Latest News and Events
Wednesday, April 07, 2010
New Appointment Strengthens Safety First Services Customer Service Provision
Safety First are delighted to announce that Steve Fletcher has joined the company as we seek to expand and improve its service provision in all areas. He joins us from Construction Learning World where he was the director of operations and prior to that a director in a health & safety consultancy. With a wealth of experience in large scale service provsion and buisness development Steve will be a valuable asset in delivering Safety First to a wider customer base.
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Monday, May 11, 2009
CHANGES TO THE H&S LAW POSTER
HEALTH & SAFETY WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW
Employers have a legal duty under the Health and Safety Information for Employees Regulations 2009 (HSIER) to display the poster in a prominent position in each workplace or provide each worker with a copy of the equivalent leaflet outlining British health and safety laws.
The new poster updates the previous poster, which was published in April 1999. The new leaflet, now in a more convenient format as a pocket card, updates the current leaflet, also published in April 1999.
To help avoid an unnecessary burden on businesses, the HSE Board has set a five-year transition period for replacing the current poster and leaflet.
They must be replaced by the new poster or pocket cards by no later than 5 April 2014.
It is important to note that employers will still be complying with the law if they continue to display the current poster after 6 April 2009. However, where employers do keep the old poster, there will be a continuing duty, over the next five years, to keep the additional written information up to date. The additional information that employers have to provide in writing, either by inserting this in the appropriate boxes on the current poster, or by giving it to workers with the current leaflet is:
The name and address of the enforcing authority; and The address of the office of HSE’s Employment Medical Advisory Service (EMAS) for the premises concerned. These addresses can be obtained by phoning HSE’s Infoline on 0845 345 0055.
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Monday, May 11, 2009
SMSTS, SSSTS, Site Safety Plus Scheme
Safety First Services Ltd can provide these courses on behalf of a client or as an open training course. It is our aim to assist companies of all sizes to meet the MCG committment to Supervisory qualification within their supply chain. Whether it is the 5 day Site Managers or the 2 day Site supervisors, we can assure any potenatial client the the information will be tailored to meet the requirements of the scheme and reflective of their individual needs.
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Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Health & Safety (Offences) Act 2008 - In force 16th Jan 2009
This Bill would amend Section 33 of the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974, to raise the maximum penalties available to the courts in respect of certain health and safety offences.
* Raises the maximum fine which may be imposed by the lower courts to £20,000 for most offences.
* Makes a prison sentance an option for most health and safety offences in lower and higher courts.
* Makes certain offences that can currently only go to trial in lower courts, trialable in either the lower or higher courts.
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Wednesday, October 15, 2008
INDUSTRY TAKES ACTION ON SEMI_AUTOMATIC QUICK HITCHES
HSE has confirmed that European manufacturers have voluntarily agreed to cease supply of semi-automatic quick hitches into the UK. The agreement comes after discussions between HSE and industry and will be effective as of 1 October 2008. After four fatal incidents in the twelve month period between December 2006 and November 2007, all involving semi automatic quick hitches, HSE began talks with quick hitch manufacturers, excavator manufacturers and others to highlight the problem with semi-automatic quick hitches and look for potential solutions. Industry has been supportive throughout these discussions, and as a result all manufacturers have agreed to stop supplying this type of quick hitch as of 1 October 2008. What this means for users of quick hitches The agreement will mean that in the future when buying a quick hitch only manual or automatic quick hitches will be available. This does not mean that all semi automatic hitches will be illegal as of 1 October 2008. When used in accordance with manufacturer’s instructions semi automatic quick hitches can still be used safely. Owners and users should still be able to order spare parts for current semi automatic hitches from manufacturers.
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Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Slips and Trips remain the single most common cause of major injury in UK workplaces.
In 2005/06 the retail industry reported 13,000 work related accidents. Over 2,000 of these accidents were classified as major injuries such as fractures.
Over a third of all major injuries reported each year are caused as a result of a slip or trip (the single most common cause of injuries at work). Slips and trips also account for over half of all reported injuries to members of the public. Legal actions brought as a result of an injury can be extreamly damaging to business, especially where the public are involved. Insurance covers only a small proportion of the costs.
Anyone at work, but particularly employers, can help to reduce slip and trip hazards through good health and safety arrangements. The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (HSWA) requires employers to ensure the health and safety of all employees and anyone who may be affected by their work. This includes taking steps to control slip and trip risks.
Top Tips for creating a safe working environment:
* Train workers in the correct use of any safety and cleaning equipment provided.
* Carry out all necessary maintenance work promptly.
* Maintain equipment to prevent leaks.
* Choose an appropriate flooring.
* Ensure all lighting is in full working order.
* Appropriate footware should be worn by employees at all times. Employers should provide footware, if it is necessary to protect the workers' safety.
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Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Directors Jailed and 400k fines, Could you be at risk?
New legislations are resulting in increased fines and jail sentances when breaches in the Health & Safety at Work Act have lead to fatalities on site.
In line with the rise in figures of workplace deaths and accidents there has also been a rise in the fine's and/or jail sentence, with the courts being able to mirror in their sentencing the severity of the breach in workplace safety.
With regular risk assessments and site audits you can effectively control or eliminate many of your Health & Safety risk's whilst complying with the Health and Safety legislation.
In the news we have seen a director jailed for a year after admitting to causing the death of a builder who fell through a skylight which was covered with plastic sheeting but wasn't properly marked. More recently a company that has been fined £400,000 after an inquest into the deaths of 2 men on site were described as "entirely preventable" and arose from the clear failure of communication.
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Monday, June 16, 2008
Assessing Industrial Noise in the Environment
Assessing Industrial Noise in the Environment In order to assess the impact of industrial noise on mixed residential and industrial areas, the British Standards Institution have published BS 4142: 1997 'Method for Rating Industrial Noise Affecting Mixed Residential and Industrial Areas (EPA)'. This standard sets out a method of assessing industrial noise against the existing background noise to determine the likelihood of complaints from surrounding residents. Whilst the standard has no statutory force, it is widely used by the environmental health departments in deciding whether a statutory noise nuisance exists or not. The following section gives the measurement of noise under BS4142. The method involves making measurements of the background noise levels, if possible, when the factory process or particular item of plant being assessed is not operating. The intrusive factory noise level under investigation is then measured when the process is operating and adjustments are added to take account of the intermittent or tonal nature of the industrial noise. This is called rated noise. The difference between the rated noise and the background noise levels is used to assess whether complaints are likely. Background noise levels vary with the nature of the area, from rural to mixed residential and industrial. The background noise levels experienced in these areas may also vary from 30 dB(A) in rural areas at night, to levels nearer 65 dB(A) or more in industrial areas during the day. The units by which noise is measured (decibels) uses a logarithmic scale. Hence each rise of 3 decibels doubles the actual sound level. The industrial noise is measured when the factory, process or particular item of plant is operating. The results, therefore, include the industrial noise plus the background noise. When industrial noise has tonal elements, a factor of 5 dB(A) is added to the rated noise measured. The rated industrial noise is, therefore, the actual measured level plus a correction factor.
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Thursday, June 12, 2008
The six most common reasons for falls from height
Failure to recognise a problem: A risk assessment should have raised this.
Failure to ensure that safe systems of work are followed: How often do over-zealous workers take a short cut despite being provided with the necessary tools and training?
Failure to provide safe systems of work: Often employees will risk injury because the job 'will only take a few minutes'.
Inadequate information, instruction, training or supervision provided: Don't take for granted that everyone has the requisite knowledge to complete a job. It is the employer's responsibility to ensure that the employee has been trained, not the other way round.
Failure to use appropriate equipment: We have all seen pictures of personnel standing on the forks of a telehandler or standing on the top rung of a ladder.
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