Investigation of a fatal incident by HSE has identified that unintended movement of some mobile crushers can occur when there is an earth/ground fault. This can result in unintended movement of the machine track(s) and the potential for injuries from being struck by or trapped by the machine.

Where damage/deterioration of the electrical control cables can lead to a risk of unintended movement, the actions outlined in the safety notice should be taken.

Read the Safety Alert in full to find out what action to take – http://www.hse.gov.uk/safetybulletins/mobilecrushingplant.htm?ebul=gd-cons/nov11&cr=1

Essential reading for the world of health & safety in construction 

Construction Infonet is a free e-Bulletin from the HSE to provide a regular update on health &safety issues for all in the construction industry.

 1. ++ SAFETY ALERT ++

Overturns of JLG 500RTS scissor lifts

HSE has issued a Safety Alert advising users of certain types of scissor lifts to make daily safety checks after 5 deaths in three separate incidents when the lift overturned. Following HSE reviews into these fatal accidents, all involving the overturn of a JLG 500RTS scissors lift, it has been established that in all three cases:

• the oscillating axle lockout valve failed as the platform was raised, and,
• The lift/drive interlock system did not work allowing the platform to be elevated above 6.7m without the stabilisers being deployed.

Powered Perimeter Gates

HSE has issued a Safety Notice to advise on the action required so that the public, staff, and other workers are not put at risk by the design, construction and operation of powered perimeter gates. During the summer of 2010 two children died after becoming trapped in powered gates.

Following earlier alerts this new Safety Notice provides further advice to landlords, commercial owners or facilities managers of properties with powered perimeter gates

2. ++ CONSTRUCTION INSPECTION INITIATIVE 2011 ++

HSE inspectors are launching an intensive inspection initiative aimed at stopping dangerous practices on building sites, running from Monday 14 February 2011 till Friday 11 March, it will focus on smaller sites concentrating on working at height, good order on site and asbestos surveys.

3. ++ RECENT ENFORCEMENT ACTIVITY ++

Read details of some recent HSE prosecutions and enforcement action in the construction sector and find sources of relevant advice.

Work at height

7 January 2011 -£5,000 fine issued after three workers fell through skylights at the same industrial unit on three separate occasions – leaving one of them paralysed.

HSE prosecuted the Company after a caretaker fell through a fragile skylight while cleaning guttering; the worker suffered rib fractures & severe bruising. Another employee was sent to take photographs of the scene but fell through a different skylight landing feet-first on a mezzanine floor and escaping injury.

Three weeks later a contractor was sent to repair the skylights; while fixing a skylight he fell more than 4m to the ground, sustaining severe spinal injuries, leaving him paralysed from the waist down.

The Company pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the HASAWA 1974 & was fined £5,000 with costs of £9,000.

The Contractor pleaded guilty to breaching Section 3(1) of the same Act; however, as he has been declared bankrupt, he received a conditional discharge which means that he will not be fined as long as he does not commit another offence in the next twelve months.

Demolition and dismantling

14 January 2011– A Leicestershire based Company endangered the lives of both its workforce and the public while demolishing a factory in Leicester. An HSE inspector found that the building was at risk of collapse, workers had removed structural parts of the building without properly supporting it. Workers were spotted standing on the roof, demolishing parts of the building by hand, and were working at height without suitable equipment to prevent falls.

The Company pleaded guilty to breaching Regulations 9 (1)(a) and 28 (2) of the CDM Regs 2007 & two breaches of Regulation 6 (3) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. The company was fined £4,000 with costs of £1,084.

Asbestos

12 January 2011 – A company set up by a Yorkshire Council to manage and improve council houses has been fined, after allowing a plumber to be exposed to up to 50 times the legal limit for asbestos. The Company employed a sub-contractor to remove an old bathroom and install a shower room at a house.

An asbestos survey carried out on a property next door highlighted the presence of asbestos in the bathroom; these results were not passed on to the sub-contractor. The result was that their worker unknowingly removed tiles bonded to a wall of asbestos insulating board (AIB), causing significant damage to the wall. He was not wearing any protective clothing or respiratory protection.

The company pleaded guilty to breaching the Health & Safety at Work Act and was fined £7,000 with £3,418 costs.

12 January 2011 – A property management company was fined £30,100 after admitting a series of offences which led to workers being exposed to asbestos fibres. The Company was prosecuted by HSE for failing to properly manage the removal of asbestos-containing materials when employees were replacing a roof of a factory.

The HSE investigation found the company had failed to carry out an asbestos survey or risk assessment, had no licence to remove asbestos, had given staff no instruction or training in removing it, and had left workers exposed – with no attempts to limit the spread of asbestos or exposure to it.

4. ++ CONSULTANTS INVITED TO SIGN UP TO NEW REGISTER FOR HEALTH & SAFETY ++

Health & safety consultants are being invited to sign up to a new independent register that is intended to become a new benchmark for standards in the profession. The Occupational Safety and Health Consultants Register (OSHCR) has been opened in response to recommendations in the Government report – Common Sense Common Safety. The register has been established by professional bodies representing general safety and occupational health consultants across the UK, with support from HSE.

5. ++ NEW PUBLICATIONS – JANUARY 2011 ++

The management of temporary works in the construction industry HSE internal guidance – this Sector Information Minute (SIM) provides guidance to Inspectors on temporary works management in the construction industry and how Inspectors should approach enforcement of the topic.

http://www.hse.gov.uk/foi/internalops/sectors/construction/021004.htm?ebul=cons/jan11&cr=18

SOURCE: HSE

The HSE & Sheffield City Council are working in partnership to carry out a targeted inspection campaign of premises in South Yorkshire; the campaign will run in September 2010

During this time, the hope to raise awareness and improve standards of health & safety in businesses

Where employers are found not to be complying with the law, then appropriate action will be taken which may involve the service of Improvement or Prohibition Notices

For more information about complying with the law, contact Andrew today on 07870 777303

Recently a worker was killed whilst he was helping to remove a board from a stack leaning against a wall. He lost control of the weight of the boards and they fell on him causing serious head injuries

Boards are heavy and it is easy to lose control of them when they are being moved; this problem is made much worse when they are stored together in a stack leaning against a wall and several boards fall at once.

Action required

Purpose designed storage racking will prevent this type of incident. These racks are relatively easy to construct and can often be made ‘in-house’ (as illustrated)

Also consider appropriate handling aids as part of a safe system of work for retrieval and moving the boards.

If you use these boards, contact Andrew today on 07870 777303 to review your current arrangements of how board are stored and moved