Health and Safety
Executive / Commission
Construction
Welcome to the latest edition of Construction Infonet.
Construction Infonet is a free e-Bulletin from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to provide a regular update on health and safety issues for all in the construction industry.
We have received a few messages from subscribers to Construction Infonet who did not receive the September 2008 issue. If you didn’t receive it you can access a copy from the archive on HSE's website
New statistics published by the HSE reveal a reduction in the numbers of people killed, injured or made ill by work during 2007/08 across all industry sectors.
Construction has the largest number of fatal injuries of the main industry groups. In 2007/08 there were 72 fatal injuries. The rate of fatal injuries in Construction over the past decade has shown a downward trend, although the rate has shown little change in the most recent years.
HSE’s Asbestos campaign ‘Hidden Killer’ continues and the campaign website is regularly updated with news stories and sources of guidance.
Asbestos is a hidden killer. So now’s the time to get clued up on the facts, so that you, your workmates, your friends and family are protected.
HSE’s Construction Industry Advisory Committee (CONIAC) will be holding an open meeting on Thursday 27 November at HSE’s offices in London. If you would like to attend the meeting please follow the link below to register your interest. Please note, availability is limited.
On 8 September 2008, Capita signed a ten year contract with the HSE to operate a new gas installer registration scheme in Great Britain from April 2009. The new scheme replaces the CORGI gas registration scheme which will end on 31 March 2009 in England, Scotland and Wales.
HSE is lending its support for CO Awareness Week organised by CO-Awareness. The awareness week runs from 17 – 21 November 2008 and is again taking place in the autumn which coincides with the use of central heating boilers and increased gas consumption by consumers. This is the third such week and HSE is happy to support the week aimed at reducing incidents, fatalities and ill health due to carbon monoxide poisoning by raising awareness amongst consumers.
Read details of some recent HSE prosecutions and enforcement action in the construction sector and find sources of relevant advice.
20 October 2008: HSE is urging employers to ensure safe working at height after a man was left paralysed from the waist down following a fall of two storeys at a construction site in central London. The victim involved in the incident was working on a construction site where two buildings were being converted into one. A steel structure was being installed to support the building and being lifted into place by a hoist from the ground floor. Whilst part of the structure was being moved it became stuck and when freed moved very quickly out of place. The individual was struck and dragged through a hole in the floor, falling 7.3 metres down two storeys landing on the ground floor and as a result is now paralysed from the waist down.
31 October 2008: Two companies fined £130,000 following death of employee. Three industrial boilers were being installed at new waste to energy facilities under construction in Maidstone, Kent. Each boiler was situated in a steel structure with platforms and walkways at various heights. A worker was installing floor gratings to one of the three boilers. Many of the gratings had not been secured in place and others had been displaced by pipe-fitters who were working on the same boiler. The worker fell 23 meters to his death when one of the displaced gratings gave way.
6 November 2008: HSE is reminding builders and landlords of the need to take safety seriously when planning work at height. The warning follows the prosecution after a man fell from a rooftop whilst carrying out repairs at a property in Barnsley following strong gales in the area. Inadequate planning and supervision meant that the work method adopted was unsafe, and the worker fell approximately five metres suffering three broken ribs and severe bruising.
11 November 2008: HSE is warning shopfitters to have correctly assembled mobile tower scaffolds after a worker fell from unprotected scaffolding at a new shopping centre, in Enfield. The prosecution followed an incident that took place during the fitout of a shop. The injured person was working from a mobile tower scaffold while fitting ductwork for a shop when he fell three metres onto a concrete floor. He suffered serious head injuries, which consequently lead to deteriorating physical and mental health.
12 November 2008: HSE is warning businesses and contractors of the need to take safety seriously when working on roofs. The warning follows the prosecution of a roofing contractor and the owners of a Halifax mill after a worker fell from a roof whilst carrying out repair work. The employer had failed to supervise and monitor the system of work that he had put in place and towards the end of the work, a subcontracted roofer fell four metres from the roof and broke both his heels after a ladder he was using became detached from the roof ridge. There had been problems with the systems of work since the start of the job, exposing roofers to risk of serious injury by falling from height.
24 October 2008 - HSE is warning individuals and companies of the dangers of working in construction after a joiner was injured when an over-inflated pipe stopper exploded in the confined space where he was working, resulting in significant hospital treatment. The joiner was constructing shuttering for concrete to be poured into a manhole when he was asked by a colleague to insert an inflatable pipe stopper into a culvert to stop the fluid in the culvert so it could be lined. The pipe stopper had a maximum inflation pressure of 1.5 bar (approximately 21psi) and was inflated without warning. However the device inflating the pipe stopper was not compatible with it, and had a higher pressure safety cut-off. As a result, the pipe stopper burst with significant force, the joiner sustained a compound fracture of the tibia and fibula, and also suffered damage to his hearing from the noise of the pipe stopper exploding.
22 October 2008: HSE has warned the electrical contracting industry of the tragic consequences which can result when safe working procedures are not practiced when working on live electrical systems. The warning follows the death of 26 year-old man, in Dundee, who was electrocuted when he came into contact with a live conductor in a cable on which he was working. He was installing cables, fixtures and fittings when the incident happened. Despite being labeled 'not in use', the cable he was working on was live; it had not been safely and securely isolated from the electricity supply.
24 October 2008: HSE is warning machine operators to ensure that they adhere to safe working practices when using excavators, following HSE's prosecution of an excavator driver after a pedestrian was killed in Maida Vale, London. The driver was operating an excavator outside a house within a fenced off area. The excavator had a number of buckets stored in the front bucket of the machine and while turning the excavator, the driver raised the front buckets over the site fence until they were hanging over an unprotected section of public pavement. At that point an 81 year-old pedestrian, was walking past. The driver then unintentionally operated the wrong lever causing the stored buckets to fall to the pavement. At least one of these struck the pedestrian, who died soon afterwards. The HSE investigation showed that the driver had sufficient space to turn his excavator without the need to lift the front bucket above the public pavement, and also that there were other workers nearby who could have helped in closing the public pavement had it been necessary to do so.
Now that the clocks have gone back, and winter is here, HSE has provided some timely guidance to ensure workers remain safe during the colder, darker months ahead.
There are now many ways to receive the latest HSE and construction specific news and information for free from HSE.
Infoline - Health and safety information and advice: Call 0845 345 0055 or visit the contact page.
Report an accident: Call 0845 300 9923 or visit the RIDDOR web site.
We issue e-Bulletins on a regular basis and would welcome your feedback and views as well as any suggestions/contributions for future articles.
Thank you to those who provided feedback on the previous editions - we have tried to incorporate as many of the suggestions as possible.
You can contact us at: construction-manager@bulletins.hse.gov.uk