Health and Safety
Simple Safety: Asbestos - the Hidden Killer
Asbestos is a major hazard to health - its use prohibited. But it is still present in many buildings and can still cause illness and disease.
New Look Fined £400,000 for Breaching Fire Safety
New Look, a top high street clothing chain was fined £400,000 last week for breaching fire safety law after a fire started at their Oxford Street, London, branch.
Winter Months "See More Accidental But Fatal Fires"
Accidental, fatal residential property fires occur more often in winter, between November-January, the London Fire Brigade has reported.
ABI: Motorists on Mobile Phones Biggest Threat
Motorists who use mobile telephones while behind the wheel are the "biggest menace" on the UK's roads, a new report from the Association of British Drivers (ABI) has said.
Simple Safety Tips: The Wheels of Industry - Machinery
It is not just the manufacturing industry that can't manage without machinery - there are machines in every workplace; from mincers in retail butchers to guillotines and binders in the office, from saws in woodworking mills to drills in engineering workshops.
Sprinkler System Benefits Highlighted by Fire Fighters
Fire fighters on the Isle of Man set two houses on fire in the hope of convincing developers, local authorities and government departments of the importance of sprinklers, it has been reported. One of the properties had an activated automatic sprinkler system, while the other was unprotected.
First Corporate Manslaughter Case Reaches Courts
However much we might all want to pat UK plc on the back for the genuinely impressive reduction in workplace fatalities since 2007, it only takes one death to serve as a stark reminder of the dangers that may be present in almost any business.
Simple Safety Tips: Managing the Risk for Tradesmen
Tradesmen - Protecting You and Your Business
Rogue drivers to face £900 fines
Drivers of trucks and road-going plant face the prospect of being given on-the-spot fines of up to £200 under plans being considered by the Department for Transport.
Hirers Chafe at HSE Delay on Quick Hitches
The lack of speed with which the safety authorities are dealing with confusion over quick hitches is causing frustration among plant hirers.
Safety First for Plant Transport
BBUS is working with two leading partners, JCB and Ifor Williams, to improve the safety and security of mini‑excavation trailers used on-site throughout the UK.
Fall Penalty
An East Sussex joinery firm has been fined £20,000 at the old bailey after a worker fell 3m, from unprotected scaffolding at a shopping centre in Enfield, north London, two years ago. The man suffered head injuries that led to deteriorating physical and mental health.
HSE Urges Contractors to Ditch Unsafe Firms from Supply Chain
The Health and Safety Executive wants more main contractors to follow in Laing O'Rourke's example and start dumping firms from its supply chain because of poor health and safety records. Now Laing O'Rourke has said it is binning firms because it cannot rely on external suppliers to come up to scratch on safety.
Norwich Union Small Business Guide
Norwich Union (NU) has launched a 12 month campaign to help small businesses manage health and safety issues. "Simply Safety" consists of a series of guides aimed at trades including manufacturing, catering, building and retailing.
Fatal Flaw in Accident Stats
Did you know that there are between 7,000 and 8,000 over three day injury events every year in UK construction? And if we include health and start looking at musculoskeletal events we are talking 60,000 to 70,000 events.
Crane Death
An inquest into last year's fatal crane collapse in Liverpool has ruled it was cause by a 'massive overload' following an 82 km per hour gust of wind. The inquest heard the crane's jib toppled and crushed a site worker below, under a concrete counter weight.
How to Make Utility Digging Work Safer
The safety and productivity of utility contractors digging is set to be improved with the launch of a cable detector that mounts onto excavators.
Keep Safe Working at Height
We are at a loss as to how such a simple issue can be over complicated by the construction industry once again.
Road Safety Week a Winner
As part of Brakes' National Road Safety Week, Balfour Beatty Utility Solutions hired a Mobile Exhibition Unit to visit employees at different depots and sites each day to present a road safety awareness session.
Being Safe is Always Best
With its largely itinerant workforce, construction is a complex industry in which the task of maintaining acceptable levels of health and safety is always a challenge.
Access Trainer
The National Construction College will open two temporary scaffolding centres in October.
Crane Safety Summit Highlights Training
Key industry figures have agreed on a raft of issues to be tackled to improve tower crane safety.
As a Site Manager are You Doing Enough to Prevent Falls from Vehicles?
Every year, around 2,000 workers across all industries are seriously injured in falls from vehicles.
Lib Dems Slam Weak Fines for Uninsured Drivers
Official figures obtained by the Liberal Democrats show the average fine handed to an uninsured driver has fallen by 25% from £224 in 1997 to £169 in 2007.
Death Bosses to be Shamed
Companies which flout corporate manslaughter legations will be forced to take out national newspaper adverts spelling out why they have been prosecuted.
A Third of Sites Shut in Safety Raids
Health and Safety Executive inspectors called a halt to work at 31 sites in Sheffield, Rotherham, Doncaster and Barnsley during July and the first half of August 2007. In all, 86 sites were checked.
Refurb Causing More Accidents
A third of all sites involved in refurbishment work are putting workers' lives at risk. The figures have been compiled by the Health and Safety Executive under its day-to-day normal inspection programme.
Housing to Blame for Deaths Rise
Health and Safety Executive figures reveal there were 3.7 deaths per 100,000 workers in the construction industry last year.
HSE Look to Take a Load Off Injury Rates
A three-month campaign will see HSE inspection teams from its construction division visit sites around the country clamping down on the unsafe unloading of vehicles.
You Can Run, But You Can't Hide
In 2003, a 28 year old employee died when they fell through a fragile roof light whilst carrying out work on an extension to a warehouse. A number of parties were prosecuted following the incident which the HSE said could have been avoided if some simple precautions had been taken.
Poor Health & Safety Management
The prosecution of employees surfaces as an issue from time to time, on chat forums and related websites. The reality is that the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) does take action against employees, but generally only in extreme circumstances.
Asbestos Related Disease
Statistically, the cases of lung cancer relating to asbestos have doubled from 326 in 2004 to just over 800 in 2005. These are the most recent figures available.
SMEs Playing with Fire
Small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are in danger of missing out on new fire prevention laws that make individuals responsible for staff and buildings, according to the Passive Fire Protection Federation (PFPF).