Tower Crane Register to be Statutory soon!

Detailed recommendations for a statutorily-based tower crane register have been agreed today (25 November) by the HSE Board following a three-month public consultation. These details will now be put to Ministers for approval.
HSE received 100 responses; from trades unions, construction contractors and other stakeholders.
The new Regulations, developed by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) are intended to come into force in April 2010 and cover conventional tower cranes on construction sites.
The register is in response to increasing public concern about tower crane safety. Eight people have been killed in incidents involving tower cranes since 2000, including one member of the public.
The new proposed regulations, which are designed to be easy to follow:
1. place the duty to notify on the employer
2. require notification of the relevant information within 14 days of thorough examination of the crane
3. require cranes already erected when the Regulations come into force to be registered within 28 days
4. allow electronic notification via the HSE website.

Details that would have to be notified to HSE are:-
the site address where the tower crane is being used
the name and address of the crane owners
details needed to identify the crane
the date of its thorough examination
details of the employer for whom the examination was made
whether any defects posing a risk of serious injury were detected.
All details notified to HSE would be contained in a register that will be open to public scrutiny. Registrations would be subject to an administration fee of £20.
Philip White, HSE Chief Inspector of Construction said:
"There have been a number of high profile and tragic failures of tower cranes in recent years and there is widespread interest in finding ways to improve safety. The public consultation has helped us to develop a proportionate response to an established risk.
"We have learnt a great deal from recent incidents and are working together with hirers, suppliers, manufacturers and stakeholders to ensure that anything we have learnt is acted upon."
Around 1800 conventional tower cranes are thought to be operated in Britain, with around 1300 in use at any one time.
Following Ministerial approval, HSE plans to send out information to all duty-holders over the next few months.
The register is part of a package of measures which involves HSE and the construction industry continuing to work together to address issues around tower cranes: creating a competency requirements framework for crane erectors and dismantlers; undertaking more research into the effect of wind loading on cranes; consideration of the adequacy of crane design standards; greater research to improve understanding of crane accidents at an international level; greater promotion of the industry safe crane campaign to improve public confidence in crane safety.
The new registration site is scheduled to be launched on 6th April.

Gas and Cowboys do not mix!

Anyone employed to work on gas appliances in domestic premises must be Gas Safe registered and competent in that area of gas work. By using a Gas Safe registered engineer, and by checking the back of their ID card to see if they are qualified to do the type of gas work you want, you can be sure that any work completed by them will be done competently and safely.
We advise that you should arrange for regular maintenance and an annual safety check to be carried out on your gas appliances and installation by a Gas Safe registered engineer. Landlords have a legal duty to ensure that this is carried out.
Unsafe gas work can lead to a gas leak, fire, explosion and exposure to carbon monoxide, which could result in you, your family or friends being seriously injured or killed.
Go to the Gas Safe Register[1] or phone 0800 408 5500 to find out more about how to make sure your engineer is Gas Safe registered and how to protect yourself and your family from unsafe gas work.

FLT Operators Trained?

Mitesh Patel lost his right leg below the knee after he was pinned by a forklift truck during his holiday job. He was working for the Tile Depot in London in June 2008 when the accident happened, having taken the sales job over the summer holidays to help pay for his business studies degree at Hertfordshire University.
His work colleague was using the forklift truck without any previous training and rammed into Mitesh. The truck’s rear end swung round and pinned his leg against a gas tank.
Despite eight hours of surgery doctors were unable to save his leg. It was amputated below the knee. The GMB instructed Thompsons Solicitors which was successful in settling a compensation claim after the Tile Depot admitted liability.
Over the last 18 months Mitesh has adapted to his injuries and has now returned to his studies at Hertfordshire University. He plans to use the compensation to buy a tailor-made prosthesis.
He said: “The last 18 months have been a nightmare. I never imagined that an accident like this could happen to me. Dealing with my injuries was difficult at first but I’ve learnt that you have to just pick yourself up and get on with things.
“It is good to be back at university now. I get tired very easily and I still have phantom pains in my leg, but I am determined to finish my degree regardless of my injuries. I am looking forward to being able to use my new prosthesis which this compensation will allow me to buy.”
David Thompson from Thompsons Solicitors added: “This was a very serious and tragic accident. It is simply unacceptable that a worker untrained in using a forklift truck was allowed to do so.”

Demo Worker Sedated for 3 Weeks

Demolition company, G Baskerville Ltd, of Stoke-on-Trent, pleaded guilty at Newcastle-under-Lyme Magistrates Court to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. The company was fined £8,000 and ordered to pay costs of £6,000.
The case arose from an incident in which an unnamed man was using a power saw at Barnfields Industrial Estate in Staffordshire, when he fell from the first floor through the side of the building to the ground in October 2008.
The HSE investigation showed the walls of the building had been removed and there was an inadequately positioned steel girder around the sides.
HSE Inspector Guy Dale said: "Although there was a horizontal steel girder around the sides of the building, there were still substantial gaps and there was a significant risk that other workers could also have fallen four metres to the ground below.
"The injured party sustained serious injuries from the fall. He had to be sedated for three weeks and spent a further three weeks in hospital. At one stage his injuries were believed to be life threatening."
"It is vital that if workers have to work at height that there are adequate barriers erected to prevent them from falling."

Choosing a competent Health and Safety Consultant

As the only organisation in the world that offers Chartered membership to health and safety practitioners, IOSH can help you achieve the highest professional standards.
Employers know that when they work with a Chartered Safety and Health Practitioner, they're dealing with someone who's at the top of their profession. Chartered Members also have the respect of their peers – other professionals know that they've been through a rigorous process to become Chartered and have met the high standards of the world's most prestigious body for health and safety professionals. You can only become a Chartered Member after gaining Graduate membership.
Why Chartered?
Businesses, employers and recruitment consultants are already well used to working with and hiring Chartered professionals. They recognise Chartered status as shorthand for 'best in class' and they know they'll get the highest professional standards from a Chartered individual.
Chartered status will help you:
improve your ability to influence decision-makers
work on an equal footing with other professionals
increase your future employability.
As a Chartered Member of IOSH, you're entitled to use the designation Chartered Safety and Health Practitioner and the designatory letters CMIOSH. All Chartered Members need to maintain a CPD record.
RHSS employ Chartered Safety & Health Practitioners.

Work at Height Warning

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has delivered a stark warning to companies who fail to protect employees working at height - they will be held to account.
The warning follows a hearing yesterday (November 12) at Nottingham Magistrates' Court when Pontiac Coil Europe Ltd, of Queens Drive Industrial Estate in Nottingham pleaded guilty to/was found guilty of a breach of Regulation 6(3) and 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. The company failed to take sufficient measures to prevent employees falling from a height, after a member of staff fell from a mezzanine floor.
Pontiac Coil Europe Ltd was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay £4,867 costs for the incident on 25 June 2008, when employee, Norman Leonard Cole of Carlton, Nottingham fractured his skull and shoulder and sustained a number of fractured ribs when he fell 2.4 metres from a mezzanine floor. Mr Cole, who was 62 at the time, was dismantling the mezzanine floor surface at the company's premises on Longwall Avenue, Queens Drive Industrial estate in Nottingham.
The company failed to ensure that the work was properly planned, or to take suitable and sufficient measures to prevent Mr Cole falling.
HSE Inspector Stuart Pilkington said:
"Falling from height continues to be one of the most common causes of fatal injury to workers, accounting for 58 fatalities in 2007/08 in Great Britain. On this occasion Mr Cole sustained a fractured skull as well as other injuries, and was lucky to escape death.
"More than half (59%) of deaths reported in the construction industry in 2007/08 were as a result of working at height. These incidents are easily preventable and guidance on working at height is available on the HSE website."

No E/L? Think again!

A Cambridgeshire retailer has been fined £1,000 for failing to have compulsory insurance to protect his employees.
The case has prompted the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to remind all employers about the need for insurance and warn that it will take action against those who fail to protect their staff.
Dipak Kumar Kantial Solanki, who owns Melbourn Stores, 49 High Street, Melbourn, was asked to produce a current Employers' Liability Compulsory Insurance (ELCI) certificate when an Environmental Health Officer from South Cambridgeshire District Council visited the store in April 2009.
Mr Solanki failed to present a certificate and he was issued with an ELCI "notice to produce" by the HSE. Despite this, Mr Solanki still failed to present the document.
All employers who are required to have an ELCI certificate must produce a copy if requested to do so by a HSE inspector.
Yesterday (Thursday 12 November 2009) Mr Solanki pleaded guilty to two charges of failing to have insurance at Cambridge Magistrates' Court.
HSE Inspector Andrew Saunders said: “This case should serve as a warning to all employers about how seriously HSE takes this issue.
“Employers' Liability Compulsory Insurance is designed to protect employees and ensure they are covered if there is an accident in the workplace. Failing to have this insurance potentially leaves members of staff doubly vulnerable in the event of an accident or ill health."

Property Developer Fined

A London property developer and landlord was yesterday fined £10,000 at City of London Magistrates Court after workers on two of his developments were put at risk.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted Lahrie Mohamed of South Woodford, London, after uncovering breaches of health and safety law on two sites in Waltham Forest, north east London.
Mr Mohamed was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay costs of £4,103 after pleading guilty to breaching regulations 4(1) (a) and 9(1) (a) of the Construction (Design & Management) Regulations for offences committed at 78-80 Spruce Hills Road and breaching regulations 9(1) (a) and 4(1)(a)of the Construction (Design & Management) Regulations 2007 for offences committed at 67-67a Chingford Mount Road.
The court heard how Mr Mohammed failed on both sites to appoint a competent contractor and failed to take reasonable steps to ensure that proper arrangements were in place for work to be managed safely - putting workers and neighbours at risk.
Open flames were used at Chingford Mount Road site, which is close to a petrol station, but there were no fire extinguishers on site. Inspectors also found that scaffolding at the property was substandard or missing and had insufficient guard rails, while 240 volt power tools were used in areas where the cables were likely to be damaged, creating a risk of electrocution and fire. Domestic quality cables were also run through damp areas. HSE inspectors ordered works to down tools after visiting the site.
HSE Construction Inspector Sarah Snelling said: "Mr Mohamed put the lives of the men working on his sites at serious risk by failing to appoint competent contractors to carry out and manage the work.
"As a long-standing property developer and professional landlord who owns over 100 properties in and around Waltham Forest, Mr Mohamed should have had the knowledge and resources to ensure the work was carried out safely and legally."

Getting Started with Health and Safety

Register your new business[1]Decide whether you need to notify the Health and Safety Executive or your local authority about your business and where necessary, do so.
Take out Employer's Liability Compulsory Insurance[2] Employer's Liability Compulsory Insurance covers you against claims from employees who are injured or become ill as a result of their work.
Appoint a competent person [3]The law says you must appoint a competent person to help you meet your health and safety duties. This does not have to be an external consultant.
Write your health and safety policy[4]Your health and safety policy sets out the arrangements you have put in place for managing health and safety in your business. It is a unique document that says who does what, when and how.
Assess the risks[5]Decide what could harm people and what precautions to take. This is your risk assessment. You must act on the findings of your risk assessment, by putting sensible controls in place to prevent accidents and ill health and making sure they are followed.
Provide basic welfare facilities[6]You must provide a safe and healthy environment for all your employees. This includes toilets, washing facilities and drinking water, and appropriate lighting and temperature.
Provide free health and safety training and supervision [7]Everyone who works for you, including self-employed people, needs to know how to work safely and without risks to health. So you need to train them and supervise their work.
Consult your workers [8]Consultation means discussing health and safety with your workers allowing them to raise concerns and influence decisions.
Display the health and safety law poster [9]This is required by law. The poster includes basic health and safety information and lets people know who is responsible for health and safety in your workplace. Or you can give workers a leaflet.
Understand RIDDOR reporting procedures[10]The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995 (RIDDOR), require you to report work-related accidents, diseases and near-miss incidents. Make sure you know how to report, even if you never need to.
Keep up to date[11]

We have moved office!!

Our new address is:
RHSS Limited
Allen Court Business Centre
22 South End
Croydon
CR0 1DN
T: 0208 274 2926
F: 0871 714 6092