WORK AT HEIGHT

PRESENTATION

DAVE JONES

GROUP HSE MANAGER

27/09/18

WORK AT HEIGHT

CASE STUDY

APRIL 2018

Upon opening the hatches of a steel vessel berthed at PD Ports, it was recognised by the stevedores

that the stowage of steel box section cargo within the hold presented significant risk of falls from

height.

Despite attempts to gain adequate information about the stowage of the cargo from the shipper and

loading port, the information did not adequately describe the stowage of the cargo removing the

opportunity for PD Ports to adequately plan for the work at height risks before the vessel had

berthed.

The cargo had been loaded into the hold in 5 separate stacks, three of which had voids ranging from

1 metre to 5 metres between adjacent stacks and to a depth of approximately 8 meters.

Owing to the height of a potential fall, it was recognised that soft landing systems would be

ineffective and the use of Fall Arrest harnesses would be impractical whilst maintaining clear access

to the hold by crane for the discharge of the cargo.

3

BACKGROUND

4

STOW PLAN

8M

Through a consultative approach involving the stevedores, PD Ports Management team and

personnel from other PD Ports operations, it was decided that the best approach to control the falls

from height risks was to mitigate the consequences of a fall by installing scaffolding platforms around

the two island stows at the forward end of the hold.

This method would allow the placement of soft landing systems within the manufacturers range for

safely arresting falls.

The discharge of the Cargo was suspended and a specialist Scaffolding firm was contacted to

assess the hold and design a scaffold platform system around the two forward end stacks of steel.

A Scaffolding company was asked to attend the vessel to review the issues.

The scaffolding company discussed with the management team how to safely erect a scaffold to

allow placement of soft landing bags.

The scaffolding provided Risk Assessments and Methods Statements for erecting the scaffold and

were engaged to install the scaffold the following Monday.

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PREPARATIONS FOR WORK AT HEIGHT

FALL MITIGATION

FALL MITIGATION

Scaffolding Platforms

erected at 2.5m and 5m

Covered with Fall-Pac TS2

1m wide void completely

filled with soft landing

bags

Soft landing bags used to

control slight height

differential

Tween Deck Lids

used as a barrier

FALL MITIGATION

FALL MITIGATION

FALL MITIGATION

INSTALLATION OF SCAFFOLDING

INSTALLATION OF SCAFFOLDING

SEQUENCE OF DISCHARGE

SEQUENCE OF DISCHARGE

SEQUENCE OF DISCHARGE

SEQUENCE OF DISCHARGE

SEQUENCE OF DISCHARGE

The Installation of the scaffolding to provide safe work at height at the forward end stows took 1 full

day to erect.

Dismantling of the Scaffold to allow for discharging lower levels of the stacks did not incur lost time

as stevedores were able to discharge cargo from other areas in the stow.

The total cost for the scaffolding to be erected and dismantled was passed on to the vessel owners

No incidents or Injuries occurred during the discharge of the cargo.

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CONCLUSION

Preferred Loading

Keep Load

tight up to

bulkheads to

eliminate falls

into gaps

Where height differences

exist, step cargo down to

reduce free fall height

Keep Gaps between stows as small as

possible, Ideally below 1m

Open End can be

protected easily with

Fall-Pac system or

using other vessel

features

Note:

Max Stow

Height for

Fall-Pac is 5m

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OTHER METHODS USED

A Brookfield Ports Company

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Work at Height solutions - Nets

• Creates work at height issues of it’s

own in terms of erection and dismantling

requires eye pads to be welded onto

The side of the vessel

• Requires calculation to determine size

And height of fall.

• Lengthy and complicated, requiring

Expert 3rd party assistance

A Brookfield Ports Company

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Nets being erected

A Brookfield Ports Company

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Alsamex, Fall-Pac, etc.

Maximum fall height 2m

Must be clipped together

Can be doubled up to keep fall height low

Alsamex : 2100mm x 700mm x 700mm

Fall-Pac : 2400mm x 670mm x 670mm

2M

Max

2M+

670mm

~

700mm

Single Soft Landing Bags

Must Be placed to provide

at least 2 meters of

coverage from fall edges when

working to maximum fall height

A Brookfield Ports Company

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Maximum fall height 4.8m

Must be clipped together

Cannot be stacked

Use single units to fill gaps

Unit dimensions

(2400mm x 1800mm x 1300mm)

4.8M

Max

4.2M+

1.3M

Fall-Pac TS2 Units

Must Be placed to provide

at least 4.2 meters of

coverage from fall edges when

working to maximum fall height

A Brookfield Ports Company

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Catchment Area– British Standards

BS 8411 - Applies to Safety Nets

Fall Heights based on rigging requirements for Safety Nets

No British Standard available for soft landing systems use only testing

requirements

Fall Height Fall Distance

1.0M 3.5M

3.0M 4.0M

6.0M 4.5M

A Brookfield Ports Company

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BS8411 – Catchment Area

1M2M3M4M5M

3.5M

4M

4.5M

1M

2M

3M

4M

5M

6M

Fall Height Fall Distance

1.0M 3.5M

3.0M 4.0M

6.0M 4.5M

A Brookfield Ports Company

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Avoidance of risk from work at height

➢ Work from ground level

➢ Loading Configurations

➢ Declining work?

Use equipment or organisational method to prevent falls

➢ Loading / unloading sequence

➢ Work Platforms

➢ Filling Gaps

➢ Physical guardrails / barriers

Minimise the distance and Consequences of a Fall

➢ Provide fall arrest equipment

➢ Collective measures have priority of personal

➢ Soft Landing systems

➢ Nets, Airbags, Cushions

➢ Personal Fall Protection equipment

Hierarchy of Control

A Brookfield Ports Company

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Selecting Work at Height Equipment

Preventing

Falls

Minimising

Consequences

Collective

Protection

Individual

ProtectionWorking Platforms

Guardrails

Work Restraint

Systems

Rope Access

Fall Arrest Harnesses

Nets / Airbags

Soft Landing Systems

High

Low

Priority

A Brookfield Ports Company

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Automatic pipe clamps