Tools For Men » construction safety

Preventing Injuries on a Construction Site

John Best — Mon, 14 May 2012 04:52:09 +0000

One of the most dangerous industries is construction. For many, this may not come as a shock because there are so many hazards associated with the job. Workers use high powered equipment and heavy machinery. They move, lift, and build large objects. On many sites the workers have to stand on rooftops or scaffoldings. Workers have to make sure they are careful so they do not fall off.

The most common hazards on a construction site are:

Fall from a height
Collapse of a trench
Collapse of a scaffold
Neglect to use personal protective equipment
Repeated motion

The most common injuries associated with constructions sites are falling from a height such as a ladder or a rooftop. The negligence of these injuries is either the building or construction site failing to implement safety measures or the employee neglecting to comply with safety rules. Injuries on a construction site are common and deaths on a construction site account for 15 percent of all job-related deaths in the United States.

Falling from high places is common because typically workers are standing on heights of over six feet tall. Employees may fall due to unstable surfaces, neglecting to use safety equipment, or companies failing to comply with OSHA rules and regulations.

There are several solutions for fall prevention which include:

Using aerial lifts or elevated platforms
Installing guardrails near the edge of the roof
Cover holes in the floor
Use safety nets or a body harness

Ramps, stairs, walkways, and crossover systems can be installed on top of a roof to make it easy for employees easily maneuver the rooftop without stumbling or falling. They provide safety, convenience, and maintenance support. This equipment can be permanently installed so that if an employee needs to access the roof at a later time they can do this safety. Walkway systems are installed directly to the rooftop to maintain stability without damaging the surface of the roof.

Workplace injuries on a construction site are common but they are preventable. Spending the money on safety equipment is less expensive than paying for an emergency bill. Both employees and employers need to comply with safety regulations to ensure that everyone stays safe. However, there are many cases where injuries are accidental and usually due to being in the wrong place at the wrong time. As long as safety requirements are met, the occurrence of injuries will drastically decrease.

PHP Systems/Designs (Portable Pipe Hangers) is your source for Rooftop Walkways. At PHP, we engineer roof walkways, stairs, ramps, and crossovers with code-compliant designs.

Preparations for Building in a Swamp

John Best — Wed, 02 May 2012 10:12:19 +0000

Many people have made the mistake of purchasing land to build a home on less than desirable soil. It is easy to get excited about constructing a home but if the soil is not tested before hand it may be very difficult to get the project started. Swamp lands are a great example of this. Before a home can even be built in a swamp land it must first be filled in with sand. If the soil is not prepared beforehand, the home will have foundation problems in the years to come.

Swamplands

A swamp is a forested wetland. They can be found near lakes, rivers, and other bodies of water. Mineral soil found it these areas cause the land to hold moisture and drain slowly. A swamp has quite a bit of trees and bushes and may have areas that flood.

Soil Preparation

Needless to say building a home in the wetlands can be a tedious task. These projects are not to be taken lightly because they need special attention. There a few ways to prepare the soil before anything is construction on top of it. The soil can either be completely removed or it can be strengthened with other substances. The original soil on the land cannot be used because it is soft and many times it can be covered by water.

Foundation

After the soil is prepared for construction, the building has to construct with certain specifications. Once the land is sand filled, a raft foundation is put into place to hold the building. The foundation and the weight of the building need to be evenly spread on the soil. In a few cases the swamp is too deep to gain any benefits from the raft foundation. If that happens then a pile foundation can be implemented. There are two types of pile foundations known as friction pile foundation and end bearing pile foundation.

Swamp Mat

Construction can finally begin after the soil is fixed up and the foundation is in place. When constructing a home or building, heavy equipment needs to be brought in to accomplish such a large project. Heavy equipment in swamps can cause trucks to get stuck or sink in the mud. In order to protect the land and the equipment from being damaged, swamp mats need to be laid alongside each other to form a road. This road will make it easy to transport materials and equipment to and from the job site.

Swamp Construction

Even though construction in a swamp or wetlands is difficult, time consuming, and expensive, it is possible to accomplish. Tests should be done before the land is purchased to understand what will go into the project before it is started.

Garnett Wood Products provides quality swamp mats and can deliver all over the US. Garnett Wood Products manufactures a variety of crane mats, pipeline skids, and other specialty wood products.

Construction Safety Equipment

John Best — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 11:57:40 +0000

Nothing is more important in the workplace than being safe while on the job. Although most of us have this requirement already in the bag, construction workers have to worry about their personal safety every day. Many of the on-site safety hazards and dangers are out of their control, but one thing that they can always change is what they wear to work, and keep on at work, every single day. Here are three of the most important safety equipment items that constructions workers should have with them, or around them, at all times.

Safety Glasses

The most sensitive part of the body is without a doubt the eyes, and with sharp and heavy objects moving at fast speeds around the work environment, serious damage to the eyes can be done. Unlike other injuries, eyes are extremely hard to heal, and lead to permanent physical damage AKA blindness. There are many options available for safety glasses, and construction workers should have more than one pair. Some of the common unique safety glasses include sunglass safety glasses for bright days when the sun is a bit too intense, and prescription safety glasses for those who don’t want to wear both their normal vision glasses and safety glasses. As they said in Chemistry class, “Karen didn’t wear her safety glasses. Now she doesn’t need them.”

Hard Hat

Although not required or needed at all times while on the job, it is certainly a good thing to have in your truck or on the job. Falling objects are the most common source of injury behind falls when it comes to construction accidents. Pick a hard hat that is relatively comfortable, so you won’t mind wearing it around all day long, and also trusted and secure, so you know it can take a hard beating from a falling brick. As they said in drivers ED, don’t be a statistic!

Work Gloves

Proper work gloves are a must have when working around sharp objects that could take off a finger or leave a deep scar in your hand. When not working around sharp objects, good work gloves can help reduce the blisters and cuts that come with working every day on the job. When buying work gloves online or at a store, make sure you pick up at least two pairs; the first for working around sharp and other dangerous objects, and the second for everything else.

Citations:

Image via wolfman-k

This article was contributed by Pro-Tec Equipment, distributors of slide rail shoring systems.