BRITAIN'S CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY
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SAFETY ON SITE
Good drivers make safety their top priority at all times, and construction sites demand extra care. Mark Wheeler of the Health and Safety Executive runs through the basics... * Tippers are easy to overturn: avoid tipping on unmade and uneven ground.
* Never tip on a slope or in high winds. * Ensure the load is evenly distributed, paying particular attention to wet loads which could cause sticking.
* Drivers should take extra care to check any blindspots. "A lot of people get killed when vehicles reverse," Wheeler warns. It is crucial that reversing alarms are in working order—but the most effective safety device is still the driver's brain. Plenty of construction workers have been run down by tippers whose reversing alarms could out be heard because the victims were wearing ear protectors. Wheeler recommends fitting convex mirrors on tippers.
* To avoid electrocution, tip at least 15m from cables suspended from pylons. and at least 9m from cables suspended from wooden poles. "The greater the current, the greater possibility of arcing," says Wheeler. Bunting "gateways" should indicate safe routes through the site.
* The principal contractor has ultimate responsibility for everyone on site. Hauliers are responsible for their drivers' safety, but on site the manager must ensure all safety regulations are followed.
* For CM'sSafe Tipping Guide wallchart send an SAE (AO to Pauline Stopher, Commercial Motor Editorial, Quadrant House, The Quadrant, Sutton. Surrey SM2 SAS (subject to availability).
* A Health and Safety Executive book, Safe Use of Vehicles on Construction Sites, costs 5.7.95; order copies on 01787 801165.