Running ahead and attempting to build your new construction project can be incredibly exciting, but slow down! By skipping the fundamental steps of how you’re going to maintain your safety while working at heights is extremely dangerous. It’s not worth losing your life over a new overhead shade cloth for your pool. In this article, we’re going to outline some essential bits of equipment that can help keep you safe when operating at heights.
Basic Control Measures When Working at Heights
No matter how much pressure you’re under, your own safety should always be your first priority. Working at heights is one of the largest causes of major injuries in Australia. Here are a few basic control measures you should follow the next time you’re working at heights:
- Never overload your ladder: thoroughly examine what sort of equipment you’re going to need to take up with you before you’re over-encumbered.
- Plan your emergency exit route before you go up: make sure you make a clear mental path of how you’re going to go down if the unexpected were to play out.
- Secure your ladder firmly before you go up: one of the most common causes for fatalities related to working at heights is not taking the right precautions to secure a ladder before climbing. Make sure your sits firm against a flat concrete surface above. This includes tree branches, parts of the ceiling, etc. By wearing a helmet, you reduce the risk of being knocked unconscious where you’re situated.
- Strap yourself to a harness: if your ladder falls the risk of a fatal injury is significant. By harnessing yourself and your ladder to a beam or another solid pillar, this risk becomes significantly reduced.
- Always have someone with you: by having someone there with you they can take the right precautions to ensure that you have exactly what you need if the unexpected were to happen.
Essential Construction Equipment for Working at Heights
The type of equipment you’ll require for working at heights depends largely upon the distance upon ground level you require and the type of work you’re doing. A few common examples are:
- Scissor lifts: commonly preferred by tradesmen for its simplicity and ease of operation. By driving it into position, you can raise yourself as high as 18 metres.
- Cherry pickers: most frequently used by electricians for power lines. It’s usually preferred to scissor lifts for its horizontal and vertical range of motion.
- Ladders: for working at smaller heights, a traditional ladder is the most convenient kind of equipment. However, most fatalities are caused by incorrect use of ladders.
At What Height Do I Need to Wear a Harness?
Under current Australian Workplace Health and Safety measures, if you’re working above 6ft or more above a lower level, you require a harness.
The 4 Principles of Fall Protection
To prevent the risk of a fatality caused by falling in a workplace, there are 4 main principles of fall protection that construction sites must adhere to to ensure the safety of each individual.
- Fall elimination: finding ways to carry out your task by eliminating the need to work at heights in the first place.
- Fall prevention: using guard rails to safeguard an individual from falling.
- Fall arrest: using nets and other kinds of horizontal barricades that catch a person who has fallen.
- Administrative controls: educating individuals on how to take the right precautions to avoid falling. Although it can’t prevent someone from falling, it lays down the principles on how to mitigate the risk.
Where Can I Find Construction Equipment Hires in Brisbane?
If you are a professional or an amateur who needs some additional equipment for a job, then it is time to look into a Brisbane Equipment Hire service like Active Hire.
Active Hire in Brisbane supplies construction equipment, machinery, and other building supplies such as hydraulic systems, cement trucks, excavators, and pumps. There is a great selection of equipment to choose from, which will suit your requirements, budget, and ability to complete the job in the fastest and most efficient manner.
