Clean Air Zone roll-out set to impact scaffolding firms delivering into city centres
As plans to introduce and roll out Clean Air Zones in cities across the UK, experts are warning operators of HGV’s and Vans that delivering into some city centres is likely to incur considerable extra costs in the near future.
Energy giant to stand trial over death of offshore scaffolder
BP is facing trial over the death of a scaffolder who fell from a North Sea oil platform.
Scaffolder Sean Anderson 43, from the Tyne and Wear, was part of a team carrying out routine maintenance on BP’s Unity platform when the incident happened on 4th September 2014. Mr Anderson worked for the industrial services firm Cape when he fell from the Unity platform in the North Sea that is situated 97 miles off the coast of Aberdeen. He sustained fatal injures from the fall that happened at around 4 am on the day of the inccident. The case has now been called at Aberdeen Sheriff Court, with BP facing a charge under the Health and Safety at Work Act, according to the Evening Express. It is alleged the firm failed to ensure, so far as reasonably practicable, that people not in its employment, but who may have been affected, were not exposed to risks to their health or safety. The charge alleges BP failed to have in place suitable and sufficient control measures in respect of open gratings on the lower deck of the platform and that, as a consequence, Mr Anderson fell through an open grating to the sea below and sustained fatal injuries. BP has lodged a plea of not guilty in respect of the allegation. The trial is expected to start early next year. At the time of the incident a Cape spokesperson said: “It is with deep regret that Cape confirms the death of an employee following an incident this morning. “The deceased was part of a Cape team carrying out routine maintenance onboard BP’s Unity platform. Our thoughts go out to his family, to whom we will be offering every support. “The deceased’s co-workers are obviously shocked and saddened and we are working alongside BP to ensure they receive the support they need.”Jason Anker supports colourful life-saving training system
Safety awareness campaigner Jason Anker MBE has given his support to the E-Colors Personality Diversity Indicator (PDI), saying that it could help prevent avoidable accidents on construction sites.
Anker, who was paralysed from the waist down following an avoidable fall from height at the age of 24, recently used the personality profiling tool after being introduced to it by health and safety consultancy Hillmont Associates. The UK-based firm was the first in the country to become a licensed practitioner of the E-Colors PDI system. It was developed in 2004 by specialist coaching firm Equilibria, which was founded in Singapore by four individuals from the oil and gas industry, and uses a questionnaire to determine a person’s personality traits. Each personality type is identified by a combination of colours; red ‘Doer’, yellow ‘Socialiser’, green ‘Thinker’ and blue ‘Relator’, which helps to improve self-awareness so that people can react differently in specific situations. Jason Anker MBE, said, “From my experience I believe E-Colors has the capability to improve safety on construction sites. “Could I or my workmates have acted differently on the day of my accident, having known our E-Colors? It is possible. It’s an incredible tool and I look forward to seeing it implemented through UK organisations, to help people understand themselves and others and to save lives.” Speaking about his own experience with the tool, the construction industry speaker said, “After completing the PDI my E-Colors are Yellow/Blue – ‘The Relating Socialiser’. The information I received in the Premium Report was so accurate. The subsequent awareness and training sessions I have had with Hillmont Associates have really helped me understand myself and how I interact with others.” According to Hillmont, the awareness obtained from incorporating the E-Colours PDI system is particularly beneficial to those working across multiple sites, contracts and in hazardous environments. It said, “Understanding how colleagues might respond in critical circumstances can allow them to improve how they work together, which in turn can significantly reduce the risk of accidents on site, resulting in reduced downtime and more importantly, lives saved.” Mark Wilkinson (FInstLM / CMIOSH), Managing Director of Hillmont Associates, said, “It’s amazing to get such a fantastic endorsement from Jason, who has many years’ experience working in the construction sector with so many well-known companies.” “E-Colors is a tool for life, with it’s simple and immediate application to help people not only understand themselves better, but those close to them, be it at work, or in their personal lives. It assists the development of skills and managing any potential limiters to effectively interact better with people on a daily basis. “An increasing number of organisations, particularly those in the construction sector and high-risk industries, place a growing emphasis not only on health and safety, but also on creating a better culture. These companies recognise the substantial benefits E-Colors offers.” Hillmont Associates is delivering E-Colors Awareness Sessions and further training solutionsfor managing personnel and operations across a variety of industries including construction, aviation, energy and events. The company is also holding Public Awareness Events on Friday 21st May and Saturday 26th June https://hillmontassociates.com/e-colors-pdi.A Say in Keeping History Alive
With imposing views across the city, York’s Clifford Tower will remain a breath-taking North Yorkshire landmark long into the future thanks to some loving restoration and repair work helped along with a little help from one of the counties finest scaffolding exponents.
Whichever way you look the City of York makes for a dramatic vista with its sequence of castles, prisons, law courts and many other spectacular properties. Look closely at the castle close to the River Foss and you’ll spot the now-ruined keep of the medieval Norman castle commonly referred to as Clifford’s Tower. More than nine centuries of history have roots in this world-famous place, so any scaffolder would surely be proud to play a part in helping restore a past, so important to York’s future. The original mound of Clifford’s Tower, with a timber structure at the top, was constructed by William the Conqueror in 1068 as a statement of his power over the whole area. The passage of time however along with huge numbers of visitors meant restoration work was urgently needed to both conserve and repair the tower for future generations to enjoy. English Heritage has told us: “In June 2020, City of York Council granted planning permission to enable conservation and improvements to visitor infrastructure at Clifford’s Tower, following our consultation which showed clear support among the people of York for the plans. “Following this, separate Scheduled Monument Consent was granted in September 2020, meaning that all the necessary permissions were now in place for work to start. Work started on our project to undertake specialist care of the tower’s historic fabric in November 2020. Though the tower is now likely to have to remain closed to visitors until the project is completed in summer 2021.” Wetherby based Say Scaffolding was charged with the task of erecting a scaffolding design strong and safe enough to be set in place for 30 weeks, while the work was carried out by Simpson of York. Say offer bespoke and innovative scaffolding solutions using a combination of traditional tube and fitting, and Layher system scaffolding. And with Managing Director Philip Wetten both pricing up the job and also playing a leading role in its creation with Scot Nicholas, director of Raptor Scaffolding Design, English Heritage were in good hands throughout.
They chose a free-standing barrow run scaffold fully buttressed on both sides with an attached Layher system stair tower. A 2000kg goods hoist was attached to the end of the scaffold to help with the project. The fully external perimeter scaffold has a neat and efficient look having seen five fully boarded lifts. In short, everything required for restoration and repair work.
In fact, previous experience is invaluable on such a challenge – Say could fall back on the knowledge gained from lifts fully boarded in 2019. It’s also important to note the work involved in putting three temporary roof sections in place – one over the main entrance and another over stair cores one and two.
And when it comes to a safe and secure working platform for a new roof structure the company weren’t found wanting. Enter a birdcage scaffold bridged two ways from a central independent to the internal perimeter scaffold. The view looking up from the bottom of those well-trodden steps is certainly impressive.
Most scaffolders would agree any project of historical importance should blend in with the surroundings as best as possible, and this is certainly the case with the Clifford Tower. It’s scaffolding guaranteed to do any castle proud. But then this isn’t surprising given the history of the company involved.
Established in 2004, SAY Group of Companies / SAY Scaffolding (Northern) Ltd has established itself as a key player within the scaffolding industry, providing access, protection and support scaffolding for a broad range of infrastructure, building and refurbishment projects.
A Say in keeping history alive is worth its weight in Yorkshire Gold.
www.sayltd.co.uk
This article was first published in the ScaffMag Magazine Issue 12
Massive fine given after lifting operation goes wrong
Two construction companies have been fined more than £350,000 after a worker was seriously injured when a part of an air conditioning plant fell on him while it was being lowered from a roof.
Southwark Crown Court heard that in November 2017 three roofers had been working on Bromley High Street in London, finishing off a large roof refurbishment project. The workers were instructed to dismantle a decommissioned air conditioning plant and remove it from the roof in high winds. As part of the plant was being lowered, it became detached from the rope and hook. It fell and struck one of the workers on the pavement below, fracturing his left femur. An investigation by the HSE found that only a basic manual gin wheel was provided to lower the parts, no one was assigned to supervise and none of the workers had any formal training on carrying out lifting operations or slinging loads. There were also other failings at the site relating to working at height, control of asbestos, emergency arrangements, manual handling and a total lack of any welfare facilities for the workers. NMC Surfacing Limited (NMC) who operate nationally, had subcontracted the roof refurbishment work to a smaller local business, Fraden Contracts Limited. The client was unaware NMC had subcontracted the construction work. The Court heard NMC provided them with modified versions of Fraden’s risk assessment records with all references to Fraden erased. NMC Surfacing Limited of Railway Court, Reading Bridge House, Reading, who had been the Principal Contractor for the project, was found guilty after a trial of a breach of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015. The company was fined £350,000 and ordered to pay £45,122.36 in costs. Fraden Contracts Limited of Barnet who had been contracted by NMC Surfacing Limited to carry out the work, had already pleaded guilty to a breach of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015. This company was fined £14,000 and ordered to pay £6,015.26 in costs. HSE inspector, Andrew Verrall-Withers, commented after the hearing: “Little thought was giving to planning the lifting operation by the companies and it was the workers who identified passing members of the public were at risk and borrowed some barriers to try and protect them. “It is vital construction companies do not assume that because workers have been in an industry for years, that they automatically know everything about how to safely use equipment. “A worker suffered an injury which means he can no longer work as a roofer despite three decades of previous experience. He, or a passing member of the public, could have been killed.”George Roberts Ltd Posts Record Turnover and Strong Growth
Latest results for George Roberts Ltd, one of the UK’s largest independent suppliers of scaffolding and access equipment shows a rise in both sales and profits after an ‘exceptional’ year.
The Liverpool based scaffolding hire and sales company is now eyeing further development as it looks to continue to build on the strength of its well-known industry brand. Financial results just posted for the year to 31 October 2020 shows the company reported a record turnover of £40.5m compared to £39.8m in 2019, despite delays in Q2 caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The firm’s pre-tax profits were also up from £2.6m to £2.85m. Working with many leading scaffolding contractors the business supplies materials across a wide range of sectors such as the Construction, Industrial, Rail, Oil & Gas and Marine industries. George Roberts directors wrote in a strategic report that accompanied the figures, directors said the 2020 results had been “exceptional, and the brand remains strong and is influential in the continuous growth of the business. Its core strengths are service, quality and stock availability.” In November 2020 the company unveiled its global rebrand, the fresh new look was to signify George Roberts progressive direction and its expansion plans. The company has also seen its export division increase its turnover by 10% as compared to 2019. George Roberts supplies many regions now across the globe including Africa, USA, Europe, Middle East and Australasia.Artel Scaffolding leads the way by going Carbon Negative
Artel, a leading independent scaffolding company in London, has made the bold pledge to become the first in its industry in the UK to go carbon negative.
The company behind some of the biggest projects in the capital, including Sea Containers House, Royal Wharf, and Embassy Gardens, will be carbon negative by 2030. Further to the success, the company has enjoyed over the past 15 years, establishing itself as one of the highest quality scaffolding companies around, it is now set to embark upon one of its most ambitious and important projects yet. The construction industry knows better than most the increasing problems posed by climate change, and so, Artel has decided to show its commitment to the future by promising a range of measures to help the environment. Artel has revealed to Scaffmag that It has bought 100 acres of land in the UK, Ireland and Bulgaria – equivalent to more than 50 football pitches – specifically to protect it and keep it free from development, making sure it can be enjoyed by people today and generations in the future. Artel will also plant 12,000 trees on the land it has brought in the three countries, more than 100 trees in every acre. But as well as the European-wide rewilding, the company has also pledged to make a difference in its day-to-day operations. Artel will also make its vehicle fleet – currently 12 lorries, 10 vans and 5 cars – fully electric by 2030. The North London based company joins the growing fight to clean up the capital’s air. Artel, however, do not want to stop there with the planting of new trees, if you are involved in or you know a local community project that would benefit from planting trees, please contact Artel. They would love to get involved.Construction sees bumper month as contract awards increase by 58%
In April 2021, contract awards increased by 58% compared to March to £9.1 billion. A level not seen since January 2020, says industry experts.
Sector analysis by Barbour ABI shows that residential contract awards increased again in April to £2.5 billion, up from £2.0 billion in March. Data analysts have seen a strong performance for infrastructure, with a total value of contract awards reaching £2.1 billion, the first monthly value over £2.0 billion since January 2020. The industry experts also say the industrial sector activity has seen the second-highest monthly value on record of £1.2 billion in April, driven once again by warehousing. Commenting on the figures, Tom Hall, Chief Economist at Barbour ABI and AMA Research said, “Building on the improvements in the planning environment we reported in March, April saw a bumper month for contract awards of £9.1bn. This is the highest value since January last year. All sectors apart from healthcare saw sizeable monthly increases to well above their long-term average values, particularly the infrastructure and commercial sectors. A year on from the start of the Covid-19 pandemic we have finally seen a value that starts to recover some of the lost ground. However, a fall in April’s planning approvals back to previous levels seen over the second half of 2020 may demonstrate that the uncertainty plaguing the sector has not fully cleared. We require a sustained increase over a period of time to fill the weak construction pipeline.” Download the full report here: https://www.barbour-abi.com/zones/2103032-Snap-Analysis-May-Output-File-v2.pdfMakita launches latest promotion offering a free XGT radio
