05Jan2016

Improve Your Lifting Safety in 2016

robin health & safety

Lifting heavy equipment can be extremely dangerous. It is crucial that correct training and equipment is used to prevent accidents and fatalities in the workplace.

Last year it was reported that a 37 year old warehouse worker died in a tragic accident on his first shift as saw operator for a business in the Cardiff docks area.

There were no eye witnesses to the accident but it is believed that the worker may have been attempting to attach lifting chains around a girder unsupervised. Staff members found him pinned between two pieces, attempts were made to remove the girder but Paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene.

Although training was provided, there was no clear instruction about which method for moving or cutting the two tonne steel columns should be used. It came to light that the company did not have written guidance on how to lift the girders, leaving their employees to create their own ways.

The company was fined £112,000 and ordered to pay £98,000 in costs.

Accidents like these, whether they end in a fatality like the above case, or a worker ends up hurt are tragic, because they are so easily preventable.

As an employer it is your responsibility to ensure that your employees are working in a safe environment by providing comprehensive training to all your employees and training them to use the right equipment and wear the correct PPE at all times.

Before engaging in any type of heavy lifting, you need to ensure that all of your equipment meets or exceeds the working load limit (WLL) of the load you are planning on lifting or moving.

Additionally you must also ensure that any lifting tasks are correctly planned, supervised and conducted in a safe manner, with people who are fully trained to use the equipment needed. You must also perform an inspection of all the lifting equipment that you will be using. Do not use equipment that is worn or damaged in any way.

Here at SafetyLiftinGear we stock a fully comprehensive range of top quality heavy lifting equipment, including a large range of beam clamps, chainblocks, leverhoists, electric hoists, wire rope hoists, round slings, chainslings and more. Click here to view our extensive lifting equipment range.

03Dec2015

Should You Be Wearing PPE?

Admin health & safety

Construction sites are very dangerous places to work, being surrounded by heavy machinery, noisy power tools, large trucks and lorries, entering confined working spaces, or being in contact with potentially hazardous materials (Asbestos) chemicals and gases, can greatly increase the risk of accidents. So if you are working on, visiting or managing a building or construction site, you need to ensure that you and your staff are dressing appropriately.

When is PPE Needed?

According to the HSE (Health and Safety Executive), PPE should be used “when all other measures are inadequate to control exposure”. PPE is generally advised to be used as a last resort, when risks to employee health cannot be avoided or controlled in any other way.

Do I need PPE?

If your workplace is found to have risks to your health that cannot be controlled by any other means, you might need PPE. If PPE is needed, it is the responsibility of the employer to ensure PPE is provided to all employees who may be exposed to a risk to their health or safety while at work. It is also the responsibility of the employer to provide said PPE free of charge, whether it is returnable or not (Section 9 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974).

Workplace PPE from SafetyLiftinGear:

We at SafetyLiftinGear, take Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) extremely seriously. Here is an example of the products that we stock in our specialist PPE section:

Ear protection

When you are working in loud environments where you are exposed to loud noises it is important to take care of your hearing, prolonged exposure to loud noises can lead to noise related hearing loss, or tinnitus. You can protect yourself against noise by using our Ear defenders. Our ear defenders offer comfort and protection with a noise reduction rating up to 34dB.

Click here to view our full range of ear defenders

Eye Protection

By law eye protection must be worn when you are in a hazardous area, if you are employing people to work on your site it is your responsibility to provide eye protection. When choosing eye protection it is important that they are comfortable, and that they are designed to protect you from the potential hazard such high speed flying metal particles, small stones, or chemical splashes. You will also need to consider if you are going to be using ear protection with them, or a respirator, as these items can affect how the glasses fit.

Here at SafetyLiftinGear our safety goggles have a soft, adjustable head strap to ensure that they are comfortable and can be used with your ear protection and respirators if needed. Click here to View.

Dust Masks

Every year people are dying because of prolonged exposure to hazardous substances while at work. Dust masks help prevent the development of respiratory illnesses caused from the inhalation of hazardous substances while you are working. Many hazardous substances are fine dusts, smoke, gas and vapour, most of which you cannot see.

When you are choosing your dust mask, make sure it is suitable for the potential hazards you could be facing in your workplace. Here at SafetyLiftinGear we stock a huge range of dust masks that will protect you from a range of hazardous substances, click here to view our comprehensive range.

High Visibility Clothing

When you are working on a building or construction site, you are at increased risk of injury by large trucks, and Lorries when they are entering, navigating and exiting a work site. High visibility clothing is made from materials with florescent pigments and reflective bands over the shoulders and around the waist. Make sure that you are choosing the correct high visibility clothing for the working conditions, and the task that you are carrying out.

Here at Safety Lifting Gear we stock a huge range of high visibility wear, including safety jacket harnesses, high visibility overalls, and high visibility jackets. Click here to view our full range of high Visibility clothing.

Did you know that here at SafetyLiftinGear we can also offer Custom branded workwear? Just head over to Safety Life Gear where all of the Personal Protection Equipment is Customisable. So if you want to proudly display your companies name and logo on your high visibility jacket you can!

06Nov2015

3 Safe Lifting Tips

Admin health & safety

As the name suggests, here at SafetyLiftinGear, we specialise in supplying lifting equipment to manufacturing companies, warehouses, event riggers, and more. It is important when you are using heavy lifting equipment that you use it correctly to ensure that your equipment lasts a long time and to create a safe work place for you and your employees. Here are 3 tips on how to use your lifting equipment safely:

Do not exceed capacity of your lifting equipment

If your try and lift a load that is over the Working Load Limit (WLL) you are putting your equipment under structural strain and could result in your equipment becoming irreversibly damaged or even break when in use, causing your load to fall which could cause your load to be damaged, or worse, fatal injury to you or a colleague.

Exceeding the WLL could also cause your load to swing, causing damage to your load, structures around you, or even people working in and around the area. It is crucial that you know the weight of the load that you are lifting, so you know which equipment is best for the job.

Click here to view our range of load weighing equipment

Make sure your find the loads centre of gravity

If you are lifting heavy load, even or uneven loads it is important that you test the centre of gravity, this is to stop your load from falling from height and causing an accident. To test the centre of gravity of your load, lift it up a few inches off the ground, and stop – if your load falls then there will be little harm if it falls.

Use a load arrestor as backup in case your primary lifting method fails

If you have accidently over loaded your equipment or you have not found the correct centre of gravity of your load, you could end up dropping your load from a great height. Load arrestors are designed to halt the decent of your load and helps to help prevent accidents always connect your load to a load arrestor.

Click here to browse our range of Load Arrestors.

You will find that most of our products have a different WLL, please ensure when purchasing a heavy lifting product that you select the adequate product for the loads you need lifting. If you are lifting a load that is 3.5 tonnes then you will need to select the piece of equipment above 3.5 tonnes not 3 tonnes. The WLL of all of our products are clearly labelled in the product description if you have any questions regarding the WLL of any of our products please contact us and an member of our customer service team will be happy to help.

01Oct2015

The Dangers of Working in a Confined Space

mike health & safety

Working in a confined space can be very dangerous so it is important that you have the right Confined space equipment, to keep yourself and your work colleagues safe from potential hazards.

A confined space is defined as a space which is enclosed with limited exits, where serious injury can occur from hazardous conditions, such as, using chemicals that could combust, excessive heat from welding or even direct sunlight, the presence of toxic gases, fume or vapours which could lead to unconsciousness or asphyxiation, lack of oxygen in the confined space or even oxygen enrichment.

It is important to be aware that even if the space you are working in is not classed as a confined space when you begin your work, however it may become a confined space if there is a change in conditions, for example, and using toxic chemicals for cleaning purposes could produce toxic vapours. So before you start working in a confined space or a space that could become confined you need to be aware of the potential hazards and ensure that you have the correct equipment.

Here at SafetyLiftinGear we understand the dangers of working within confined spaces supply a range of confined space equipment to help keep you as safe as possible from harm when working in such conditions. We have a huge range of adjustable tripods, winches and gantries to aid your descent into confined places such as manholes and shafts.

As well as a huge range tripods and Gantries we also stock fall arrest blocks, rescue harnesses, gas detectors, and breathing apparatus.

Click here to view our full range of confined space equipment if you have any questions about our Confined space equipment, please call us on 0808 123 6969 and a member of out specialist team will be happy to assist you.

22Sep2015

Prevent Serious Safety Failings

mike health & safety

As we have mentioned time and time again, working at height is very dangerous, and failing to follow the proper guidelines and safety precautions can and will get people hurt.

If you do not take the necessary precautions when working at height, the Health & Safety Executive may visit your site to ensure that you are following the law. This is what happened to a scaffolding company in London recently; a passer-by was so concerned about the working conditions of the company’s employees and the safety of the public that she raised her concern with the HSE.

The HSE visited the site and found that the scaffolding was poorly erected and there was a lack of safety precautions put in place to prevent objects from falling to the street below. The HSE served a notice to stop all work on this unsafe construction until it was deemed safe. It is stated in the Work at Height Regulations 2005 that "every employer shall take suitable and sufficient measures to prevent, so far as is reasonably practicable, any person falling a distance liable to cause personal injury." (6.3)

Time and time again, we see that employers and even employees are not taking the correct safety precautions to protect themselves from harm. Over 60% of deaths during work at height involve falls, but by wearing a harness and using anchors and fall arrest blocks, these accidents are easily prevented and people’s lives are saved.

Another important point made above is the safety of the general public when you are working at height. The Work at Height Regulations also states "every employer shall, where necessary to prevent injury to any person and to take suitable and sufficient steps to prevent, so far as is reasonably practicable, the fall of any material or object." (10. 1)

When working on scaffolding, it is important to have nets around the scaffolding to catch any objects that fall from it. You can also protect people by simply attaching your tools to a lanyard. This simple precaution can help save lives (and your tools!)

Thankfully, the malpractices of the London scaffolding company did not end up causing any serious injuries or any harm to passers-by. However, the company’s owner did get receive a fine and a suspended prison sentence.

Visit SafetyLiftinGear’s Height Safety department and make sure you have all the safety equipment you need.

10Sep2015

When Load Restraint Goes Wrong

mike health & safety

Before you hit the road, you should always use the appropriate load restraint equipment to ensure that whatever you're carrying stays put for the duration of the journey. This is particularly important for heavy loads, of course, but it applies to loads of all sizes over journeys of any length. Whether you're hauling a tonne of bricks from Land's End to John O'Groats or simply forklifting a few pallets to the other end of the warehouse, securing the load should always be your top priority.

Otherwise, you might end up like the motorists in these videos...

1. Shelves come loose from trailer

Everything seems fine in the first 15 seconds of this video...but then the flimsy length of tape that was barely keeping those shelves on the trailer broke, and it all went rather wrong. Again, kudos to the motorist who filmed this - not everyone would be able to get out of harm's way that quickly!

2. Boxes take a high-speed tumble

The text at the start of this video tells us that the camera's owner was doing 100 kph (roughly 62mph) when their fellow motorist lost their load, and this really illustrates the importance of using the right load restraint equipment. If your car hits something at more than 60mph, it doesn't really matter what that something is - it's going to do a lot of damage!

3. Mattresses go flying

We're not entirely sure how those two mattresses ended up in mid-air, but we're almost certain it could have been prevented if the owner had strapped them down properly!

4. Huge crate slides off lorry

Okay, now we're just lost for words. Do these people not think to secure their loads at all? Do they think that everything will just magically stay put?

If you don't want your load to end up on YouTube, make sure you secure it with the correct load restraint equipment. It will prevent damage and - more importantly - save lives!

29Jul2015

Working at Height: The Three Ts

mike health & safety

Yesterday, we told you all about our new Ergodyne tool lanyards; today, we'd like to show you a video that Ergodyne made to promote their products and encourage people to stay safe whilst working at height:

The video above is all about what Ergodyne call 'The Three Ts': Tethering, Topping, and Tagging. Don't worry if you haven't the time to watch the whole thing - here are The Three Ts in a nutshell:

The Three Ts of Height Safety

The following considerations are absolutely critical for anyone who works at height:

Tethering. This means ensuring that your tools are securely tethered, either to your person or to a secure fixing that will not allow them to fall. This is what SafetyLiftinGear's tool lanyards are for.
Topping. When working at height, do you carry tools, fittings, or other equipment in a work bag? If so, you need to make sure that the bag in question is properly topped; ask yourself what will stop your equipment from falling out if the bag is upturned or inverted, and if the answer is 'nothing', consider buying yourself a new, safer tool bag.

As these unfortunate watermelons found out, even small items (such as nuts and bolts) can do a lot of damage when dropped from height!

Tagging. The third and final 'T' refers to the proper labelling of tool lanyards and other height safety products. Such items should always be clearly marked to identify the weight capacity of the product in question - exceeding the stated weight capacity can be very dangerous, and clear tagging/labelling ensures that workers will be able check the maximum capacity of their equipment at a glance.

Click here for more information about working at height, or visit SafetyLiftinGear's Height Safety section to find out how we can help you to stay safe at work.