Peter Cochrane, 50, from Irlam, Manchester who was employed by PPS Property Protection was working on the house with two other workmen they were painting the gable end of the house when the accident happened.
Arthur Flower the Coroner’s officer said: “Mr Cochrane was on the top lift of the scaffold and while holding on to the handrail he reached over to his left and overstreched, causeing the scaffold to move back.”
“He was then flung forward and fell 30ft to the ground below.”
It was reported the Mr Cochrane was initially conscious and alert after the accident but tragically died later at hospital.
Merseyside Police and the Health and Safety Executive have started a joint investigation.
U.K. Edition
Scaffolder Dean Armstrong, 20, from Islington London was arrested yesterday by police at an address in Hackney.
The armed robbery happened on 15th June at Goldsmiths Jewellers in Tavern Street Ipswich.
The jewellers window was smashed with sledgehammers and a number of watches were stolen.
Three other men from Essex and London aged between 21 and 25 have been charged for the raid on Goldsmiths.
shaped like a crescent whilst the most striking feature of the building is the diagonal arrangement of the steel support structure. A sophisticated PERI UP scaffolding concept provides secure access and spacious working platforms for all subsequent sub-contracting work following the completion of the building’s shell. PERI was awarded the contract to supply work scaffolding and stairs that are temporarily required for all subsequent work on the 59-storey building shell.
For painting, mounting of the fire protection cladding as well as the insulation and installation of the piping system, the sub contractors imposed various requirements concerning working area dimensions and potential loads. Installation of platforms at distances of 2.50 m over the entire height of the building was requested. One of the most important requirements to be fulfilled for all sub-contractors was to ensure that the working platforms were as close as possible to the complex steel structure whose main beams ascended at an angle of 76°. In addition, the front of the building is curved like a crescent.
Together with the Ledcor team, PERI developed a solution based on the PERI UP Rosett Flex scaffolding. In the process, the modular scaffold system has once again proven its high degree of flexibility and has shown itself to be extremely adaptable to suit the curved building layout and special form of the supporting structure – all requirements of both the client and sub-contractors have been fulfilled.
The modular PERI UP Rosett Flex scaffolding has a very wide range of applications. The metric grid dimensions along with the 25 cm and 37.5 cm decking widths provide maximum flexibility. Rosett nodes at spacings of 50 cm are especially rigid and allow connecting possibilities in all directions. Thanks to these characteristics, the modular scaffold has been able to fulfil the stringent technical requirements for construction of “The Bow”. This flexibility and high load-bearing capacity with only a small number of diagonals make the PERI UP solution quick and cost-effective.
For work on the steel construction, the diagonally-positioned profiles must be accessible from all sides. The required cantilevers are realised with brackets and node bracing. The brackets have a high load-bearing capacity and can be mounted at any height – regardless of the decking or ledger levels already installed.
Through the use of corner plates for the inside corners, the working areas can be adapted with minimum gap to the inclined steel components. In addition, adapting to the complex steel sculpture is also achieved by changing the direction of the decking: the span direction of the decks can be changed within a scaffold bay at any point – several times if required. Thanks to these possibilities, the form of the scaffold can be optimally adapted to match the steel structure of the building.
The PERI UP industrial decking with system widths of 25 cm allow working platforms and access means to be completely covered without any gaps. The surface of the decking is perforated and extremely slip-resistant. Due to this, the decks are ideally suited for use in those working areas where safety against slipping has a high priority. Another big advantage is the quick and safe installation: the integrated lock against lifting secures the decking without the need of any additional measures, and immediately after mounting has taken place.
For accessing the individual working areas, PERI UP steel staircases are used. The staircase fulfils the highest requirements regarding loads and accessibility: with a permissible load of 3.0 kN/m² and a width of 100 cm, the stairs are generously dimensioned and stable to allow site personnel to move in opposite directions at the same time. Installation is simple and fast. The stair stringers are mounted first and subsequently covered with the lightweight individual steps that interlock during assembly. The top step secures all the others.
PERI logic simplifies and accelerates assembly of the PERI UP scaffolding – even at great heights. The low weight of the individual system components, and the fact that each system part can be handled by only one person, facilitates fast and effortless operations. The high rigidity of the PERI UP ledger connections reduces the number of levels that need to be braced as well as reducing the amount of required diagonals. All PERI UP system components are compatible with each other which means working platforms, stairs and guardrails are easy to install. The “gravity lock” self-locking ledger connection provides a very high level of working and assembly safety: when mounting the ledger, the wedge drops automatically into the opening of the rosette through its own gravitational force and securely locks into position. PERI UP has been tried and tested over many years and the modular scaffold system fully complies with system scaffolding requirements according to European Standards.
“The Bow” is the future headquarters for the EnCana Corporation, a company operating in the oil and gas industry. Not only is the distinctive appearance of the office tower extraordinary but also the building concept itself: To create a best possible working environment, the London architects Foster + Partners first discussed the ideas and needs together with the companies’ employees before planning the building.
The building provides employees with working areas with daylight and natural ventilation. The spacious architecture, open work areas as well as three “sky gardens” facilitate the cooperation of the teams Form and orientation of the building have also been ideally adapted to suit the local climatic conditions. A glass atrium extends in a south-westerly direction over the entire building height of 236 m, an intelligent energy concept for optimum utilization of solar energy and minimum energy consumption. The distinctive design with a diagonal grid of steel beams also provides an especially good structural behaviour. For the first time in North America, this combination of a diagonal support structure and, at the same time, curved shape of a building has been realised.
The investigation by the Health & Safety Executive is still under way.
Deans mother Molly, is supporting and urging other scaffolders and tradesmen on the Island to attend a series of Health & Safety workshops.
She said “Losing Dean has been a total tragedy for our family and friends. He has left a hole in our lives that we will never be able to fill. We would encourage other scaffolders and builders to do anything to avoid becoming a victim of this kind of accident, and support the training events organised on the Island. We urge people to attend.”
The Health and Safety Executive is organising the free events, taking place on 20 and 21 July on the Island.
The HSE are concerned that Island tradesman aren’t being responsible ,and said “The gut feeling is that the overall standards on the Isle of Wight for safety in construction are probably lower than on the mainland.
“If they don’t turn up to the event, the people who really suffer are themselves and their families because accidents will come.”
To confirm attendance, please email 
When a scaffold is erected with inside boards you always have that ‘age-old’ problem with the gaps between the standards. The measures previously to combat this hazard were strips of plywood cut down and nailed to scaffold boards which intern causing a trip hazard…not anymore!
ScaffGap solves this ‘age old’ problem using there simple but effective Scaffold Platform Gap Bridging System. The product which is made from 100% PVC-U is strong lightweight, reusable and recyclable.
ScaffGap’s conception was born out of the requirement to address the serious inherent risks on working platforms. It has taken two years of research and development to reach their final production of ScaffGap.
ScaffGap has an international patent pending and design copyright.
Managing director Dr Helmut Kreller toldAccess International that Layher’s family ownership allowed it to maintain investment through the crisis and make a quick recovery.
At the start of the crisis Layher was deciding to build a new factory. “It is because all our shareholders are close to the business that we can make long term decisions,” said Dr Kreller.
The new factory now houses the wood and aluminium part of Layher’s production while the steel scaffolding continues at the original plant, very close by, with its modern, environmentally sensitive, dip galvanising facility.
Although unwilling to divulge exact figures Layher’s turnover for the year ending 31 March 2011 is somewhere between €400 and €500 million. During the crisis its domestic German market grew, but now Dr Kreller says that exports are again starting to rise, accounting for 60% of the company’s turnover.
Committed to continuing to manufacturing in Germany, Dr Kreller was prepared to acknowledge that Layher had considered manufacturing elsewhere, but should that decision be made sometime in the future it would only be to serve those external markets.