv3r as part of his four year course . after university lyndon started at criterion games in 2004 as a previs artist / animator , producing animated sequences , gameplay design & trailer work on burnout revenge , burnout paradise , black , need for speed hot pursuit . in 2010 lyndon left criterion to join fireproof studios .

barry’s career began in dublin in 1992 working on ' edutainment ' titles for snes , amiga and pc . in 1994 he joined bullfrog in the uk as lead designer and artist / animator on magic carpet , syndicate wars , dungeon keeper and many others . game designer roles followed at acclaim , negative productions & mucky foot before joining criterion in 2004 working on black and subsequently burnouts 3 , 4 and paradise . in 2008 barry and five friends left criterion to form fireproof studios .

the room is a 3d puzzle game from fireproof games . to uncover the secrets held within a mysterious safe , you must solve a series of intricate puzzles using physical manipulation .

daisy ' s career began as a traditional artist and obsessive doodler , commissioned to paint portraits to fund an addiction to stationary and her dream of becoming a game artist at staffordshire university . after graduating and moving around the country for various freelance projects , remode studios was where it all began as an in - house concept artist and pencil hoarder by the sea . shortly after , daisy become a lecturer in game arts and spent almost 3 years passionately game jamming , oil painting and annoying students to draw more , until jumping at the chance to join the team at fireproof as a junior 3d artist .

fireproof ' s six co - founders met while working at british console software firm criterion software on its burnout franchise , and quit in 2008 to launch their own studio outsourcing artwork – environments , assets and characters – for other developers .

that said , fireproof worked hard to ensure that the room felt immersive on the ipad , sucking people into the puzzles and gameplay – a desire that meade says does come from the company ' s experience on console and pc games .

developed by a team of two people while the rest of fireproof cracked on with their outsourcing jobs , the room was a labour of love – but also an attempt to get a minimum viable product onto the app store to see how it did .

welcome to fireproof games ! explore a deviously complex dollhouse which transforms at your fingertips in ‘the room : old sins’ , the 4th entry in the critically acclaimed game series . available now on ios from the app store and on android from google play & amazon .

the income from the game does mean fireproof can devote more resources to making a follow - up , as well as looking at other platforms – meade says the studio intends to release the room for android , and is exploring the best way to do it .

the room is a decidedly simple game . in each level you ' re presented with an intricately designed puzzle box , and you just need to figure out how to open it . it uses familiar controls — you pinch , swipe , and drag your fingers along the screen to scrutinize the 3d object from every angle as you attempt to unravel its secrets . but the simple premise turned into an incredibly compelling experience , thanks to the room ' s clever puzzles , gorgeous visuals , and spooky atmosphere . it went on to be named the ipad ' s game of the year by apple — not bad for fireproof studios ' first release . now the developer is back with the room 2 , and it ' s everything a sequel should be : bigger , better , and more beautiful .

damien’s videogames career began at rebellion , where he worked on the first sniper elite game on ps2 & xbox . in 2004 damien joined criterion games and found himself working on the critically acclaimed burnout series and black . in 2008 damien and 5 friends decided to set up fireproof to make games of their own .

rob started out working for codemasters in 2001 , working on the race driver series of games . in 2005 he moved to criterion where he specialised in destruction , working on the physics for black and car deformation on burnout . he joined fireproof games in late 2011 , releasing the room less than a year later .

luke began as a physicist , completing a masters course and two whole years of a phd before calling it a day in 2013 . after that he retrained himself as a games programmer and hasn ' t looked back since . he spent a year working as an indie developer on mobile and vr games before joining fireproof in 2016 .

graduating in computer animation from bournemouth university in 2008 , tom started work at animation studio blue zoo , though harboured ambitions of working in the games industry . so in 2010 he joined supermassive games , working as an animator on start the party and walking with dinosaurs followed by design on littlebigplanet vita dlc . tom joined fireproof in 2014 , and is still finding out what a technical designer does .

and a lot of the new features are things that the studio simply wasn ' t able to fit into the original game due to a number of constraints . though the room was fireproof ' s first original game , it isn ' t exactly a new studio — it was formed in 2008 by industry veterans from burnout developer criterion games , and since then has served as a work - for - hire studio creating art for games as diverse as littlebigplanet and killzone shadow fall . the plan was to use the money from those projects to fund original games . " we were always successful , we were always in work , but even four years later we still hadn ' t really made that much money , " explains meade . but when mobile gaming became a viable path , fireproof finally took a chance .

graduating from warwick university in 2004 , simon began his games career at ea , working on the harry potter game series . after 4 years of programming character into harry potter , he ' d had enough of wizardry and joined supermassive games , where he worked on the start the party games and the bbc title walking with dinosaurs . in 2013 , with the attraction of working within a small company simon made his move to fireproof .

jeremy’s career in the games industry began at supermassive games where he worked as designer on tumble ( the finest motion controlled , block - stacking physics puzzle game on ps3 ) and start the party : save the world ( the finest start the party game since start the party ) . he joined fireproof in 2013 because they said he could and that was just fine by him . his free time is spent playing games , arguing and playing games which involve arguing .

in 1998 roger graduated in graphic design from leeds university and worked in london for 6 years at a variety of media companies before joining criterion games in 2004 as a previs and ui artist , where he created ui concepts and motion graphics for the burnout games and black . in 2008 roger joined the codemasters guildford studio as ui lead working primarily on bodycount , but left in 2010 to join his chums and head up the one man graphic design department at fireproof .

in 2006 dave was forced into making video games to pay off his online poker debts . he first started at criterion coding physics on burnout paradise , and developing car crashing tech with rob . since then he shipped need for speed : hot pursuit and was physics lead on need for speed : most wanted . after 7 years of coding physics and car handling he was thoroughly bored of driving games , and jumped at the chance to reunite with the team at fireproof .

doomed to a life of boredom as an engineer , vasileios couldn ' t believe his luck when global recession and the ensuing chaos forced him to make a new start . so , he attended solent university to learn the ways of video game art . in the meantime , he interned at local start up company called rogue sun . there , he attained a glowing recommendation which he used to charm his way into fireproof , thus realizing a life - long dream of working in the games industry .

the room was a runaway hit , but it didn ' t do much to change the way the studio approached the sequel . with much of the staff focused on work - for - hire projects — fireproof spent the last 12 months building multiplayer maps for the most recent killzone games on the playstation 4 and vita — it again fell on a small team to build the room 2 . the studio was able to throw a few more artists at the project , but otherwise the development process was remarkably similar .

tony began his career in art so far back now ( though not as far back as barry ) that he can’t really remember how it all started . during the course of his career he has worked for a several game companies , some that he would prefer not to mention , working on titles that he’d also prefer not to mention . then he joined criterion , creating artwork for the burnout games and black . since co - founding fireproof he has worked on almost a million ( estimated figure ) other awesome games .

after graduating from abertay university ' s game design and production management course in 2014 , tom joined up with glasgow based mobile developer one thumb mobile as quality assurance on celtic heroes . after a year he moved south of the wall to work as part of the production team at london vfx studio jellyfish pictures . he gained credits on multiple projects including rogue one : a star wars story and star wars episode viii : the last jedi before deciding he missed the games industry too much . with that being the case , fireproof answered the call to adopt him in 2018 .

there ' s also more variety to the locations , as you ' ll find yourself locked everywhere from the hold of a ship to a creepy seance room . the new puzzles , locations , and extended play time ( the room 2 is probably about twice as long as the original ) make the sequel feel like a much meatier experience . " we wanted to expand what we knew worked , " says fireproof ' s barry mead . " we thought the game was really successful , and we thought ' right , we can do that bigger and better next time . ' "

the sequel is a game absolutely brimming with new ideas — perhaps surprising considering how basic the series ' s core concept is . " we certainly thought when we made the room that the game had legs , " says meade . " we always knew that there was a lot more that we couldn ' t put in that game that we wanted to do . " the room 2 is proof of this , with its inventive and mentally taxing new puzzles and scenarios . and there may be even more puzzle boxes in our future , as fireproof plans to develop two new games concurrently next year , including a brand new property . but the studio ' s focus will remain the same no matter what game it ' s developing .

the room was crafted by a single programmer and a few artists — it cost fireproof the wages of three people for six months to build . " the game that we ended up with was really just a consequence of the practical decisions we made , " explains meade . the studio only had enough money to hire that one programmer , and so it had to craft an experience with a focus on art — something that was already the team ' s strong suit . inspiration for the core concept came from a variety of places , including early ios hit zen bound , as well the lemarchand ' s box from the hellraiser series of horror films . " when i was a kid i remember everyone thinking that device just looked cool , " says meade .

bafta guru is bafta’s content hub for career starters packed full of inspirational videos , podcasts and interviews . whether you’ve taken your first steps in the industry or are just starting out , you’ll find plenty here to motivate and help you along the way .

bafta’s destination for youngsters to come and discover the magical worlds of film , television and games . enter challenges , watch videos , and take part in our annual vote to decide the best film , tv show and game of the year .

ygd is a gaming initiative for 10 - 18 year olds which explores how games are made and the skill required to make them through workshops , a video series and an annual competition .

situated in the heart of london ' s west end , bafta 195 piccadilly is the home of bafta worldwide , as well as an award - winning venue for hire that offers outstanding hospitality and a suite of flexible event spaces , which can be crafted to suit any occasion .

like the original , each level of the room 2 locks you in a single location and tasks you with solving a series of connected puzzles . but this time around they ' re much more complex . puzzle boxes are still in place , of course , and they ' re as intricate as ever , but the challenges now include everything from working typewriters and crossbows to model pirate ships and tarot card tables . each room has multiple objects to interact with , and you ' ll be moving back and forth between them constantly — opening a panel on one object could have an effect on the other side of the room , and figuring out how these things interact with one another is immensely satisfying . when you solve a puzzle in the room 2 , it really makes you feel clever .

" we make money by making great work , " says meade . " so making great work is our focus . "

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previously , it hit the 1 million mark in january , just after winning apple ' s ipad game of the year award .

meade attributed the game ' s success to its originality . " we did not want to do a better version of someone else ' s game , or an update of a genre , " he said . " we thought we ' re not doing our jobs properly if we don ' t add to what ' s out there . as a game creator that ' s your responsibility . if you ' re not doing that , if you ' re chasing what other people are doing , you don ' t deserve success because you ' re not showing respect to the audience . "

the room is getting free dlc this summer before its full sequel is released this autumn .

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jeffrey matulef is the best - dressed man in 1984 . based in portland , or he operates as eurogamer ' s us news editor .

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welcome to the room , a physical puzzler , wrapped in a mystery game , inside a beautifully tactile 3d world .

we’re a team of 18 based in guildford , uk and since 2012 we’ve been creating our own games , beginning with the multi - award winning ios , android & pc game “the room” , followed by the critically acclaimed ios , android & pc title “the room two” and “the room three” for ios & android . our virtual reality jetpack game “omega agent” is available for htc vive , oculus rift & samsung gear vr .

following many requests , you can now buy t - shirts , mugs and phone cases from design by humans and get them shipped internationally . take a look here . we’ve updated the press kit for the room : old sins which contains hi - resolution logos , artwork and screenshots .

if you’re interested in how we actually go about creating our games , then head over to our flickr page to take a peek into the development of the room three . this in - depth slideshow describes how an initial idea can transform itself from a sketch book doodle through an iterative whitebox prototype to end up as the final design as seen in the room three . we hope you enjoy it : )

explore our website for more info about us and all our previous games and don’t forget to check out our downloads page where you’ll find shiny new wallpapers for your devices featuring artwork from all our games , all - new papercraft objects from the room three for you to build , the theme music from the room & omega agent , and a press kit for each of our games containing logos , artwork & screenshots .

lured to a remote island , you must draw upon all your puzzle - solving ability to navigate a series of trials devised by the mysterious “craftsman” .

follow a trail of cryptic letters into a compelling world of mystery and exploration in this widely acclaimed sequel .

the multi - award winning first entry in this spectacular series , the room immerses you in its mysterious world and doesn ' t let go until the very end .

strap on a prototype nuclear - powered jetpack and blast around a remote island training facility in vr filled with exciting events and daring missions .

take a look at our new range of t - shirts based on artwork from our games .

explore a deviously complex dollhouse which transforms at your fingertips in the 4th entry in the critically acclaimed game series .

enter the room : old sins and be transported to a place where tactile exploration meets challenging puzzles and a captivating story . explore a deviously complex dollhouse which transforms at your fingertips in ‘the room : old sins’ , the 4th entry in the critically acclaimed game series . the room : old sins is available now on ios , android & amazon kindle fire .

the sudden disappearance of an ambitious engineer and his high - society wife provokes the hunt for a precious artefact . the trail leads to the attic of their home , and the discovery of an old , peculiar dollhouse… explore unsettling locations , follow obscure clues and manipulate bizarre contraptions as you uncover the mysteries within waldegrave manor…

“an incredible game , sets the bar of quality for this kind of experience ridiculously high . ”

explore a deviously complex dollhouse which transforms at your fingertips . each intricate room is a portal to a new , stunning environment .

“packed full of the best puzzling on mobile , old sins sits beyond its contemporaries . ★★★★★”

you can also download a wallpaper featuring the artwork from the room : old sins by following this link .

the eagerly awaited sequel to the bafta award winning ‘the room’ ( apple game of the year 2012 ) and ‘the room two’ ( app store best of 2013 - 14 ) is out now on ios & android devices .

continuing the story from the room two , your obsessive search for the null results with being lured to ‘grey holm’ , a mysterious mansion located on a remote island . you must use all your puzzle - solving abilities to navigate a series of trials devised by a mysterious figure known only as “the craftsman” .

the room three is significantly larger than our previous games , taking place in a variety of stunning new environments , each spanning multiple areas . new for the room three is the new eyepiece ability which allows you to explore the world in miniature , and also for the first time in the room series you are able to return to grey holm between chapters and solve its unique puzzles which will decide your fate and determine which of the alternate endings you will experience .

“this is a game stuffed full of atmosphere and style . it drips with creepy spectacle - 90 % ”

“the best puzzle game on mobile & one of the genre’s best entries of all time . a genuine masterpiece”

“outdoes both of its predecessors by far , this should be on your ios device right now . ”

take the room with you wherever you go with a themed wallpaper available across all devices .

welcome to the room , a physical puzzler , wrapped in a mystery game , inside a beautifully tactile 3d world . begin a mind - bending journey filled with beauty , peril and mystery in equal measure . be transported into a unique space that blends spellbinding visuals with intriguing problems to solve .

the most unsettlingly realistic and natural looking visuals ever seen on a mobile device .

intuitive controls so natural you can play with one digit , to fully navigate this mysteriously beautiful 3d world .

easy to start , hard to put down , the secrets of the room will immerse you before you even know you’re playing .

an intriguing story revealed in layers ; think you know what you’re looking at ? think again .

hauntingly beautiful audio which really draws you in ; playing with headphones strongly recommended .

“savor every last morsel this wonderful gem serves up . a must play indeed . ”

as an artist - heavy studio we were inspired by beautiful craftsmanship and the wonder of discovery which led to developing innovative camera controls for navigating 3d scenes & objects . we wanted players to capitalise on the unique touch controls afforded by mobile devices to explore haunting locations , examine detailed objects and solve tactile puzzles in an effort to unravel a compelling mystery .

the room was released in september 2012 and swiftly climbed the charts , reaching # 1 in over 60 countries . within 6 months following release we were stunned to see the room win ‘ipad game of the year 2012’ from apple , the bafta for british game and the gdc award for best handheld / mobile game .

critical and commercial success continued with the room two in late 2013 and the room three in 2015 , the combined sales of the room trilogy reaching 12 million units and counting with over 1 . 5 million 5★ player ratings .

for the 4 th game in the room series we wanted to return to the tighter focus of the first game ; revolving around one detailed object unfolding and changing in surprising ways as the player solves it’s devious puzzles . in previous titles we had revolved the story around the conceit of the gameplay , dealing purely with the mythology of these supernatural mechanical boxes the player was solving . with the room : old sins we set the game inside a house and so wanted to evoke something more personal and human . so came the idea came of the player using discovered diaries to piece together the lives of the house’s former occupants and in so doing , learning that the strange artefact the player chases was no prize to this loving couple but rather came to haunt and finally corrupt their happy home .

we released ‘the room : old sins’ in early 2018 on ios & android and were thrilled to see it reach # 1 all over the world and receive over 30 , 000 5★ player ratings .

as a 100 % independent / privately owned company of 18 developers we believe our continued success is down to several factors ; we put the player at the centre of everything we do , iterating design , graphics , gameplay & audio until they feel as slick as they deserve to be , so the player enjoys a polished experience from the first tap of the screen . as gamers ourselves it’s important for us to make games that we want to play and deliver an experience on a mobile phone which feels as polished as a aaa console game . ultimately we try to treat mobile devices as not just a market , but also a fascinating piece of gaming hardware , the scope of which isn’t limited to this week’s top ten games but to the more generous capacities of imagination .

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we’re finally ready to announce ( drum roll ) , “the room : old sins” , our upcoming 3d puzzle adventure coming to mobile late 2017 . urltoken

@ fireproofstudio thank you for your amazing trilogy of " the room " so , have a small tribute to the misteryous as . urltoken

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this is it . the full top 100 of the best mobile games ever . what will be # 1 ?

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play a genre - defining puzzle game built for touchscreens . can you escape the room ?

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i ' m four years late to the party here , but i bought the room on a whim and it ' s excellent . immensely clever , atmospheric puzzle game . and currently only 99p on steam .

ios sale ! get 25 % off the room : old sins . discover the secrets within the corrupted books in our ios sale : ►►

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unravel the mysteries of the room : old sins , the 4th entry in the critically acclaimed game series . out today on

sony santa monica makes us care about kratos in this stunning revival of the series .

far cry 5 ' s story is a real let - down , but the action still makes for a solid co - op experience .

there are some elements around the edges that haven ' t aged all that well , but burnout paradise is still a fantastic racing game .

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fireproofgames is a private company . fireproofgames has a revenue of $ 374 . 2k , and 20 employees . as of may 2018 , fireproofgames has 30 . 9k fans on facebook and 11 . 4k followers on twitter .

the room : old sins has finally been released for android after great success on ios . this puzzle game . . .

room 2 has announced the development of a new apart - hotel in southampton , with a focus on design , com . . .

the fourth in the excellent tactile puzzle series has got a release window this year . . . .

owler has collected 15 screenshots of fireproofgames ' website since jun 2014 . the latest fireproofgames website design screenshot was captured in jul 2018 .

fireproofgames currently has 11 , 390 followers on twitter . as of december 2014 fireproofgames had 5 , 431 followers . that ' s a 109 percent increase in 3 years

fireproofgames currently has 30 , 940 fans on facebook . as of december 2014 fireproofgames had 13 , 194 fans . that ' s a 134 percent increase in 4 years

fireproofgames has an estimated 20 employees and an estimated annual revenue of 374 . 2k . . . .

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ps vita - exclusive killzone title from guerilla games cambridge . a side - story to the original killzone trilogy .

crash through buildings and takedown the opposition in bugbear ' s very different take on namco ' s ridge racer franchise .

dj hero 2 adds freestyle scratching and crossfading , as well as scored vocal gameplay to the mix in this dj - ing rhythm game .

bizarre creations ' blur mixes the driving of the project gotham racing series with explosive weaponry and allows players to race up to 20 online opponents .

split / second is an arcade racing game by developer black rock studio . the game takes place in a made - for - tv city designed for destruction .

freestylegames ' dj hero uses a turntable controller to bring guitar hero - like gameplay to more genres and styles of music .

lead the way as a player - created sackperson in the highly customizable side - scrolling world of littlebigplanet , where players can play , create , and share 2 . 5d levels with their friends and the whole psn community .

the third entry in the acclaimed the room series continues the mystery of the previous games , featuring new locations and puzzle - solving abilities for navigating a series of trials and uncovering alternate endings .

the room two , sequel to the award - winning mobile hit the room , is a physical puzzler , wrapped in a mystery game , inside a tactile 3d world .

littlebigplanet 2 expands the creation tools introduced in the first game , allowing user levels to diverge even more from the base gameplay . it also features a new story mode .

the room two continues the time - spanning journey of its predecessor while significantly expanding its unique puzzle gameplay . follow a trail of cryptic letters from an enigmatic scientist known only as “as” into a compelling world of challenging mystery and tactile exploration .

enter the room : old sins and be transported to a place where tactile exploration meets challenging puzzles and a captivating story . the sudden disappearance of an ambitious engineer and his high - society wife provokes the hunt for a precious artefact . the trail leads to the attic of their home , and the discovery of an old , peculiar dollhouse… explore unsettling locations , follow obscure clues and manipulate bizarre contraptions as you uncover the mysteries within waldegrave manor .

the ultimate puzzle box explore a deviously complex dollhouse which transforms at your fingertips . each intricate room is a portal to a new , stunning environment . pick - up - and - play design easy to begin yet hard to put down , enjoy a unique mix of intriguing puzzles with a simple user interface .

intuitive touch controls a tactile experience so natural you can almost feel the surface of each object .

intricate objects examine dozens of detailed objects to discover which of them conceal hidden mechanisms .

atmospheric audio a haunting soundtrack coupled with dynamic sound effects create an unforgettable soundscape .

multi language support available in english , french , italian , german , spanish , brazilian portuguese , turkish and russian .

freemium games are hugely lucrative on ios and android : 17 of the 20 top - grossing iphone and ipad games in the uk at the time of writing are free - to - play .

the game launched for £2 . 99 on ipad , before shifting to £1 . 49 in late october and remaining at that price ever since . even at the lower price , the 1m sales would mean just under £1 . 5m of gross revenues , and £1m after apple ' s 30 % cut .

" the game cost us £60k to make , " says the guildford - based developer ' s commercial director barry meade . " we were happy if we made our money back , but we did that within a week . our next target was to pay for the development of the next one , and after that it ' s all gravy . "

the separate the room pocket version for iphone , which is a free download with one playable level and the rest unlocked with a £1 . 49 in - app purchase , is not included in the 1m sales figure . that app has been downloaded more than 2m times though .

they worked on both littlebigplanet games as well as titles including dj hero , split second and blur . " the real goal was always to make our own video - games though , " says meade .

" when ios happened , that made it possible for someone with our means to make something small and just get it out there . we saved up our money for three years , used it to hire a coder in january last year , and by february we were making the room . "

the game itself is excellent . released initially on ipad with the separate iphone version the room pocket following in december , it sees you completing puzzles to unlock a safe , blending impressive graphics with intuitive touchscreen controls .

" we wanted to make the best ios game we could , not just try to make a big console game for ios , " says meade . " a real games - maker will design their game around the resources they have and the platform they ' re going on . it ' s quite a practical equation . "

hence the emphasis on gestural controls as you push , pull and twist objects to solve puzzles , while zooming in and out on objects in the virtual room .

meade has strong views on the importance of designing for the touchscreen rather than harking back to controllers on other platforms . " it ' s the height of laziness to make a game that involves a d - pad for the ipad , " he says .

" no matter how good your production values are , it shows a lack of respect for the platform . all these so - called outliers that [ games industry ] people sneer at – angry birds and cut the rope etc – these are true touchscreen games , and that ' s why they ' re so successful . "

" people say that ' s what can ' t be done with an ipad game : that you ' ll never get the same sense of immersion , but i think they ' re forgetting what a difference touch makes , " he says .

" once you ' ve got your audio and your visuals , the touchscreen is now a new method of immersion . people have really gotten off on the tactility of the room and these objects . immersion is key for people to take games seriously on the platform . "

apple clearly agrees . the company has heavily promoted the room on its app store , and in december awarded it ipad game of the year in the app store ' s best of 2012 promotion – something that sent the game ' s sales soaring .

the room ' s success is also a sign that paid games aren ' t history , even if they aren ' t trousering the kind of revenues that the top freemium games are – developer supercell is thought to be making $ 1m of revenue a day from its clash of clans and hay day games , for example .

" when we were number one in the us ipad charts , we weren ' t even breaking the top 100 in the top grossing chart , " says meade . " but we ' re doing very well . there ' s absolutely room for premium games on ios . people aren ' t not going to buy something because it ' s not free - to - play . "

" long term it would be amazing to have done well enough that we can work solely on our own games , but time will tell , " he says .

" when we made the room , we had no backers , no publishing , marketing or pr people to care about , no investors . just us spending the only money we had to make the best thing we possibly could . we came into work smiling every day ! "

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kostas zarifis , former fable programmer , has launched his indie studio kinesthetic games , and explained why he decided to leave lionhead to do it .

the studio was founded in july 2011 by zarifis , codemasters ' alasdair martin and fellow lionhead veteran anish antony , but has just announced its first project , motion control game kung fu superstar . zarifis decided to go it alone after showing the project to lionhead .

" it wasn ' t turned down per se , " he told eurogamer .

" there were various investigations about how it could be developed . unless you ' ve actually developed something to a level where people can clearly see what you ' re trying to do , then there ' s a lot of room for misinterpretation about what it could be and how it could be developed . "

the game did have one big supporter , peter molyneux . he told zarifis he loved the project .

" it propagated to quite high up but it was obvious it either wasn ' t going to happen at lionhead or it would take a long time . "

the game is currently being developed by a team of 15 with publishing deals under negotiation . no platform has been announced , but zarifis ' contacts make microsoft ' s kinect a fairly safe bet . and he ' s worked with the device in the past .