CDM Regulations 2015 are approved

The revised Construction (Design and Management) are due to come into force on 6 April 2015.

Draft guidance into the regulations, which is available to help people prepare for the changes in advance, was published earlier this month and notes the key changes as:

• Principal designer. The replacement of the CDM co-ordinator role (under CDM 2007) by principal designer. This means that the responsibility for coordination of the pre-construction phase – which is crucial to the management of any successful construction project – will rest with an existing member of the design team.
• Client. The new Regulations recognise the influence and importance of the client as the head of the supply chain and they are best placed to set standards throughout a project.
• Competence. This will be split into its component parts of skills, knowledge, training and experience, and – if it relates to an organisation – organisational capability. This will provide clarity and help the industry to both assess and demonstrate that construction project teams have the right attributes to deliver a healthy and safe project.

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Butcher fined after apprentice loses hand in mincing machine

A butcher has been fined after a teenage apprentice’s hand was chopped off in a mincing machine. It was heard that the 16-year-old’s right hand had to be amputated on the scene after it became trapped in the machine.

The investigation following the incident found that the machine was being used without a guard or restrictor plate and “would have exposed any user to risk of harm”.

Paul Jeffery of P&K Meats in Street, Somerset, had previously pleaded guilty to failing to ensure the health and safety of his staff at work. He was fined £3,000 and ordered to pay £12,104.76 in costs.

After sentencing, Stuart Cave, from the council, said: “This was a horrific accident in which a young man received life-changing injuries.
“The accident could have been avoided had the necessary safety equipment been used.

My View
As with the circular saw accident, this could easily have been avoided. Guards are often removed during cleaning of machinery and it can be easy to forget to re-fit them after. A regular inspection of machines such as this would reduce the possibility of this type of accident happening. Guards are also removed because it makes it easier or quicker to use the machine. Preventing this type of behaviour comes down to having a good attitude to safety together with good training and inspection processes. None of the controls required to prevent this type of incident need be expensive or have a negative impact on the performance of a business.

Butcher fined after apprentice loses hand in mincing machine

A butcher has been fined after a teenage apprentice’s hand was chopped off in a mincing machine. It was heard that the 16-year-old’s right hand had to be amputated on the scene after it became trapped in the machine.

The investigation following the incident found that the machine was being used without a guard or restrictor plate and “would have exposed any user to risk of harm”.

Paul Jeffery of P&K Meats in Street, Somerset, had previously pleaded guilty to failing to ensure the health and safety of his staff at work. He was fined £3,000 and ordered to pay £12,104.76 in costs.

After sentencing, Stuart Cave, from the council, said: “This was a horrific accident in which a young man received life-changing injuries.
“The accident could have been avoided had the necessary safety equipment been used.

My View
As with the circular saw accident, this could easily have been avoided. Guards are often removed during cleaning of machinery and it can be easy to forget to re-fit them after. A regular inspection of machines such as this would reduce the possibility of this type of accident happening. Guards are also removed because it makes it easier or quicker to use the machine. Preventing this type of behaviour comes down to having a good attitude to safety together with good training and inspection processes. None of the controls required to prevent this type of incident need be expensive or have a negative impact on the performance of a business.

Employee Dies Locked in Oven

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A company manufacturing Kayaks (Pyranha Mouldings) has been found guilty of Corporate Manslaughter following the death of an employee when he became trapped in an industrial oven.

Alan Catterall was trapped in the oven after climbing inside to clean off plastic that had dripped during the manufacturing process. He tried to use a crowbar to free himself but was unsuccessful.

Another employee turned the oven on, unaware that his future father-in-law was inside. This caused the doors to automatically lock. This trapped Mr Catterall inside the oven with no means of escape or alarm although he did try using a crowbar to raise the alarm; unfortunately, because of the noisy workplace he was not heard. .

After about 10 minutes, smoke was seen coming from the oven which can reach temperatures up to 280C and when the oven was checked, they discovered Mr Catterall who was pronounced dead at the scene.

Pyranha Mouldings was also found guilty of two charges under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. Peter Mackereth, 60, managing director of the company, was convicted of two charges under Section 37 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.

Mr Mackereth and the company will be sentenced next month.

My View:
This is yet another tragic case that could easily have been prevented using well established, standard controls that need not have cost very much.

Undertaking a suitable and sufficient risk assessment would likely have identified the possibility of becoming trapped. Whilst an escape hatch has since been fitted to the oven, it seems to me that the company should also implement a safe system of work including a thorough “lock out, tag out” system to ensure that the oven cannot be switched on whilst someone is inside.

Mock trial highlights risks associated with driving at work

A recent fictional trial undertaken by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) has highlighted the dangers associated with driving at work and failing to follow safety policies.

The case centred on a Road Traffic Collision (RTC) in which a mother died and her eight year old son suffered life changing injuries following a collision with a van driven by a regional sales manager for a food manufacturing company.

It was revealed that the driver of the van who was a regional sales manager for a food manufacturing company had been listening to a voicemail message left on her mobile phone by her line manager shortly before losing control of the van and colliding with the car.

The scenario highlighted the risks brought about by employees failing to comply with a road safety policy that banned the use of mobile phones while driving. Other work-related issues such as excessive workloads and stress were also brought to the fore.

The jury of delegates found the van driver guilty of causing death by dangerous driving and found the company guilty of corporate manslaughter. In this mock scenario, the judge sentenced the businesswoman to four years in jail and ordered the company to pay fines and costs in excess of £580,000.

With an increasing number of employees being mobile and the ever increasing use of mobile phone technology to keep in touch the base office it is even more important to not only have a road safety policy but to ensure it is complied with by all employees. This included Managers and Supervisors not expecting drivers to answer calls or respond to messages whilst driving.

It is hoped that by raising these issues in the form of a mock trial it will encourage attendees to raise questions in their workplace about how their companies manage the issue of mobile employees.

New Health and Safety Standard

The implementation of a new international occupational health and safety standard has moved closer following a recent meeting in Trinidad and Tobago.

The delegates from around the world discussed the various clauses of the new standard that is based on the existing BS OHSAS18001 standard.

The International Organisation for Standardization (ISO) will now produce a new draft of the standard based on delegates’ suggestions and it is hoped the standard, known as ISO 45001, will be complete by October 2016.

The meeting was hosted by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH), in conjunction with the Trinidad and Tobago Bureau of Standards.

The new standard is likely to replace OHSAS 18001 and will require health and safety to be managed in a systematic and integrated manner way within organisations and should not just be looked on as an added extra.

The ultimate aim is to improved the health and safety performance of companies and organisations and lead to a reduction in the number of deaths, injuries and illnesses caused by work. According to statistics from the International Labour Organisation (ILO), about 6,300 people die every day in the world as a result of work-related injury or disease – more than 2.3 million deaths per year. The vast majority of these could be avoided by simple Health and safety measures.

PICTURE: 12-Year-Old Boy Writes ‘ ‘How

PICTURE: 12-Year-Old Boy Writes ‘ ‘How To Understand Women’ Book, Nails It http://ow.ly/tg0rC

Frustrated with Google and Android!

I recently decided to change from the iPad to a Galaxy Note 10.1 because a number of people told me they were much better and the iPad couldn’t do a number of things I wanted it to do. Unfortunately I’m not getting on too well with the Note. The main thing seems to be that once I’ve set up my work email (using Google Apps) the the note is constantly trying to access a server I’m not sure exists (triquetra-ehs.co.UK) and this effectively stop it doing very much or at least it keeps coming up with the message that it can’t contact the server and makes jt look like it’s not connected.

Why do these things have to be so complicated. I’d hope Google docs etc would make life easier and in some ways it does but in others it certainly does not. The other reason for writing this to practice using the Note and because I’ve just worked out how to get my blogs appearing in my Company Facebook page . I really like the handwriting recognition function on the Note although disappointed it doesn’t work on everything.

So, although this post has nothing to do directly with health, safety or the environment, if I can figure out how to get this thing connected properly and working fully it will significantly reduce my stress levels and that is certainly a healthier way to be.

P.S. I’m away in Franceshortly so if you post a reply to this and I don’t acknowledge it, I’m not being rude, just unable to get this thing to connected to a French network!

Test post

This is just to see if my wordpress blog now links with the Triquetra facebook page?

CIEH Approved Fire Safety Training

CIEH Level 1 Award in Fire Safety Awareness

This qualification provides a basic understanding of workplace fire safety and prevention.

Designed for: all employees

• those with no specific fire-safety role
• those undertaking induction training
• as an introduction for those who intend to move on to further fire-safety training

Duration: half-day programme

Assessment: Multiple choice examination

Ofqual accredited: Yes

CIEH Level 2 Award in Fire Safety Principles

This qualification allows successful candidates to become fire wardens in their workplace

Designed for: employees who hope to develop their basic fire safety awareness in order to assist their employer by undertaking more specific fire safety roles in the workplace to manage fire risk (e.g. as fire wardens/marshals/stewards etc.)

Duration: one-day programme

Assessment: Multiple choice examination

Ofqual accredited: Yes

 

To book  place or obtain further details please contact us at:

Triquetra EHS Consultancy

Tel: 01992 448320

Mob: 07958 790578

email: david.whitelegg@triquetra-ehs.co.uk

Web: http://www.triquetrahealthandsafety.com