U.K. Edition
Scaffolding firm back in business after warehouse fire
NSI first to develop code of practice for scaffold alarms
NSI has developed the first Code of Practice for the design, installation and maintenance of scaffold alarms. Code of Practice NCP 115 has the potential to radically improve the security of 
buildings in vulnerable circumstances and significantly raise standards in this niche security sector.
The installation of scaffold alarms is a growing market, but to date has never been the subject of any form of self regulation or industry-specific standards. The NSI Code will provide a valuable aid for those with a vested interest in the security of buildings or the reduction of accidents, such as the Insurance and Health & Safety sectors respectively, to help mitigate risk during periods of vulnerability when repair or restoration work on a property is being carried out.
When widely adopted, the NSI Code will help tackle malpractice and raise standards within the scaffold security sector by becoming the industry benchmark. The NSI Code stipulates appropriate measures are put in place to ensure scaffold alarms are installed in a consistent manner which take into consideration the potential risks and areas of weakness. The benefits are likely to be far reaching; regardless of whether a building is domestic or commercial, vacant or occupied, contracting an installer who complies with the NSI Code will provide the consumer with the reassurance that the vulnerability of their property (and properties within close proximity) and the assets within, are appropriately protected during periods of building, renovation, maintenance or repair.
Commenting on this key industry development, Chris Pinder, NSI External Affairs Director stated “Certificating installers of scaffold alarm systems marks a new era for NSI. NSI has undertaken a pilot phase during which time we have been working with a prominent scaffold security provider who has been robustly tested against the Code’s requirements. Scaffolding Alarm Systems will be an additional scope of approval within our certification schemes for installers of electronic security systems and a public announcement regarding the first approved installing company will be issued in the very near future”.
For those wishing to receive more details on NSI Code of Practice NCP 115, please e-mail [email protected]
buildings in vulnerable circumstances and significantly raise standards in this niche security sector.
The installation of scaffold alarms is a growing market, but to date has never been the subject of any form of self regulation or industry-specific standards. The NSI Code will provide a valuable aid for those with a vested interest in the security of buildings or the reduction of accidents, such as the Insurance and Health & Safety sectors respectively, to help mitigate risk during periods of vulnerability when repair or restoration work on a property is being carried out.
When widely adopted, the NSI Code will help tackle malpractice and raise standards within the scaffold security sector by becoming the industry benchmark. The NSI Code stipulates appropriate measures are put in place to ensure scaffold alarms are installed in a consistent manner which take into consideration the potential risks and areas of weakness. The benefits are likely to be far reaching; regardless of whether a building is domestic or commercial, vacant or occupied, contracting an installer who complies with the NSI Code will provide the consumer with the reassurance that the vulnerability of their property (and properties within close proximity) and the assets within, are appropriately protected during periods of building, renovation, maintenance or repair.
Commenting on this key industry development, Chris Pinder, NSI External Affairs Director stated “Certificating installers of scaffold alarm systems marks a new era for NSI. NSI has undertaken a pilot phase during which time we have been working with a prominent scaffold security provider who has been robustly tested against the Code’s requirements. Scaffolding Alarm Systems will be an additional scope of approval within our certification schemes for installers of electronic security systems and a public announcement regarding the first approved installing company will be issued in the very near future”.
For those wishing to receive more details on NSI Code of Practice NCP 115, please e-mail [email protected] Can you help these lads out with a pay rise ? [PIC]
![Can you help these lads out with a pay rise ? [PIC]](https://scaffmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/74609_10151425795185730_43143849_n.jpg "Can you help these lads out with a pay rise ? [PIC]")
Can you help these boys out from Stealth Scaffolding, they have posted this image to Facebook to try and get 1 million likes. If successful there boss will give them all a £100 pay rise. Find the image on our Facebook page to like it
International scaffolding freight update – Jan 2013
Rob Shelley is the CEO of Maritime Cargo Services, one of the UK’s leading freight forwarders. Established over 20 years ago, Maritime Cargo Services handle more than 20,000 containers a year on behalf of its clients.
2012 was nothing if not volatile and the importers of scaffolding products, shippers and carriers alike must all be hoping for a little stability in 2013.
Of particular concern to those in the scaffolding industry, the major battles between shippers and the shipping lines were mainly fought on the key Asia-Europe trade routes. This, in turn, meant that the cost of moving containers fluctuated widely over the course of the year making costing and budgeting in the scaffolding supply industry somewhat challenging.
The widely fluctuating state of the shipping industry is perfectly illustrated by glancing at the accounts of the world’s biggest carrier, Maersk, which turned a $600 million loss in Q1 2012 into a profit of half a billion dollars by Q3.
But it was soon all change again and, by the final quarter of the year, continuing austerity drives across Europe forced the shipping lines to once again fight for market share. Facing the prospect of mothballing monster container ships, the carriers opted instead to simply cut or cancel scheduled shipping voyages in an attempt to restore rates by reducing capacity. The initial signs suggest that the strategy has worked with Asia to North Europe rates climbing comfortably back again.
But are cheap rates all that the importers of scaffolding products and shippers are looking for? Although we all have an immediate need for cost savings and ‘value for money’, most importers would agree that one of the biggest issues in not just the cost but the rollercoaster nature of freight rates which make planning and managing your business so much more complex.
With overall global trade (not just scaffolding products) expected to expand by 4%-6% in 2013, and the shipping lines keeping capacity under control, experts are predicting a modest rises in freight rates during the year and, hopefully, not the variance we have seen in 2012.
But, without a doubt, the shipping lines’ operating costs are going to go up and, with little additional revenue coming in, they will have to absorb the costs of more expensive fuel, more costly labour and dearer raw materials on the back of stagnant or declining freight income.
One way that they are still looking at making cost savings is in the area of ‘slow steaming’ – although some now claim that this can benefit everyone in the supply chain.
Slower container ship speeds save shipping lines millions of dollars via hugely reduced fuel consumption although shippers are the potential supply chain losers. European importers of Asian goods, for example, face an additional week at sea for their stock with the subsequent added inventory costs, interest, insurance, depreciation and so on.
However, some major shippers in the FMCG and retail sectors are now saying that, with foresight and astute planning, they are beginning to benefit from slow steaming claiming that increased passage times have improved schedule reliability and, therefore, aided planning and costing.
Maersk has recently claimed that looking at the time cost element as a single measure does not take the full picture into account; their customers are not looking only at speed as a determining factor when designing their supply chains and that a stable and reliable service is equally important. It claims that its customers are realising monetary benefits in their supply chains due to the reliability and frequency of the service, even in a slow steaming scenario.
Nothing is certain but uncertainty and, with shipping costs equating to a growing percentage of the overall cost of scaffolding products and, therefore, services, one thing is for sure during 2013. Working with an experienced freight forwarding partner might not insulate you completely from the ‘slings and arrows’ of the international shipping industry but will certainly make the journey smoother.
Of particular concern to those in the scaffolding industry, the major battles between shippers and the shipping lines were mainly fought on the key Asia-Europe trade routes. This, in turn, meant that the cost of moving containers fluctuated widely over the course of the year making costing and budgeting in the scaffolding supply industry somewhat challenging.
The widely fluctuating state of the shipping industry is perfectly illustrated by glancing at the accounts of the world’s biggest carrier, Maersk, which turned a $600 million loss in Q1 2012 into a profit of half a billion dollars by Q3.
But it was soon all change again and, by the final quarter of the year, continuing austerity drives across Europe forced the shipping lines to once again fight for market share. Facing the prospect of mothballing monster container ships, the carriers opted instead to simply cut or cancel scheduled shipping voyages in an attempt to restore rates by reducing capacity. The initial signs suggest that the strategy has worked with Asia to North Europe rates climbing comfortably back again.
But are cheap rates all that the importers of scaffolding products and shippers are looking for? Although we all have an immediate need for cost savings and ‘value for money’, most importers would agree that one of the biggest issues in not just the cost but the rollercoaster nature of freight rates which make planning and managing your business so much more complex.
With overall global trade (not just scaffolding products) expected to expand by 4%-6% in 2013, and the shipping lines keeping capacity under control, experts are predicting a modest rises in freight rates during the year and, hopefully, not the variance we have seen in 2012.
But, without a doubt, the shipping lines’ operating costs are going to go up and, with little additional revenue coming in, they will have to absorb the costs of more expensive fuel, more costly labour and dearer raw materials on the back of stagnant or declining freight income.
One way that they are still looking at making cost savings is in the area of ‘slow steaming’ – although some now claim that this can benefit everyone in the supply chain.
Slower container ship speeds save shipping lines millions of dollars via hugely reduced fuel consumption although shippers are the potential supply chain losers. European importers of Asian goods, for example, face an additional week at sea for their stock with the subsequent added inventory costs, interest, insurance, depreciation and so on.
However, some major shippers in the FMCG and retail sectors are now saying that, with foresight and astute planning, they are beginning to benefit from slow steaming claiming that increased passage times have improved schedule reliability and, therefore, aided planning and costing.
Maersk has recently claimed that looking at the time cost element as a single measure does not take the full picture into account; their customers are not looking only at speed as a determining factor when designing their supply chains and that a stable and reliable service is equally important. It claims that its customers are realising monetary benefits in their supply chains due to the reliability and frequency of the service, even in a slow steaming scenario.
Nothing is certain but uncertainty and, with shipping costs equating to a growing percentage of the overall cost of scaffolding products and, therefore, services, one thing is for sure during 2013. Working with an experienced freight forwarding partner might not insulate you completely from the ‘slings and arrows’ of the international shipping industry but will certainly make the journey smoother.
Company fined for labourers fall from scaffolding
The HSE have reported that a Kent renovation company has been fined for safety failings after an unsupervised labourer fell more than four metres from a poorly constructed scaffold tower whilst stripping out a basement gym in central London.
The Romanian national, who does not want to be named, fractured two vertebrae and broke five ribs in the fall at a building on Farringdon Road in Farringdon on 19 April 2011.
Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard today (23 January) he was part of a crew of labourers working for Swanley-based MJM Fitout Ltd to remove ventilation ducting from a two-storey gym in the basement.
A scaffolding tower was erected to support the work and was being used by the worker to access ducting from a ceiling above a squash court. However, it was knocked over as he worked at height and both he and the tower crashed to the floor below, a distance of some 4.5 metres.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) identified that none of the temporary labourers was competent to erect a scaffolding tower, and that it was constructed without adequate supervision.
A district judge was told the incident could have been prevented had the work been properly planned, managed and monitored by MJM Fitout.
The company, of Horizon House, Azalea Drive, Swanley, Kent, was fined £8,000 and ordered to pay £3,500 in costs after pleading guilty to a single breach of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007.
After the hearing HSE Inspector Keith Levart said:
“The worker suffered painful injuries that could have been avoided had the labour crew been properly managed, and had their work on site been adequately monitored by MJM Fitout Ltd.
“The temporary staff had effectively been left to their own devices and were working in an unplanned and unsafe manner. It illustrates the clear need for companies to have practical arrangements in place to ensure that all personnel involved in and undertaking construction work understand what is expected of them, and are able to co-operate and communicate with one another.
“Work at height from scaffolding poses clear risks, and should only ever be undertaken by competent personnel with the right equipment, knowledge and experience.”
Westminster Magistrates’ Court heard today (23 January) he was part of a crew of labourers working for Swanley-based MJM Fitout Ltd to remove ventilation ducting from a two-storey gym in the basement.
A scaffolding tower was erected to support the work and was being used by the worker to access ducting from a ceiling above a squash court. However, it was knocked over as he worked at height and both he and the tower crashed to the floor below, a distance of some 4.5 metres.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) identified that none of the temporary labourers was competent to erect a scaffolding tower, and that it was constructed without adequate supervision.
A district judge was told the incident could have been prevented had the work been properly planned, managed and monitored by MJM Fitout.
The company, of Horizon House, Azalea Drive, Swanley, Kent, was fined £8,000 and ordered to pay £3,500 in costs after pleading guilty to a single breach of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007.
After the hearing HSE Inspector Keith Levart said:
“The worker suffered painful injuries that could have been avoided had the labour crew been properly managed, and had their work on site been adequately monitored by MJM Fitout Ltd.
“The temporary staff had effectively been left to their own devices and were working in an unplanned and unsafe manner. It illustrates the clear need for companies to have practical arrangements in place to ensure that all personnel involved in and undertaking construction work understand what is expected of them, and are able to co-operate and communicate with one another.
“Work at height from scaffolding poses clear risks, and should only ever be undertaken by competent personnel with the right equipment, knowledge and experience.” Q&A with the Director of Buckinghamshire Scaffolding Specialists.
We grabbed a quick Q&A with Matt Bowler, Director of Buckinghamshire Scaffolding Specialists.
BSS was established in 2007 in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire Scaffolding Specialists provide an extensive range of scaffolding services in the industrial, commercial, residential and event sectors.
- 2012 – How was it for you, Matt?
- With scaffolding firms folding left right and centre, how have you weathered the financial storm?
- Give us an overview of your year in headlines.
- Best moment?
- And the worst?
- What do you look forward to in 2013?
- Anything else?
Scaffolding van overturns in Weymouth
COOMBE Valley Road is now re-open after a scaffolding van overturned. The police closed the Weymouth road earlier following the incident at 7.25am.
Police were waiting for the van to be recovered before the road could be fully re-opened.
News Via: dorsetecho.co.uk LBG – London Bridge Train Station Scaffolding, London Bridge [Video]
![LBG – London Bridge Train Station Scaffolding, London Bridge [Video]](https://scaffmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/vid1.png "LBG – London Bridge Train Station Scaffolding, London Bridge [Video]")
httpv://youtu.be/O0URBInTWAg
LBG – London Bridge Train Station, London Bridge
A quick view of the Scaffold that i, and a good 20 other Scaffolders built during nights on London Bridge Train Station. Its MASSIVE! one of the longest scaffolds ive worked on, several hundred feet in.Builder impaled by scaffold tube after scaffolding collapses in London
A builder was impaled with a metal pole when the 30ft high scaffolding he was on collapsed, while another construction worker miraculously walked away unharmed from the “carnage” in Bow, East London .
The two men had been fitting a new boiler flue to the roof of a home in Tiber Close, when the scaffolding tipped away from the building and smashed into the back garden below on Thursday afternoon (January 17).
Resident John Huxtable, who had taken the day off from his job as an animal warden for Tower Hamlets Council, said: “I was indoors when one of the men ran in wanting to know the door number because he’d dialled 999.
“I hadn’t actually heard the scaffolding collapse, but when I went into the back garden it was carnage. It’s not the normal thing you expect to see in your garden.
“One bloke had slipped off the roof as the scaffolding fell, but he was lucky because he just had a bruised ankle. It was actually his birthday, and some of the other men later joked he’d just had a big birthday bump.
“But a pole went in the shin of the man who’d been up on the scaffold – he had a round indent where the pole had been and he needed lots of stitches. When the ambulance came they were very concerned about his back too, but we later heard that was ok.”
The 54-yar-old rushed inside to grab dressings and bandaged the builder’s leg as best he could.
The worker, who is thought to be in his 50s, began shaking uncontrollably and John covered him with dust blankets to keep him warm before an ambulance arrived to take both builders to the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel.
Fire crews and health and safety inspectors came to investigate the site, but the scaffolding was later re-erected and all the building work was finished by Friday.
June Morton, managing director of Old Ford Housing Association which is responsible for the property, said: “Thankfully, no-one was seriously hurt in this incident and no residents were affected.
“We take health and safety extremely seriously and have asked our contractor to carry out a full investigation which we will review carefully.”
News Via: eastlondonadvertiser.co.uk
Resident John Huxtable, who had taken the day off from his job as an animal warden for Tower Hamlets Council, said: “I was indoors when one of the men ran in wanting to know the door number because he’d dialled 999.
“I hadn’t actually heard the scaffolding collapse, but when I went into the back garden it was carnage. It’s not the normal thing you expect to see in your garden.
“One bloke had slipped off the roof as the scaffolding fell, but he was lucky because he just had a bruised ankle. It was actually his birthday, and some of the other men later joked he’d just had a big birthday bump.
“But a pole went in the shin of the man who’d been up on the scaffold – he had a round indent where the pole had been and he needed lots of stitches. When the ambulance came they were very concerned about his back too, but we later heard that was ok.”
The 54-yar-old rushed inside to grab dressings and bandaged the builder’s leg as best he could.
The worker, who is thought to be in his 50s, began shaking uncontrollably and John covered him with dust blankets to keep him warm before an ambulance arrived to take both builders to the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel.
Fire crews and health and safety inspectors came to investigate the site, but the scaffolding was later re-erected and all the building work was finished by Friday.
June Morton, managing director of Old Ford Housing Association which is responsible for the property, said: “Thankfully, no-one was seriously hurt in this incident and no residents were affected.
“We take health and safety extremely seriously and have asked our contractor to carry out a full investigation which we will review carefully.”
News Via: eastlondonadvertiser.co.uk The big freeze grips the scaffolding industry
As the recent snow and ice effects many parts of the UK today, we wanted to find out how it was effecting our scaffolding industry and how it’s making a hard job.. even harder.
We reached out to our twitter followers to send us your snow pics from around the UK under the hashtag # Snowyscaffs. You did not disappoint here is just a few of our favorites:
@mickywatt Tweeted: “This was the view of ISL’s yard this morning at Consett, northwest of County Durham”:-
Have you been affected by the snow ? let us know in the comments below.