The 2024 PLASA Show will take place at Olympia London on Sunday 1st – Tuesday 3rd September.
SafetyLiftinGear will be exhibiting on Stand C1, and for the first time at any UK trade show, we'll have the brand new CM BatteryStar Hoist on display.
More...
We're pleased to announce that we recently added a second unit to our depot in West London, giving us twice as much floor space.
A high school in Southport, Merseyside received a hefty fine last month after a worker fell off a roof and sustained multiple fractures.
The incident in question occurred in 2018. According to shponline.co.uk, the man was getting some footballs down from the roof of the school's sixth form centre when he lost his footing and fell more than 3 metres before hitting the ground.
A HSE investigation found that there were no fall protection measures in place to prevent an incident like this. An edge protection system or anchor point could have kept the worker from falling off the roof, but no such precautions had been taken, and so the governing body of Christ the King Catholic High School and Sixth Form Centre were fined £10,000 and ordered to pay costs of £5,851.50.
Falls from height are among the most common causes of injury and death in the workplace. Employers must ensure that appropriate safety measures are in place before allowing staff to work at height.
Height Safety Equipment Fall Protection Systems
Photo from Pixabay
Introducing our new industrial bridging steps. Perfect for factories and distribution centres, our multi-use bridging steps are ideal for providing safe access over machines, conveyor belts or adding extra height to your working space. Now available in a larger size of 120 x 53cm, our industrial bridging steps are a practical addition for any warehouse or workplace where additional height is needed. Choose heights ranging from 3 to 9 treads to suit whatever tasks you and your business require.
Designed to be extra safe in industrial environments, our bridging steps can be used for freestanding tasks, or secured to the floor for extra stability. Complete with an anti-slip platform and comfortable climbing angles, these bridging steps (manufactured from robust aluminium) are ideal for safely adding height to your industrial work spaces. Our bridging steps also come with a 5-year warranty for peace of mind and confidence.
Please note that this product takes 4-6 weeks for delivery.
Buy Bridging Steps >>
Personal protective equipment (PPE) is an industry that looks set to boom. Hard hats and hi-vis jackets may not be everyone's idea of a multi-billion industry, but according to predictions made by Fortune Business Insights, the PPE market is set be worth $85.72 billion globally by the year 2026.
Growing concerns about the environment, employee safety and large-scale regeneration and infrastructure projects look to be the key drivers behind this rapid growth. Let's take a look at what the future may hold for these vital products.
Growing concerns about the environmental impact of business and industry are dominating headlines in many parts of the world right now. All sorts of industries are striving to adapt and make their processes more sustainable, and the PPE industry is no exception. Many companies are looking at ways to develop eco-friendly products, either through more energy-efficient machinery or by utilising recycled materials. Some companies are even turning to plastics made from organic materials such as sugar cane.
With products like that already beginning to appear, there can be little doubt that PPE manufacturers will soon be investing in sustainable and hard-wearing materials that are good for workers and the planet. We can't wait to see what materials will be used to make the PPE equipment of tomorrow.
The topic of the environment leads us to the predicted boom in large-scale infrastructure projects across the globe. Whether it's the building of green technologies or wider public transport infrastructure, big construction projects are set to be key market drivers for the PPE industry.
In the UK, High Speed Rail 2 could potentially employ 30,000 people to build and design the railway alone, showing the sheer scale of labour required for projects of this scale. With more construction jobs set to be created over the next few years, it's no surprise that the market is set to boom internationally. Thousands more employees will be needed to work on expansive new projects, and protective workwear is bound to have a key role to play.
Keeping employees safe is a critical concern for modern businesses. With growing concern for safety and increasing legal protection for workers, employees can now expect more PPE equipment to be provided for them in their place of work. In the UK, companies are legally bound to protect their employees and follow workplace safety legislation.
As more legislation is passed by Parliament and devolved assemblies in the UK, we can expect to see industries tightening safety regulations and supplying more types of PPE and safety equipment to prevent hazardous accidents. With fatal accidents falling in the UK over the past decade thanks to health and safety protections, it's no wonder that companies worldwide are beginning to introduce more regulations in order to keep employees safe.
At SafetyLiftinGear.com, we have everything you need to keep your employees safe and your warehouse running smoothly, including a range of personal protective equipment for all workplace scenarios.
Buy PPE & Protective Workwear
A construction firm has been fined after a 17-year-old worker fell through a skylight opening and suffered life-changing injuries. On 20 August 2018, the young worker fell through an insulation sheet covering a skylight while walking across an unmarked area on the construction site in Gloucester. He suffered multiple broken bones, which needed two operations to treat. His doctors advised him that it was unlikely he would be able to work in construction ever again. A potential career in construction was cut short by the neglect of another reckless employer.
The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) found that the employee was not supervised properly and was not warned about the risks on site. According to reports, there were no warnings in place about the hole in the roof, and no workers on site had been told about it. No further physical barriers were in place, either - any of these measures could have prevented this tragic accident.
The company failed to take the necessary precautions for working at height, and further investigation showed continued failures to properly and adequately plan constructions at that height (even after the incident in question). The Mark Holland Group pleaded guilty to breaching health and safety regulations and were fined £55,620.
HSE inspectors highlighted how this accident could have been avoided with simple safety precautions, such as the correct height safety equipment.
It's essential for employers to take adequate fall protection measures and follow the health and safety regulations at all times. These safety guidelines are there to help employers comply with the law and prevent death and serious injury.
Employers should aim to carry out work on the ground where possible, or utilise scaffolding or mobile platforms that allow easy and safe access. Failing that, use fall protection equipment to restrain workers in the event of a fall and minimise the distance the individual falls to minimise the potential injury.
Read our blog about choosing the best fall protection equipment for your job.
We hope that employers see stories like this one and make more of an effort to prioritise health and safety to prevent further accidents.
Buy & Hire Height Safety Equipment Our Bespoke Fall Protection Systems
If you don't provide your employees with the equipment they need, it can pose a serious safety risk to them, and a serious legal threat to your business. AU Roofing and Building Ltd found this out the hard way after one of their employees sustained serious injuries. We've got the inside scoop on the story for you here.
Back in October 2018, a team of employees from AU Roofing and Building Ltd were working on a roof in Elmes Avenue, Kent. The team of roofers were required to carry buckets of materials by hand down the scaffold access ladder to the street level below.
One particular employee, Davey Battams, struggled to keep 3 points of contact with the ladder as he descended down the ladder, and fell the remainder of the way onto the pavement. Battams suffered serious back injuries and was unable to continue working.
The HSE investigated this accident and was able to determine that the employer hadn't provided the basic lifting equipment aids that should be in place for tasks such as this. A simple wheel and pulley would have given workers a safer way to lower the broken tiles while dramatically reducing the chances of an accidental fall.
In court, AU Roofing and Building Services Ltd pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Etc. Act 1974 and the court issued them a fine of £28,800!! On top of this, they were also ordered to pay legal cost amounting to £4,213.70.
At SafetyLiftinGear, we know that the right equipment could have prevented this accident from ever happening, and while we can't go back and change the past, we can advise you on how to work safely in the future. Here are just a few different pieces of equipment that AU Roofing and Building Ltd could've purchased to lessen the risk of a fall.
Our ladder fall protection kits are designed to keep you tethered to the ladder, preventing an accidental slip or fall from height.
Designed to take the pressure completely out of your hands, our powered scaffold hoist can move cumbersome items from on top of the scaffold to ground level safely.
These simple, manual pulley systems can take the strain of heavy items and lower them to safety, leaving your hands free to grip the ladder.
When you need to lift or transport important materials you'll find the following lifting solutions safe and easy to use.
If you can't find a lifting solution that fits the requirements of your upcoming job, don't hesitate to get in touch with us. Our friendly sales team will talk you through various different lifting options to help you find one that's right for the task at hand.