safety first - work at height

Failing to to properly plan for "work-at-height situations", can leave your employees hanging around waiting for the inevitable incident and or injury that is sure follow.

Before undertaking any work at height, assessing the risks is critical - there are many regulations around working at height, for good reason. If you cannot avoid the work taking place at height (the first step in mitigating the risks), conducting a thorough risk assessment is essential before any work begins.

Obviously the primary risk of working at height is a fall leading to injury or death. But there are other risks to consider, including the potential for objects falling from the work site causing injury to people or damage to property below.

The risk of a fall is also not a static risk - various factors will increase the potential for this risk, including:
✔The height of the work
✔The duration of the task
✔The number of people involved
✔The weather conditions
✔The condition of the surface being worked upon

The higher the work, the greater the risk. Falls from height increase in severity the higher they are, with serious injury and even death being a greater risk.

The longer a task takes, the more risk there is that something could go wrong, or fatigue could lead to errors.

The more people involved in a task taking place at height, the more risks there can be - people getting in one another's way, so communication around who is doing what, who is responsible for the equipment, etc. is vital.

Weather conditions can play a significant role. Windy weather may make access equipment unstable, or make it difficult to manage large objects that could be caught by the wind. Rain, sleet, snow and ice make slips significantly more likely, and cold conditions may reduce manual dexterity.

Each factor affects the overall risk. So, although not all factors will be relevant in every situation, they should all be considered, only dismissing irrelevant factors once it is clear that they will not be an issue.