Capital Equipment News March 2016

WORK @ HEIGHT: FROM THE BOARD

WORLD NEWS YOU NEED TO BE FORMALLY ‘QUALIFIED’ BEFORE USING A LADDER AT WORK No, you do not. You need to be com- petent. This means having the nec- essary skills, knowledge and experi- ence to use a ladder properly for the work you will carry out, or, if you are being trained, you work under the supervision of somebody who can perform the task competently. Train- ing often takes place on the job and does not always have to take place in a classroom. What matters is that an individual can apply what they have learned in the workplace. ARRESTING FALL FATALITIES Falls from height in the workplace are responsible for many serious and fatal injuries each year. Even a fall from a height as low as two me- tres above the ground carries the risk of a person sustaining serious injury. In addition, the person may not fall on open ground and the risk of injury may be greater if the fall is onto objects below the workspace. Simon Courtney provides an over- view of fall arrest PPE. The risk of a person falling is typi- cally controlled using a hierarchy of protection. This begins with finding alternative ways of working from ground level, such as removing the ‘height’ itself, and ends with the use of personal protective equipment (PPE). Fall arrest PPE is widely used where work is carried out at height and is designed to protect against falls. The basic principle of such equipment is to prevent serious in- jury to the user by catching them at an earlier stage, namely before the energy associated with the fall reaches terminal levels, either when hitting the floor or due to decelera- tions that are likely to cause death. A wide range of working at height equipment is available including fall arrest harnesses, lanyards, karabin- ers and connectors, anchor devices and work positioning systems.

Dr ALTI KRIEL CEO: IWH

GUIDELINES TO SAFETY FOR WORKING AT HEIGHT The Institute for Work at Height and its industry col- leagues has embarked on a much needed project of developing a set of Guidelines for the safe working at height. The document is nearing completion and it was decided that it should be published in book- let format for easy reference and use by the indus- try, such as safety officers, managers, supervisors, Fall Protection Planners, etc. The booklet will also be made available to the broader public and any- one who needs to know more about Safe Working at Height. Below is a Snippet of what the Guideline booklet has in store. What you can expect for your sponsorship of the Guidelines booklet. R20000 SPONSORSHIP 1. Company to have name and logo mentioned at the back of the booklet under “SPONSORS” 2. A space at the front of the booklet for your com- pany to place a sticker with company logo (com- panies will be able to have their own logo stickers printed for distribution to their clients and/or em- ployees). 3. 80 free Guidelines booklets for distribution to cli- ents and employees.

R10000 SPONSORSHIP 1. Company to have name and logo mentioned at the back of the booklet under “SPONSORS” 2. A space at the front of the booklet for your com- pany to place a sticker with company logo (com- panies will be able to have their own logo stickers printed for distribution to their clients and/or em- ployees). 3. 40 free Guidelines booklet for distribution to cli- ents and employees. R5000 SPONSORSHIP 1. Company to have name and logo mentioned at the back of the booklet under “SPONSORS” 2. A space at the front of the booklet for your com- pany to place a sticker with company logo (com- panies will be able to have their own logo stickers printed for distribution to their clients and/or em- ployees. 3. 20 free Guidelines booklet for distribution to cli- ents and employees. 4. We hope that you will see the value in your con- tribution to this very worthy cause. Please e-mail me at manager@profbody.co.za should you be interested in sponsorship in this booklet and the necessary Sponsorship document will be forward- ed to you.

CAPITAL EQUIPMENT NEWS MARCH 2016 28