If only I was wearing a safety harness !! WORKING at HEIGHTS If only I was wearing a safety harness !!

Working at Heights Presentation Contents Introduction Ladder Safety Safe Roofwork Scaffolding Mobile Scaffolds Mobile Elevated Working Platforms Fall Speed v’s Reaction Time Fall Protection

Falls are the number one cause of fatalities in the construction industry accounting for approximately 56% of all fatalities All employees shall be protected from falls of 2m or more by the use of an approved fall protection system Railings are required at permanent elevated locations greater than or equal to 1.3m THE PAST THE REALITY OF WORKING AT HEIGHT EARLY LAST CENTURY. WORKING AT HEIGHT IS A NECESSITY IN THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY. BUT SOMEONE HAS TO PROVIDE ACCESS TO THE PLACE OF WORK. TRADITIONALLY THIS HAS BEEN PROVIDED THROUGH THE USE OF SCAFFOLDING. SINCE THIS PICTURE WAS TAKEN WE HAVE SEEN RADICAL CHANGES IN WORKING PRACTICES, DRIVEN BY HEALTH AND SAFETY LEGISLATION TO ENSURE THAT THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY IMPROVES ITS SAFETY RECORD. For the next paragraph you need to put in the most recent accident statistics available those shown relate to the 1999/2000 THIS YEAR 38 FALLS ACCOUNTED FOR 48% OF ALL FATAL ACCIDENTS IN CONSTRUCTION, THIS IS STILL TOO HIGH A PRICE TO PAY. THE FATALITIES IN CONSTRUCTION ARE WHAT THE GENERAL PUBLIC REMEMBER, AND WHAT OF SCAFFOLDING HOW DOES THE WORLD AT LARGE SEE IT? Trainer to click mouse to reveal next slide

Lethal Ladders: Make sure the ladder is:- Right for the job. Would scaffolding or a cherry picker be better? In good shape. Secured near the top. On a firm base and footing: 4 up – 1 out Rising at least 1 meter beyond the landing place OR that there is a proper hand hold. Always have a firm grip on the ladder and keep a good balance. Keep you hands free and tools in a shoulder bag or belt attachment

Lethal Ladders: Use of Ladders:- Work should only be carried out from a ladder when the job is of short duration and can be carried out safely. For added safety the base of the ladder should be staked or buried to prevent slipping. Ensure your footware is free from excessive mud or grease before you climb up the ladder. ALWAYS Face the ladder.

Lethal Ladders: Hazards of Ladders:- Don’t stand ladder on drum, box or other unstable base Never attempt to repair broken ladders Never carry loads up ladders – hoist it up Ladder rungs must not be used as improvised ramps When using metel or metal-reinforced ladders, make sure there are no electrical hazards in the near vicinity

Ladder Safety “No matter how quickly a job can be done, there is always time to fall” A good point to remember... Point out the two practices and solicit responses from the group on why the unsafe position is unsafe. Answer: The person is overreaching, this violates the belt buckle rule (which we will discuss little later). This makes the ladder unstable and easy to fall over. Ask: What should the person do instead of reaching? Answer: Get down from the ladder and move it over closer to the work area. Unsafe Safe

The Roof: A Risky Place To Be Before Working on Roofs:- Fragile materials should be identified and precautions decided Roof edge barriers (or scaffolds) must be erected tp prevent people and materials falling Access ladders must be a safe distance above the stepping-off point and must be secured Where access ladders rise above 9meters a safe intermediate platform must be provided

The Roof: A Risky Place To Be Hazards of Working on Roofs:- If you can fall more than 2 meters, guardrails and toe boards must be erected Hazards resulting from adverse weather conditions must be anticipated, and suitable precautions taken Wet windy or Icy weather can seriously affect safety

Scaffolding Never use incomplete scaffolding always inspect before use Using ladders or scaffolding without proper fixing is crazy Putting up scaffolding, removing ties and taking it down again is a job for trained and experienced scaffolders. Leave it to them Never use incomplete scaffolding always inspect before use Make sure there is safe access, hand rails and toe boards at all edges Things fall on sites, wear your helmet

Mobile Scaffold Towers Before Erection: Check all components are in good condition Check wheels for effective rotation Check brakes and locking devices work correctly Prior to erecting towers on suspended floors, ensure bearing capacity of floor is sufficient for the planned load Before Use: Ensure the tower is vertical and square Towers must not be used unless the wheels are locked Check that outriggers are set correctly and secured Ensure the platform is fully boarded out and guardrails and toe boards are fitted if working platform is over 2 meters

Mobile Elevated Work Platforms Do not operate without pre-use inspection and unless you are trained Check condition of tyres, toe boards and guardrails, look for leaking hydraulic fluids Look out for overhead obstructions such as power cables, unstable ground, other equipment or personnel near-by Only use on firm level ground, make sure outriggers are properly extended and chocked before raising the platform Always wear a safety harness secured to the platform by lanyard. Safety means staying in the basket and not climbing on the guardrails Place barricades and warning signs around the planned working radius Traveling with a boom, is always in the direction of travel and at creep speed and only if equipment is designed to allow this Know what to do if machine fails with platform in raised position

Good body reaction time FALL SPEED V’s REACTION TIME In 1 second your body will fall 10m Good body reaction time = 0.2 seconds Travel distance in 0.2 seconds = 2m By the time you react your body will be 2m below where you were standing

Fall Protection Fall arrest: Limits free fall to within 2 vertical metres of the initiation point which reduces force by decreasing fall distance Consists of a(n) Lanyard Anchorage Point Full Body Harness Attachment Strap Fall Protection Need: lanyard, full body harness, attachment strap, connecting device. Ask: “How can a fall arrest shorten the distance of a fall?” Answer: A fall arrest system allows the person to fall a maximum of 2 metres. Fall arrest systems consist of the following: (Illustrate by showing an example of each component except for an anchorage point). lanyard anchorage full body harness attachment strap(webbing tie off) connecting device NOTE: keep the lanyard in your hand for the next slide

Fall Protection Lanyard Fall Protection Lanyard A device made of rope, wire or nylon strap used to connect the individual to an anchorage point and stop the individual in the event of a fall Lanyards should: Be inspected prior to use Be protected against being cut or abraded Have a minimum breaking strength of 2270kg Be the appropriate length Be attached to an anchorage not to itself Fall Protection Need: lanyard, attachment strap Use the lanyard to illustrate when explaining bullets: Stress the importance of protecting the lanyard from rubbing on rough surfaces when in use. Let them know you can put something under the lanyard such as a piece of carpet, etc. if need be. State that all lanyards in use at JE automatically meet this requirement (5000 lbs breaking strength) Demonstrate while explaining not to wrap an anchorage around a beam and attach it to itself (this is when you use the attachment strap) Different lengths will be necessary to provide adequate protection. The individual is responsible to ensure the length of the lanyard will not allow a fall over 2 metres or less, depending on the hazard.

Safety Equipment for Fall-Arrest Shock Absorbing Lanyards: Material in the pack tears absorbing shock and reducing risk of injury. Available with web or rope lanyards. Twin Tailed Lanyard: The expandable twin tailed lanyard is an ideal choice for situations where 100% tie-off is required. Expandable Lanyard: Especially useful for scaffolds, steel erectors and construction workers where tripping might be a risk.

Located at or above the employee’s waist Fall Protection Anchorage Point A secure point of attachment for lifelines, lanyards or deceleration devices Anchorage points used for attachment of personal fall arrest equipment must be: Located at or above the employee’s waist Capable of supporting more than 2270kg per employee Designed and built to hold the maximum force of the fall arrest Fall Protection Ask: “Why should an anchorage be at or above your waist?” Answer: Free fall must be limited to 2 metres. The D-ring is at your back and the lanyard is 2 metres in length. A lower attachment point will allow you to free fall a farther distance. Illustrate the above point holding the lanyard (pretend it is attached to you). You can also illustrate this point using the flip chart and markers. Discuss the 5000 lbs capacity and the safety factor rating. A safety factor rating of 2 is on a case by case basis (when there is not an anchorage to tie off to with a 5000 lbs capacity) and only with approval of a structural engineer, safety engineer and supervisor. Before changing slides explain to the class that the higher the anchorage, the shorter the fall.

Fall Protection Full body harness: The attachment point of a body harness is located in the center of the wearer’s back near shoulder level Body belts are not allowed on sites Snaphooks shall be a double locking-type Fall Protection Ask: “What type of harness is used at JE?” Answer: A full body harness Ask: “Does anyone know why body belts are not used at JE?” Answer: A body belt can cause abdominal injury by placing all the force of the fall on your abdomen. A person can only hold a hanging position for about 30 seconds before experiencing ill effects (passing out, etc.) Refer to the video and how a full body harness distributes the weight placing more on your pelvic region, and how it leaves you in an upright position. Discuss the possibility of roll-out when using non-locking snaphooks.

WHAT YOU NEED? Full body harness complete with rear dorsal ring (EN 361) 1.75m fixed length lanyard (EN 362) Shock absorbing device (EN 355) 55mm opening scaffold hook for one handed operation (EN 362) Blank screen with two photos will appear WHAT TYPE OF EQUIPMENT IS RECOMMENDED? Click mouse to bring up the list of PPE, 4 items click mouse * FULL BODY HARNESS COMPLETE WITH REAR DORSAL RING * 1.75M FIXED LENGTH LANYARD * SHOCK ABSORBING DEVICE * 55MM OPENING SCAFFOLD HOOK FOR ONE HANDED OPERATION THIS EQUIPMENT IS A MINIMUM, AND THERE MAY BE CIRCUMSTANCES WHERE ADDITIONAL PPE IS REQUIRED, FOR EXAMPLE INERTIAL REELS, RUNNING LINES ETC. Trainer to click mouse to reveal next slide

Care for fall arrest systems: Fall Protection Care for fall arrest systems: After a fall arrest, the equipment will no longer be used (equipment will be disposed of or destroyed) Clean equipment after use Air dry equipment, do not hang in direct sunlight Store equipment in a cool, dark, dry well ventilated place Fall Protection Tell the class to reference their Inspection checklist for full body harness (located in the Appendix of their student guide). Stress the importance of caring for your personal fall arrest system (cleaning and storage).

No job is so important that it cannot be done safely Working at Heights No job is so important that it cannot be done safely UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES ARE PERSONS WORKING ON THIS SITE TO PUT THEMSELVES IN DANGER BEST - BE Safe Today