The NASC has been asked to comment on the use of impact wrenches during the erection/dismantling of scaffold.The NASC would advise members as follows:
The recommended force needed to tighten a fitting is 50 N/mtr as stated in EN 74. Some wrenches have a minimum setting that is greater than this recommended figure. Therefore there is a risk that a fitting could be over tightened causing damage to the fitting if the wrench is used to its extreme.
Members should note that the use of impact wrenches should be the same as other items of plant and this should entail a period of training, familiarisation and monitoring, to ensure that the wrench is being used in the correct manner at all times.
It should also be noted that during the latter stages of battery life the wrenches may in some cases give insufficient force to adequately tighten fittings.
The NASC recognises that these wrenches do offer certain benefits, including speed and reduction of potential RSI problems but would advise members and users of such equipment that there is a potential for concern over the use and operation and as such each member should adequately access the risk for their own particular situation and ensure that they put in place protocols to cover and ensure safe use.
Assessment
Training
Familiarisation
Monitoring
The NASC will keep this matter open and issue more information as it becomes available.
Via: nasc.org.uk
The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) will be visiting construction sites in the West Midlands, Worcestershire and Warwickshire over the next 3 weeks.The inspectors will target poor performance on smaller construction and refurbishment sites where scaffolds are in place.
The purge is part of a safety drive to reduce the number of workplace deaths an injuries.
In the press release the (HSE) reported that between 2006 and 2011 there were three fatalities and 250 injuries involving fixed or mobile scaffolds in Worcestershire, Warwickshire and the West Midlands.
(HSE) inspectors will look at whether jobs that involve working at height have been properly planned to ensure that adequate safety measures are in place and that equipment is correctly installed, inspected, maintained and used.
Principal Inspector Jo Anderson, who will be leading the campaign, said:
“Scaffolding still poses a significant risk to those involved in its construction and dismantling as well as those who use it. Too many workers needlessly die because work was not properly planned or the equipment was incorrectly installed or used.
“Over the next three weeks, inspectors will target sites where poor scaffolding is putting workers at risk and when necessary take enforcement action.”
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Nine people have been killed and 10 injured after a gallery under construction in a indoor stadium collapsed in IndiaImage via: www.deccanchronicle.com
Indian news websites have reported that the accident happened at a baseball stadium that is being constructed in Kunnam, Kanchipuram, India. The construction of the stadium had been going on for over a month, concreting work at the site which measures 100’x100′ and 40′ high was going on at a fast pace when the scaffolding collapsed.
Rescue service were using earth movers to remove debris but were not sure if there were more victims. Immediately after the collapse, the labour contractor went underground, police said.
“Labour contractor Sudhakar who had the information about the workers is missing since the accident. We are on the lookout for him,” the police said.
A senior police official said that they were initially focusing on the rescue. “Our aim is to save the maximum number of lives. We need the labour contractor to identify the victims in the hospital. We will look at the other legal formalities on Tuesday,” the police said.
Energy services group Cape saw its shares plunge by more than a third last week after the group issued its third profit warning in a year.
Cape, which provides scaffolding, cleaning and painting services to oil and mining companies, blamed poor trading by its onshore business in Australia.
“The deterioration in performance… will have a significant effect on overall group performance in the near term,” Cape said. Profits in the current year would therefore miss expectations and problems in Asia are “expected to persist into 2013”.
“Lower revenue, combined with increasing pricing pressure, has led to operating margins being significantly lower than previously expected,” the business said. “With delays in major project works in Australia now apparent, no improvement in activity levels is expected in the near term.”
Analysts were concerned that the business failed to win the expected number of contracts.
“Although we felt the share price was pricing in contract slippage, we are disappointed that work packages that we were confident Cape would win have been lost – and this could delay the rate of recovery,” Michael O’Brien, an analyst at Cannacord Genuity, said.
“In addition, we believe that although revenues in the Arabian Gulf are progressing well, margins will be slightly lower than expectations,” Mr O’Brien added. “Given this is Cape’s highest margin area by a long stretch we believe this may concern some investors.”
Cape now expects operating margin, before the impact of any restructuring, to reduce to about half of 2011 levels.
The profit warning was Cape’s third since November. In May, the shares plunged after the group revealed there were problems with a contract in Algeria which would result in a £14m charge. This followed a warning in November in which the company said margin pressure in the Middle East would crimp earnings, as it took a surprise one-off charge for a contract in the North Sea.
Joe Oatley, Cape’s new chief executive, joined the company on June 29 and will now begin a review of the Australian region’s business structure and cut costs.
The shares fell 102.9p to 187p.
News Source: telegraph.co.uk
Dixon Scaffolding (Transmission) Ltd has been purchased in a pre-pack administration after missing a payment due date with the taxman.The administrators, David Hill, Julie Anne Palmer and Peter Dewey of Begbies Traynor, were drafted in to the company in early July, and then sold the business and assets on to Dixon Pentland Scaffolding Ltd and MTL Scaffolding Ltd, two related companies, for £390,000.
Two ‘Time to Pay’ agreements had been made with HMRC, but were both cancelled in early 2012 after the firm did not meet a payment of £10,000.
Established in 1968 by Mike Dixon, Dixon Scaffolding (Transmission) specialised in scaffolding for the energy and heavy industrial industries and had over 100 staff.
Mr Dixon took semi-retirement and bought in a new managing director and management team to run the business in 2009. A temporary dip in work from its largest customer the National Grid and some new long-term contracts at “uncompetitive prices” led to a loss of £633,000 for the year ending 31 December 2010.
The new management team exited the firm in May 2011, and Mr Dixon took the helm once again. Despite his efforts to bring the firm back to profit, losses of £293,000 were reported for the year ending 31 December 2011.
Via: business-sale.com
The Oxford Mail has reported that a scaffolder from Abingdon, Oxford is on his way to the top after winning a college prize.
Apprentice Shaw Miller, 29, was crowned winner of the scaffolding year 1 category at the National Construction College awards.
The Appleford Drive resident works for Oxford Spires Scaffolding in Didcot and was given the award at a ceremony in Birmingham for his attitude to the 18-month course he started in December.
He said: “I didn’t realise what a big deal it was until I got there. I guess it was my attitude towards work. I am always trying to improve myself. It’s a good honest job. It’s very hard work but it’s rewarding.”
Mr Miller is currently working on the Chestnut Fields housing development in Chilton.
Via: Oxfordmail.co.uk
A contractor has been prosecuted for safety failings after an employee was seriously injured in a fall from dangerous scaffolding in Hertfordshire.The 61-year-old, who does not wish to be named, sustained multiple fractures in the incident at a house undergoing refurbishment on Lancaster Avenue, Hitchin, on 27 May 2010.
He fell approximately five metres to the ground and has yet to make a full recovery, or return to work.
Stevenage Magistrates’ Court heard that Stevenson’s P&H Ltd was the main contractor at the property.
An investigation by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) found that the company had provided scaffolding, but had failed to fit suitable edge protection, such as a handrail, mid-rail or toe board, in the section where the fall occurred.
Stevenson’s P&H Ltd, registered to Wakefield House, High Street, Pinner, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The company was fined £20,000 and ordered to pay £7,373 in costs.
After the hearing, HSE principal inspector Norman Macritchie said: “Falls from height are all too common in the construction industry, with unsafe scaffolding often the root cause. The risks are well known and safe-working guidance is readily available, yet still entirely preventable incidents occur – as was the case here.
“The painful, potentially life-changing injuries the worker sustained could have been avoided by the simple provision of edge protection on the section of scaffolding he fell from.
“It is vital that work at height is properly planned and organised, and that all necessary precautions are taken to protect workers.”
Via: Construction Index
A south London street was blocked for several hours yesterday after a 10-metre scaffolding tower collapsed onto a car.
The structure in Cambridge Road, Battersea, was blown over by a strong gust of wind at about 7.30pm.
No-one was injured in the incident, but one man arriving home just as the scaffold came down had to be treated for shock.
He did not have to go to hospital.
Officers from the Metropolitan Police attended the scene to keep the area clear while crews from the London Fire Brigade made it safe.
A surveyor from Wandsworth Council was also called out.
The Health and Safety Executive has been informed
Via: standard.co.uk
A new purpose built scaffold training and working at height facility has been opened and immediately put to use at Catch, Stallingborough, North East Lincolnshire.Image courtesy of thisisgrimsby.co.uk
Catch which stands for (Centre for Assessment of Technical Competence Humberside) is already a first class site for developing and testing contractors working in the Humber chemical sector. The facility now boasts a brand new dedicated scaffold training and working at height centre.
Scaffold Training
Safety & Access is the first new working at height training provider at Catch that will be offering courses that include:
CISRS Registered Scaffolder Courses
CISRS Scaffold Inspection
CISRS Supervisor Training
Construction Skills Operatives, SSSTS & SMSTS Courses
UKATA Asbestos Awareness
PASMA Training
SG4 & TG20 Training
IOSH Directing Safety
Rick Statham, joint managing director of the Nottingham-based training provider said: “We are delighted to announce our partnership with Catch, which has resulted in the opening of our new building and our working-at-heights training facility. We are looking forward to working with Catch to serve companies in the Humber region.”
“It is a fabulous purpose-built facility, it has passed all the accreditation visits and is the result of four years of discussions from conception. It is a great place, with fabulous clients on the doorstep and a real opportunity to support everyone.”
He also went on to say that Safety & Access works internationally and has enjoyed a long standing relationship with Total Lindsey Oil Refinery and other contractors in the area.
Scaffolder, Rob Greetham, 33 from Grimsby who was completing his CISRS Part 2 at the scaffold training facility said: “With the amount of work that relies on working at height on the Humber Bank, this should have been built years ago,” he said, impressed with not just the 10m height available to learn in, but the different training areas and access platforms that have been created.
“I know lots of lads who have had to travel to Nottingham and Wakefield for their scaffold training, so to have this here makes good business sense all round. “When I did part one of the qualification I had to go to Wakefield, which is an hour-and-a-half by train.”
Safety & Access are hosting an open event at Catch on July 26, 9am-3pm with presentations throughout the day that include: Scaffold Step & Fastgaurd, Competence Standards, SG4, Five Common Scaffold Faults, HAKI Stair Tower Demo and Available funding.
For more information please contact: Sarah Cockell on 0115 9777841 or email: [email protected]Written by Daniel Norton.Comments & Image via: thisisgrimsby.co.uk
The NASC would advise members as follows:
The recommended force needed to tighten a fitting is 50 N/mtr as stated in EN 74. Some wrenches have a minimum setting that is greater than this recommended figure. Therefore there is a risk that a fitting could be over tightened causing damage to the fitting if the wrench is used to its extreme.
Members should note that the use of impact wrenches should be the same as other items of plant and this should entail a period of training, familiarisation and monitoring, to ensure that the wrench is being used in the correct manner at all times.
It should also be noted that during the latter stages of battery life the wrenches may in some cases give insufficient force to adequately tighten fittings.
The NASC recognises that these wrenches do offer certain benefits, including speed and reduction of potential RSI problems but would advise members and users of such equipment that there is a potential for concern over the use and operation and as such each member should adequately access the risk for their own particular situation and ensure that they put in place protocols to cover and ensure safe use.
The inspectors will target poor performance on smaller construction and refurbishment sites where scaffolds are in place.
The purge is part of a safety drive to reduce the number of workplace deaths an injuries.
In the press release the (HSE) reported that between 2006 and 2011 there were three fatalities and 250 injuries involving fixed or mobile scaffolds in Worcestershire, Warwickshire and the West Midlands.
(HSE) inspectors will look at whether jobs that involve working at height have been properly planned to ensure that adequate safety measures are in place and that equipment is correctly installed, inspected, maintained and used.
Principal Inspector Jo Anderson, who will be leading the campaign, said:
“Scaffolding still poses a significant risk to those involved in its construction and dismantling as well as those who use it. Too many workers needlessly die because work was not properly planned or the equipment was incorrectly installed or used.
“Over the next three weeks, inspectors will target sites where poor scaffolding is putting workers at risk and when necessary take enforcement action.”
The administrators, David Hill, Julie Anne Palmer and Peter Dewey of Begbies Traynor, were drafted in to the company in early July, and then sold the business and assets on to Dixon Pentland Scaffolding Ltd and MTL Scaffolding Ltd, two related companies, for £390,000.
Two ‘Time to Pay’ agreements had been made with HMRC, but were both cancelled in early 2012 after the firm did not meet a payment of £10,000.
Established in 1968 by Mike Dixon, Dixon Scaffolding (Transmission) specialised in scaffolding for the energy and heavy industrial industries and had over 100 staff.
Mr Dixon took semi-retirement and bought in a new managing director and management team to run the business in 2009. A temporary dip in work from its largest customer the National Grid and some new long-term contracts at “uncompetitive prices” led to a loss of £633,000 for the year ending 31 December 2010.
The new management team exited the firm in May 2011, and Mr Dixon took the helm once again. Despite his efforts to bring the firm back to profit, losses of £293,000 were reported for the year ending 31 December 2011.
Via: business-sale.com 
The 61-year-old, who does not wish to be named, sustained multiple fractures in the incident at a house undergoing refurbishment on Lancaster Avenue, Hitchin, on 27 May 2010.
He fell approximately five metres to the ground and has yet to make a full recovery, or return to work.
Stevenage Magistrates’ Court heard that Stevenson’s P&H Ltd was the main contractor at the property.
An investigation by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) found that the company had provided scaffolding, but had failed to fit suitable edge protection, such as a handrail, mid-rail or toe board, in the section where the fall occurred.
Stevenson’s P&H Ltd, registered to Wakefield House, High Street, Pinner, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The company was fined £20,000 and ordered to pay £7,373 in costs.
After the hearing, HSE principal inspector Norman Macritchie said: “Falls from height are all too common in the construction industry, with unsafe scaffolding often the root cause. The risks are well known and safe-working guidance is readily available, yet still entirely preventable incidents occur – as was the case here.
“The painful, potentially life-changing injuries the worker sustained could have been avoided by the simple provision of edge protection on the section of scaffolding he fell from.
“It is vital that work at height is properly planned and organised, and that all necessary precautions are taken to protect workers.”
Via: Construction Index 
