Welcome to the July Edition of BSG Training News

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1 Welcome to the July Edition of BSG Training News As a delegate at one of our courses in the past, or someone who organises the training for your company, our training newsletter keeps you up to date with our future training course schedule and special offers as well as the new courses we are now able to offer. This month our focus is on our brand new course, Temporary Works Co-ordinator. What it is, whose its for and how to put it into practice effectively. Find further information on page 2. About BSG The Building Safety Group (BSG) offer a wide range of high quality, low cost, accredited health and safety training courses covering a range of subject areas. We run regular courses at our training centre in Bristol, as well as Exeter, Slough, Stoke on Trent and Leicester. In this issue: Page 2: Page 4: Page 5: Page 6: Spotlight on...temporary Works Co-ordinator Course CITB Health and Safety Course Court cases Late availability courses last chance to book Download our 2014 training schedules for Bristol, Exeter and Stoke on Trent, Leicester and Slough courses Spotlight on our Temporary Works Coordinator course find out more on page 2. Need a course in a location closer to you? If you have a group of 6 or more employees requiring training, we offer all of our courses on a private basis. Held at a venue of your choice on a date that suits you, we can tailor the course to meet your needs and requirements. Contact us and find out more. Follow us! pages/building-safety- Group/ company/the-building -safety-group bsgltd

2 Temporary Works What is Temporary Works? Defined in BS 5975, it is an engineered solution used to Support and protect an existing structure or the permanent works during construction Support an item of plant or equipment Support an excavation Provide access They are the parts of the construction project that are needed to enable the permanent works to be built. Usually the temporary works are removed after use e.g. access scaffolds, props, shoring. Sometimes the temporary works is incorporated into the permanent works e.g. haul road foundations and crane or piling platforms may be used for hard standing or road foundations. Can I organise temporary works myself? The person organising the temporary works needs to be aware of the problems that can occur at each stage of the process and how to prevent these. They need to coordinate design, select the equipment, appoint the contractors, supervise the work, check on completion, authorise load and removal. Unless this is done in a thorough and systematic way problems are likely to occur. If you take this on yourself you must ensure each part of the process is correctly carried out. Do I have to appoint a temporary works coordinator? British Standard 5975 sets out one way of managing temporary works (TW) that has been found to work well on medium and large projects and uses the job title Temporary Works Coordinator (TWC). There is no legal requirement to use this job title or the BS recommended process, but you should remember that BS5975 provides an industry consensus view on what is considered to be good practice. The legal requirement is that the party in control must ensure that work is allocated and carried out in a manner that does not create unacceptable risk of harm to workers or members of the public. On projects with relatively simple TW needs, you may choose not to appoint a TWC. However, you must still make sure that TW are properly managed to ensure safety. Do I need to provide calculations for every temporary works situation? Where the situation is small scale and straightforward there may be a standard solution provided for the temporary works (TW). These include, for example, use of a tower or system scaffold for access, design of a basic access scaffold to a standard configuration using existing data from tables; selection of a trench box to support a 2m excavation in firm, dry ground. In each of these cases the person organising the TW will need to assess the ground to be sure it is suitable for the equipment involved, and check that any assumptions made in the calculations for the standard solution are valid for this particular situation and the conditions on site. On a simple job the supplier s data will allow an experienced person to consider the necessary issues without further calculation. Propping using standard equipment such as screw props (Acrows) needs careful consideration. To select the type, size, number and decide spacing, information is needed about the loads that will act on the props. This will include the wall above and the additional load from any other floor or roof beams etc that enter the wall above or close to the opening. Even with proprietary equipment, the support system must be worked out by a person who knows the correct methods of assessing the loads and designing the support arrangement. Failure of TW is often found to result from the loadings being underestimated; and in particular where loadings from the sides are not considered. TW can be very sensitive to how they are used and are easily affected by other work taking place. So the TW designer needs TW training and experience. Coordinating TW is not automatically the responsibility of the engineer carrying out the design work. Coordination is a much wider role that includes planning where and when TW will be needed and ensuring that they are correctly installed, used checked and maintained. Some design engineers may be happy to be additionally contracted to act as project Temporary Works Coordinator.

3 BSG running new CITB Temporary Works Co-ordinator course temporary works What will you learn? The needs and processes for temporary works coordination The duties of the TWC The roles of others involved in temporary works projects The need for temporary works policy and legal aspects The Building Safety Group are pleased to announce that they are now running the CITB Temporary Works Coordinator course. See below for all the information regarding the course. About this course This two day course is designed to assist those on site who have responsibility for managing all forms of temporary works. It is also designed to give confidence to senior management and those who engage contractors that they have a recognised standard of knowledge. Situations involving complex temporary works may occur on small as well as larger sites hence understanding the essentials of good safety risk management, as outlined in BS5975, is relevant for projects of all sizes. This course will give the delegate thorough knowledge of the Temporary Works Co-ordinator role however this does not alone make a delegate competent, as this requires other attributes e.g. experience. Who is it for? Delivered across two days, this course is ideal for anyone who has been considered for appointment as a Temporary Works Coordinator/Superviser and wishes to progress to the next professional level. It is also of interest to others involved in the temporary works co -ordination process including: Site and project managers Designers and supervisers working for clients Consultants and contractors who need a detailed awareness of the safety and technical implications of The detail of BS5975 and the procedural controls described in the code How the temporary works process is applied in practice Qualification Successful candidates will be awarded the Site Safety Plus CITB Temporary Works Co-ordinator Training Certificate (TWCTC). This certificate will remain valid for 5 years. Course Rates BSG Members 375+VAT per delegate Non-Members 435+VAT per delegate Course fees include course materials, CITB certification and lunch.

4 CITB Health and Safety Course now at The Building Safety Group Did you know that From the 1st July CSCS are accepting the Site Safety Plus Health and Safety Awareness (one day) course as an alternative to the QCF qualification. We are pleased to be able to tell you that The Building Safety Group offer this course at very competitive rates. About this course The CITB Health and Safety Awareness course provides a practical summary of health and safety, welfare and environmental issues identifying individual responsibilities, what the employers duties are and what should be done if they think anyone s health and safety is being put at risk. Who is it for? The course is for those who have entered, or are about to enter the construction and civil engineering industry as a member of the workforce, and is to help them understand the potential hazards that they face at work on site. This course also acts as a refresher course for long standing employees. What will you learn? The aim of the course is to help delegates to understand their individual responsibilities and what is expected of them and to ensure they contribute to the safety of the workplace. By attending and completing this course you will: understand the need to prevent accidents have an understanding of health and safety law be able to identify how your role fits into the control and management of the site understand the need for risk assessment and method statement appreciate the need to perform safely and to stop and ask for advice if unsure. Qualification Successful candidates will be awarded the ConstructionSkills Site Safety Plus certificate. Successful candidates can go on to complete the 2 day Site Supervisor Safety Training Scheme (SSSTS) course designed for site supervisors. Course Rates BSG Members 125+VAT per delegate Non-Members 140+VAT per delegate Course fees include CITB books, course materials, CITB certification and lunch.

5 Latest Court Cases Reversing excavator shatters worker s leg A Worcestershire contractor has been fined after a 27-year-old worker was left in a coma after being struck by a reversing excavator. Thomas Plumb from Evesham was run over by the vehicle as it reversed on a site in Gretton, near Cheltenham in 2013, leaving his right leg shattered. He was in a coma for ten days and in hospital for seven weeks. He has since undergone extensive surgery, including bone and skin grafts and now has metal rods and screws in his leg, knee and ankle. The HSE prosecuted his employer, SD Launchbury of Evesham at Cheltenham Magistrates Court. HSE discovered SD Launchbury Ltd had not carried out a proper assessment of the risks on site and so had failed to ensure a safe system of work was in place, including the use of a trained banksman. There was also no segregation or barriers between dangerous moving plant and pedestrians. The court heard how the excavator did not have adequate rear view mirrors or other visual aids, and its warning beacon was not working. In addition, the operator s direct field of vision was obscured by the counterbalance on the vehicle. The investigation also found workers had not been provided with information or instructions about working around excavators or given high-vis personal protective equipment. SD Launchbury Ltd was fined 12,000 and ordered to pay 913 in costs after pleading guilty to safety breaches. Hertfordshire roofing firm in court after worker s fall. A roof repair company from Potters Bar has been fined after a worker suffered multiple injuries when he fell four metres from a roof of business park premises in Hoddesdon. The 23-year-old worker from Dagenham, who does not wish to be named, was on the fragile asbestos cement roof to make temporary repairs, when it gave way beneath him. He sustained serious fractures to his skull and an eye socket, a fractured wrist, major bruising to his back a gash to his left leg and cuts to his head which required stitches. He was hospitalised for a total of five days. Reactive Roofing was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) after an investigation found that the company had failed to adequately plan the work or provide safety measures to protect workers from falls. Stevenage Magistrates Court heard that the workers were relying solely on scaffold boards placed over the fragile asbestos roof sheets while overlaying the roof with wooden frames made of battens and covered in tarpaulin. While installing the final frame, the worker walked across an unprotected area of the roof and it gave way beneath him. HSE told the court the proposed approach of using scaffold boards in isolation was inherently unsafe, as workers would have been at risk during the placement and removal of the boards, as well as during the installation of the wooden frames. This meant that the workers were at risk of falling through the roof at several points during the project. Reactive Roofing had not fully assessed the risks and should have ensured that suitable equipment, such as platforms, coverings or guard rails was installed. They were fined a total of 17,500 and ordered to pay costs of 7,077 after pleading guilty to two breaches of the Working at Height Regulations 2005.

6 9m in FFI income collected The Health and Safety Executive has released its latest results detailing the total revenue generated from fining businesses with its Fee For Intervention (FFI) Scheme. Employment law firm ELAS has calculated that the HSE fined UK businesses over 9.6m in the 2013/14 financial year, resulting in a shortfall of nearly 7.5m as the HSE is said to have budgeted 17m through the FFI scheme. Under the Health and Safety (Fees) Regulation 2012, companies that break health and safety law are liable to cover HSE related costs, including callouts, inspections, investigations and taking law enforcement action. ELAS has revealed that businesses were fined a total of 9, for such breaches by the HSE between 1 April 2013 and 31 March When previously asked about what consequences a shortfall may have for the HSE, a spokesperson, said: Any shortfall in budgeted receipts is for the HSE to manage within its overall financial position. The prevention of death, injury and ill health to those at work and those affected by work activities is paramount. We will continue to focus on high risk and poor performing sectors, taking formal enforcement action to prevent harm and secure justice where appropriate. Despite the shortfall, the revenue generated from fining businesses through the scheme is expected to dramatically increase, with the HSE budgeting FFI income to reach 23m this financial year. Courses starting soon in Bristol Need some training and fast? We have a few places remaining on a number of courses starting in June. Book now to secure your place. We also run courses in Exeter, Stoke on Trent, Slough and Leicester, please see our website for more information. Site Managers Safety Training Scheme 21st July (Bristol) Asbestos Awareness Refresher 21st July (Bristol) Non-licensed Asbestos Work 21st July (Bristol) Directors Responsibilities 23rd July (Bristol) Site Superviser Safety Training Scheme 29th July (Bristol) Scaffold Inspection and Appreciation 29th July (Bristol) CITB Health and Safety Awareness 31 July (Bristol) Book your place Phone: training@bsgltd.co.uk