Date Published:
The Health and Safety Executive have released a Safety Bulletin aimed at avoiding trapping/crushing injuries to people in the platform of mobile elevating work platforms (MEWPs)
The use of mobile elevating work platforms/powered access equipment has been a major factor in the reduction in falls accidents however more people die from falls at work than from any other cause. For temporary work at height MEWPs are often the safest solution. However there are currently under investigation by the HSE a number of fatal and serious accidents where operators have become trapped between the guardrails or other equipment on the platform and adjacent obstructions. Many of these have happened in construction activities but not all.
The contribution made by MEWPs to improvements in the safety of work at height cannot be under-estimated. However, fatal and serious accidents involving entrapment of MEWP operators are increasing. This is a general trend and not limited to particular types of machines or work. The HSE has a range of work underway to improve safety in the use of MEWPS, including working with a range of stakeholders through the Strategic Forum for Construction Plant Safety Group to develop new guidance on the factors which contribute to these entrapment accidents and the actions which need to be taken to prevent harm. As with any other work equipment, the selection and application of MEWPS needs to be carefully managed and implemented by competent people.
New guidance has been developed that deals specifically with preventing entrapment and supplements existing guidance. It has been prepared by contributors with extensive experience of MEWP use and accident investigation and captures that experience to share with others who might not appreciate the dangers. As a result, the HSE recommend the following actions are required:
- Anyone engaged in the supply or use of MEWPS should familiarise themselves with the new guidance and act on its recommendations, which is relevant to anyone using MEWPs, not just those in the construction industry. A copy can be found by clicking on the following link: http://www.cpa.uk.net/p/MEWPS-and-Overhead-Crushing/. In addition, the selection and management of MEWPs is covered in an associated guidance document: http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/cis58.pdf.
- Key areas for attention are as follows:
- Effective work planning
- Selection of equipment for the specific tasks and environment
- Training of managers and operators including on the specific machine to be used
- Preparation and practice of detailed procedures to be followed if someone is trapped and needs to be rescued quickly to minimise harm.
- HSE inspectors are likely to consider enforcement action where they believe there is a risk of entrapment which is not being managed effectively.