Good Health and Safety doesn’t have to be expensive or difficult. In this blog post, we explore how a $14 fix could have saved a Wellington Builder $60,000! This article from Stuff.co.nz tells the story of how a faulty ladder caused a serious injury to one of their apprentices.
We see it all the time – faulty ladders on Christchurch construction sites. The most common faults are:
- Missing or worn feet
- Feet taped over / modified (ie protect against damaging new paint) – this can in some cases, make the ladder unsafe for use.
- Missing rivets
- Caked with plaster to the point which the ladder becomes unlevel.
- Unchocked ladders (extension ladders)
- Unsecured at the top (extension ladders)
- etc
These issues all should be addressed as soon as they are spotted. Ladder injuries are one of the more common incidents on a worksite. We must ensure our equipment is safe for use.
Nailed It Tip of the Day
Start up a maintenance schedule. Have your HSR or person in charge of safety do up a checklist to routinely check all your equipment for faults. This way you’ll reduce the chance of injury, yes, but also reduce the downtime due to faulty equipment.
If you don’t have a maintenance program already in place then you should give us a call. We’ve done literally thousands of the things so can probably save you a bit of time, cash, or headache. Did we mention there’s coffee too?
Chris Brosnan
Chris is the director of Nailed It Safety Solutions, a Christchurch-based Health and Safety company specialising in Residential Construction and Tourism. If you like any of his blog posts and want to catch up for a coffee then it’s a good bet he’s up for that.
