Welcome to the latest edition of Construction Infonet.
Construction Infonet is a free eBulletin from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to provide a regular update on health and safety issues for all in the construction industry.
Two recent, separate, incidents that both led to the deaths of young children have highlighted a risk of using automatic vehicle access gates.
The purpose of this Safety Notice is to reinforce and update previous information (HSE Safety Notice FOD WSW 1-2010[1]) to organisations and individuals involved in the design, construction, installation and commissioning of electrically powered gates and organisations in control of their use and/or maintenance. It is also relevant to companies carrying out on-going maintenance of these types of gates.
Frontline has been commissioned by HSE to evaluate the impact of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 on the construction industry in Great Britain.
As part of this evaluation, Frontline is hosting a number of open forums and workshops across the country to get a broad range of views from people working in the industry.
The events will last 3 hours and are on a first come, first served basis. We genuinely want to hear people's views.
Please register online if you would like to be involved.
The annual Ladder Exchange provides UK businesses with an easy and simple way to replace broken, damaged or bent ladders and trade them in for safe new ones. Since its launch, Ladder Exchange has resulted in nearly 7 000 dodgy ladders being removed from use.
This year's programme will run for 3 months from 1 September until 30 November.
On 17 September 2010, HSE signed an agreement with the Building Control Alliance (BCA), in a bid to work more closely to improve health and safety standards in the construction industry.
The agreement sets out how HSE and building control professionals will cooperate to help and support each other, for example in providing health and safety advice to the construction industry, but clearly distinguishes their separate regulatory roles and responsibilities.Read details of some recent HSE prosecutions and enforcement action in the construction sector and find sources of relevant advice.
1 September 2010 - A building company and its director have been fined a total of £30,000 after a worker fell nearly thirty feet from scaffolding at a building site in Llanfairfechan, sustaining severe injuries.
JBB Homes Ltd of Stockport - which has subsequently gone into liquidation - pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. It was fined £20,000 and ordered to pay costs of £10,835. The company's director, James Burt pleaded guilty to breaching Section 37(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and was fined £10,000.
Nicholas Roberts, 28 years old from Rhyl, was working on scaffolding at the site on 4 December 2007 when the incident happened. The HSE investigation found that Mr Roberts was carrying out work to replace a lintel, when he fell from the scaffolding. He fractured his pelvis in three places, broke some teeth and bruised his pelvis and groin.
23 September 2010 - A major construction firm has been fined £160,000 after a labourer fell to his death while building Premier League side Everton FC's new training academy.
Karl Davis was working on the first floor of a building on the Finch Lane site in Halewood when a guardrail gave way and he fell out of an open window frame. Mr Davis remained in a coma for three months before he died less than a week after his 43rd birthday.
Kier North West pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 for failing to ensure the safety of workers and was ordered to pay £43,993 costs in addition to the fine.
3 September 2010 - A Shropshire boarding school has today been fined £25,000 after a worker was killed while demolishing a building on the site.
HSE prosecuted Moor Park Charitable Trust Ltd which runs Moor Park School, after it arranged for a team of inexperienced building workers to demolish a large wooden classroom. The HSE investigation revealed the workers had no effective plan in place and removed integral supports within the classroom's structure, causing the roof to collapse while five men were inside.
Mark Evans, aged 40, suffocated when the roof, which weighed 2.4 tonnes, fell on top of him. The four other men survived without serious injury thanks to the chance positioning of a dumper which was parked inside part of the building, creating an escape route.
The school failed to make any reasonable enquiries into the competence of the men to undertake the demolition work prior to the work beginning. Moor Park School pleaded guilty to breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. As well as the fine, it was also ordered to pay £15,000 in costs.
10 September 2010 - Fines totalling £30,000 have been issued following the death of a Salford worker, who was struck by the excavator bucket on a digger.
John Cain, 36, was working on a project to demolish the Albert Park Inn in Salford on 22 November 2004 when he was hit by the bucket on a digger. He died from his injuries later that day.
HSE prosecuted two individuals and one company for health and safety offences, following an investigation into his death. They were sentenced at Manchester Crown Court on 10 September - the day Mr Cain would have celebrated his 42nd birthday.
Barry Godliman and Robert Watson pleaded guilty to breaching Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 by failing to ensure the safety of workers on the site. Barry Godliman was fined £7,500 and ordered to pay £2,000 towards the cost of the prosecution. Robert Watson was also fined £7,500 with costs of £2,000.
Windmill Demolition, of Windmill Lane in Denton, was found guilty of the same offence following a trial at Manchester Crown Court in July. The company was fined £15,000 with no costs.
2 September 2010 - An Aberdeen building firm has been prosecuted after a joiner's boilersuit was set on fire when a short circuit caused a localised electrical explosion.
George Forbes, 62, was working for Graeme W Cheyne (Builders) Ltd refurbishing flats when he attempted to move a redundant electricity power supply, known as a fuse cut-out, because he needed to fit new plasterboard behind it.
Unknown to Mr Forbes, the fuse cut-out was still live and connected to a 415 volt cable when he touched it. The HSE investigation revealed that the cable was twisted, causing a short-circuit that created enough energy to melt the cable and create a small explosion.
Graeme W Cheyne (Builders) Ltd pleaded guilty to failing to provide and maintain a safe system of work for employees working on or near an electrical system, breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Etc Act 1974. The firm was fined £9,000 and ordered to pay Mr Forbes £4,000.
Improve the health and safety of your business by attending a health and safety event near you.
Places currently available at the following Working Well Together (WWT) events.
Plus many more events over the forthcoming year.
EEF is holding events on Safe Maintenance at sites across Great Britain, in conjunction with HSE and the TUC.
We issue eBulletins 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 have provided feedback on the previous editions - we have tried to incorporate as many of the suggestions as possible.
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