Health and Safety Executive

Health and Safety Executive

PLANT SAFETY

An overview

Luke Messenger

HM Inspector of Health and Safety - Construction

• Statistics

• Mobile Plant

• Small Tools and

Equipment

• Health

Recognition of Risk

Fatal injuries to workers in the

Construction sector by injury kind

– 2010/11 to 2014/15

Statistics (all construction plant)

• RIDDOR reported 2005 – 2010

Plant type Fatal Major Over 3 day

Excavator 27 384 435

Dumper 6 191 144

Dump truck 4 114 134

Bulldozer 4 20 33

Load shovel 5 21 39

Crusher 2 5 7

Excavator incidents (2005 – 10)

Fatal Major Over 3 day

Struck by 14 155 178

Falling objects 5 74 69

Crushed / trapped

/ overturned

7 33 57

Fall from height 1 5 5

Fatal examples in 2013-15

• Banksman crushed…banking 2 vehicles

• Operator crushed…MEWP overturn

• Pedestrian employee struck by load

shovel

• Pipelayer crushed…concrete slab being

moved using excavator

• MEWP operator crushed over controls

• Roofer fell 6mtrs from manrider on

telehandler

• Roadworker killed by reversing tar lorry

• Operative struck by excavator arm

• MoP killed by load falling from telehandler

Fatal examples in 2013–15 (Cont.)

The legislation

• HSWA

• MHSW (Management of Health and Safety at Work,

the Management Regs)

• CDM (Construction, Design and Management Regs)

• PUWER (Provision and Use of Work Equipment)

• LOLER (Lifting operations and lifting equipment)

• WAH (Work at Height Regs)

• PPE Regs

HSE Guidance Available

Guidance available from HSE

website –

• Traffic Management

• Mobile Plant & Vehicles

• Excavators

• Telehandlers

• MEWPs

• Dumpers

HSG144

www.hse.gov.uk/construction/safetytopics

Other Guidance

HSE – Information Sheets

CIS No.52 Safe Use of Site Dumpers

GIS No.6 The Selection Management

and Use of MEWPs

Construction Plant-hire Association

(CPA) website

HSG144 - The objectives

• Safe Site

• Safe Vehicle

• Safe People

The hierarchy

• Avoid / Reduce

– Plan to reduce vehicle movements sfarp (delivery planning)

– Eliminate / reduce reversing using one way systems

– Selection of plant/equipment

• Segregate

– Design of site entrances

– Provision of barriers to walkways

– Exclusion zones

• Control

– Trained and competent operators

– Maintenance

– Signs and warnings

– Trained vehicle marshals (banksmen)

Safe site

• SSoW

• Risks from machinery movements considered in RAMS

• Risks include machine movement around site and moving

parts of the machine

– Safe entrances

– Traffic routes

– Exclusion zones

• Pedestrian segregation implemented

– Barriers, briefings, plans, warning signs

• Vehicle marshallers and “Banksmen” competent at control

and self preservation

• Environmental and ground conditions

Safe entrances

Safe entrances

What we tend to see

Communicate

Communicate

Segregation (large site)

Segregation (smaller site)

Demarcated walkways

Segregation, protection

Barrier off or use stop blocks

• Embankment edges

• Excavation edges

• Water

• Sensitive structures

No protection

Protection to traffic route

Preventing overrun

Not a good idea

No stop blocks (baulks)

Effective stop block (baulk)?

How it might end up

Deliveries

• Designated loading bays

• Designated storage areas

• Protected / warnings (segregation)

• Proximity to point of use

• Safe work at height

• Safe lifting practices

• Safe vehicle marshalling

Segregated delivery point

Falls during deliveries

Site loading bay (collective prevention)

Personal fall prevention

Fall mitigation, loading bay (collective)

Safe Machines

• Selection – correct tool for the job e.g.

• Tracked vehicles on soft ground

• Demolition machine not 360 excavator

• Lifting attachments

• Size – neither too big nor too small

• Design e.g.

• Tail swing .v. Zero tail swing

• Driver’s Visibility

– Direct

– Indirect (mirrors)

– Vision aids (CCTV and radar

Safe Machines (Cont.)

• Safe access, including for maintenance

• Driver protection

– ROPS

– Seat restraint

– FOPS

– Environmental (noise, dust, vibration)

• Inspection, Maintenance and Thorough Examination

• Risks from machinery breakdown and repair adequately assessed

Mobile Plant Hazards

• Most injuries occur when:

• Moving – Pedestrian strikes, particularly while reversing

– Dumper overturns

• Slewing – trapping a person between the excavator and a

fixed structure or vehicle

• Working – moving bucket or other attachment strikes a

pedestrian or when a bucket inadvertently falls from the

excavator.

• Lifting – Overturns trapping operator or persons nearby

– Operators fall from MEWP basket

– Entrapment of MEWP operators between fixed

structures

Controlling the risks

• Exclusion

• Clearance: When slewing in a confined space

select plant with minimal tail swing. Clearance of

over 0.5m needs to be maintained.

Controlling the risk - Safe access

Controlling the risks - Visibility

Sightlines and reversing

Limited direct vision

Indirect vision and vision aids

Problems with vision aids

• Active not passive

• Activate

• Look at it

• Perceive and assess [distortion]

• React

• Unreliable

• Damage or mal-adjustment

• Weather…..sun, rain

• Dirt

Poor sightlines, even with proper

adjustment

What can go wrong ?

It had mirrors and a camera

But the mirrors didn’t help

And neither did the camera

Stability - Telehandlers, the site

workhorse

But not always stable

Controlling the risks

• Ground conditions: Work on sloping, uneven or

unstable ground. Manholes? Telehandlers

normally require prepared, flat, graded surfaces

to operate safely. Even rough-terrain lift trucks

have limitations.

• Loading: Prevent overloading. Select correct

vehicle and attachments. Lifting plans. Moving

with a raised load is dangerous and should be

avoided at all times.

• Speed: site speed limit

Offloading in an exclusion zone

Or is it ? (any other problems ?)

Use the right attachments

Load swing and CoG

What can go wrong

Use MEWPs instead for lifting persons

Controlling the risks - MEWPS

Dumpers - Stability

Quick hitches

Deaths have occurred where bucket has fallen from

the machine.

• Manual systems do not feature in the statistics

• Semi-automatic systems are by far the majority,

and occur where the operator has failed to insert

the safety pin

• Incidents with automatic systems do occur,

usually due to the operating not engaging the

bucket fully, or due to component failure

(maintenance?)

• Lifting only with lifting eye on the QH or other

attachment

Quick Hitches - Maintenance

Vehicle maintenance

• Must be maintained in safe condition

• Daily pre use checks

– Steering

– Brakes

– Lights, visibility aids

– Warning systems, interlocks and CCTV

• Reporting of defects

• Formal periodic inspections (LOLER)

Poor maintenance

Poor maintenance

Safe People - Competent

operatives

• Safe driver

– Trained for tasks

• Driving on road

• Driving on site

• Lifting operations

• Appreciation of ground conditions

• Daily checks

• Defect reporting

• Avoiding distractions

– Fit for work

The main problems

• Lack of driver training

• Lack of banksman training

• Lack of lifting operations training

• Lack of planning

• One off “do me a favour”

• Distractions

• Lack of awareness of risk

• “I’ve always done it this way”

Banksmen, right and wrong

Training and guidance

• CPCS (Administered by CITB)

– Pant operators

• Dumpers

• Telehandlers

• Lorry loaders

• Banksmen

• ALLMI (association of lorry loader manufacturers and importers)

• NPORS (National plant operator’s registration scheme)

Training and guidance

• CPA (Construction plant hire association)

– Safe use of telehandlers

– Excavators used for lifting

– Medical fitness

– Ground conditions

– Competence

– Safe use of lorry loaders (jointly badged with CPA)

– Safe use of remote controls (jointly badged with CPA)

• CPA website www.cpa.uk.net

Think Health

Accident v Ill Health Fatalities

Construction health headlines

• 98% work place deaths caused by

occupational disease

• 10 people every week die from silica

• Noise induced hearing loss for construction 3x industry average

• Hand arm vibration for construction 4.5x industry average

• 50 000 reported manual handing injuries

• Average time off per incident is 19 days

Selection of plant and equipment

Selection - Control risk

Small Equipment - Maintenance

• Maintain guards

• Maintain extraction

Select and Maintain

To reduce:

• Noise

• Vibration

• Dust

Thank you

Any questions ?