Review Of Work At Height Practices In The UK Broadcasting .

Review of Work at HeightPractices in the UKBroadcasting IndustryA Report from NEL forHealth & Safety ExecutiveNEL Project No: RSU422Report No: 2006/201Issue 2Date: November 2006

NELTUV NEL LtdEast KilbrideGlasgowG75 0QUTel: 01355 220222Fax No: 01355 272999Email: info@tuvnel.comReview ofWork at Height Practicesin the UK Broadcasting IndustryA Report from NEL forHealth & Safety ExecutiveField Operations DirectorateCACTUS8th FloorPegasus HouseGlasgowG2 4LWPrepared by: L Hunter.Approved by: Dr J Bingham.ForMichael ValenteManaging DirectorDate: November 2006NEL Project No: RSU422Report No: 2006/201Page 2 of 62

NELEXECUTIVE SUMMARYOver a ten month period from September 2005, NEL was contracted by HSE toundertake a review of work at height within the UK broadcasting industry. The workpractices of the industry were assessed against the Work at Height Regulations,which have been introduced in the UK in order to reduce the number of accidentsand deaths caused by falls from height. These remain the single largest cause offatalities in the workplace.Surveys conducted at three outdoor events and two indoor events revealed a largevariation in fall protection levels. Although examples of good practice were observed,many instances of bad practice were evident, where workers were inadequatelyprotected from potential injury or death when working at height.Although there was evidence that efforts had been made to avoid work at height byimplementing alternative methods and introducing equipment, the review highlightedweaknesses in the management and control of work at height. In particular there wasa failure to ensure workers were adequately trained and competent and that PPE inuse was adequate and compliant with current legislation.Amongst the most common issues encountered during the review was the use ofwork positioning PPE for fall arrest applications and the widespread use ofunapproved PPE, including lanyards and lifelines. A fall protection PPE should be CEmarked for the intended purpose under PPE Directive 89/686/EC.Other issues included the absence of fall protection for worker safety and the lack ofrescue plans to ensure the safe and timely recovery of persons suspended after afall.In general, improvements are necessary in order to achieve compliance with theWork at Height Regulations.This report provides guidance and makes a number of recommendations aimed atimproving the management and safety of workers at height.NEL Project No: RSU422Report No: 2006/201Page 3 of 62

NELCONTENTSPageEXECUTIVE SUMMARY1INTRODUCTION .52PURPOSE .53APPROACH .54TERMS AND .125.135.145.155.165.175.18SURVEY FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION.Introduction.Survey Visits.Inadequate Fall Protection.No Protection Against Falls .No Protection During Access and Egress .No Fall Arrest Backup During Work Positioning .Unapproved PPE.Incorrect Selection of PPE.Misuse of PPE .Poor Condition of PPE.Poor Selection of Structural Anchor Points and Poor Installation of PPEUnprotected Fragile Roofs.Marquees and General Framework.Inadequate Rescue Plans .MEWPS .Ladders and Mobile Scaffold Towers .Mobile Stages.Environmental and General CLUSIONS .4577.17.27.37.47.57.67.77.87.97.10RECOMMENDATIONS .Risk Assessment .Access, Egress and Places of Work.Danger Areas .Selection of Work Equipment .Assessment of Personnel.Training and Competence of Personnel .Inspection of Workplace and Conditions .Inspection of Work Equipment Before Use.Management System.Personal Protective Equipment NCESLIST OF FIGURESAPPENDIX 1APPENDIX 2APPENDIX 3APPENDIX 4NEL Project No: RSU422Report No: 2006/201Examples of good practice observed during the surveyGuidance on Procurement and Selection of PPEWorking at Heights – Risk Assessment ProcessWork at Height Training InformationPage 4 of 62

NEL1INTRODUCTIONThis report presents the findings of surveys conducted between September 2005 andApril 2006 by NEL for HSE to assess working at height activities within the UKbroadcasting industry.The findings detailed in this report collate and summarise the conclusions from fiveseparate broadcasting visit reports1,2,3,4,5 submitted to HSE.For confidentiality reasons, all photographs contained within this report have beenmade anonymous.2PURPOSEThe purpose of the survey was to assess practice in the industry against the Work atHeight Regulations6 (WAHR), which were introduced in the UK during 2005. For thefirst time the WAHR covers all industries with a single set of regulations.Specific objectives of the project were to: 3Identify working at height activitiesEvaluate risks and control measuresDocument, report and present findingsProvide recommendations and guidanceAPPROACHThe project involved a survey of three outdoor and two indoor broadcasting events toprovide representative samples of working at height activities during the assemblyand dismantling of typical temporary structures for entertainment events. The reviewcovers all work activities at height where there is a need to prevent or control the riskof a worker falling a distance liable to cause personal injury.All observations made during the survey were captured on film using a digital videorecorder and still camera for information and analysis purposes. All images obtainedduring the survey have been given to HSE.Due to the nature of the survey, the presence of NEL and HSE staff may haveinfluenced the behaviour of workers, with the result that the procedures observedduring the visits may have differed from those normally used.Workers and management representatives were consulted at times during the surveyto provide necessary information. Therefore, many of the findings from this surveyrely on the accuracy of information supplied.In assessing the methods used to protect against falls from height, consideration hasalso been given to provisions for rescue and evacuation in emergency situations,where the timely and safe recovery of falls victims is essential to prevent furtherdiscomfort, injury or even death.NEL Project No: RSU422Report No: 2006/201Page 5 of 62

NELAlthough the survey includes only a sample of working at height activities within theUK broadcasting industry, the specific events selected for review are believed to berepresentative.In order to provide guidance, much of this report focuses on bad practice observedduring the survey. Examples of good practice are contained in Appendix I.4TERMS AND DEFINITIONSIn this report the following terms and definitions apply.Working platformPlatform used to provide place of work or as a means of accessand egress from another place of work e.g. mobile elevatedworking platform, integrated elevating working platforms,suspended cradles, scaffolding.MEWPMobile elevated working platform i.e. cherry picker or scissor lift.Collective fallprotectionEquipment used to provide fall protection for more than onePerson. Includes guardrails, safety nets and landing mats.GuardrailsA rigid barrier used to restrict access to hazardous areas or toprevent falls from height.Safety netsA net used to restrain or catch a falling person.Landing matsSystems used to provide the worker with a soft landing in theevent of a fall e.g. air bags and filled soft landing bags.Fall protection PPEEquipment used to protect an individual from falls, includingwork restraint, work positioning and fall arrest PPE.Work restraint PPEEquipment used to restrain the worker and prevent theaccessing of hazardous areas, e.g. open edges.Work positioningPPEEquipment used to support the positioning of person duringwork activities, leaving both hands free to carry out the worktasks.Fall Arrest PPEEquipment used to protect an individual during a fall, byarresting the individual before reaching the ground withinprescribed safe fall distances and arrest forces. A fall arrestsystem comprises a body support element (fall arrest full bodyharness only), shock absorbing element (energy absorberlanyard or another form of absorbance designed in the fall arrestsystem) and anchor point.A body which is appointed by the DTI to undertake specificduties under the European PPE Directive PPE/89/686/EEC7.Notified bodyNEL Project No: RSU422Report No: 2006/201Page 6 of 62

NEL5SURVEY FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION5.1IntroductionThe broadcasting industry regularly erects and dismantles structures of a temporarynature, which require a significant amount of work at height. This can often involveworking in outdoor environments, when building temporary concert arenas or workingindoors, building stages inside existing concert halls.Typically work at height involves structural riggers, responsible for the structuralelements of the work and technicians, responsible for preparation of the productionequipment. A small part of the work covered equipment operators, in particularlighting operators. Workers were generally self-employed but some employed byrigging and production companies.Work was often carried out under pressure to meet tight schedules, and could involverestrictions to public access ways during the work.Outdoor work was at times carried out in darkness, under hostile weather conditionsincluding rain, wind, ice and cold.5.2Survey Visits Visit 1 (Outdoors Entertainment) NEL Report No. 2006/196The survey focused on the dismantling of a temporary, large-scale, domeshaped structure, which enclosed a concert stage. Working at height waslargely avoided by dismantling the structure at stage level, while supported byan overhead crane. The main element of working at height was necessaryduring the rigging of the upper trusses, which involved workers climbing andworking directly on the arched framework to attach lifting tackle and auxiliaryequipment.Where possible MEWPs were used to install and remove auxiliary equipmentand roof coverings.Protection measures included:¾ Variety of fall protection harnesses (including fall arrest complying withEN3618 and work positioning complying with EN3589 and EN81310)¾ Fall arrest lanyards complying with EN35511¾ MEWPsAll workers observed during the survey were inadequately protected againstserious injury or fatality in the event of a fall. Typical reasons are given inSection 5.3. Visit 2 (Outdoors Entertainment) NEL Report No. 2006/197The survey mainly focused on the construction of a temporary, large-scale,traditional box-shaped structure, which enclosed a concert stage. Working atheight was largely avoided by elevating the roof structure on the main supportNEL Project No: RSU422Report No: 2006/201Page 7 of 62