Over the years, working at height has resulted in several fatalities and injuries to workers across a range of industries.
Falls from height are one of the biggest causes of workplace fatalities and major injuries in the UK.
If you manage anyone who works at height or manage works where work at height is undertaken, you must have a good understanding of the work at height activities involved and being carried out. If persons need to work at height, then it is a requirement that hazards are identified and control measures put in place to control each hazard. All work at height must be assessed in a risk assessment and carried out in accordance with a safe system of work.
The 2005 Work at Height Regulations state:
- Avoid working at height if possible. If not then the working at height activity should be planned, organised, risk assessed, controlled, appropriately supervised and carried out in accordance with a safe system of work
- Only competent people should be involved in any activity or use any equipment associated with working at height, including the planning, risk assessment and supervision of it
- The safe system of work and selection of equipment for working at height, must give priority to the provision of fall prevention methods (e.g. barriers or guardrails) over personal fall protection measures (e.g. fall arrest or work restraint)
Other services
MRS Training & Rescue have worked with many organisations since the introduction of the working at height regulations in 2005. As no single solution is fit for all working at height situations, we offer a bespoke consultancy service for industry to develop solutions for all your working at height problems.
This bespoke programme can be used to assess and provide reports for working at height categorisation. Our experience of working in high-risk environments, combined with specialist skills in working at height have made us a perfect partner for many companies undertaking this type of work.
Once we have a full understanding of the unique requirements of the site and work being carried out, our specialists provide help and expertise in completing the necessary documentation commonly associated with working at height, that together form a safe system of work.
These can include:
- Risk assessment
- Method statement
- Permit to work
- Rescue plan (emergency arrangements)
These documents, if used correctly, will minimise the risk of something going dramatically wrong when undertaking work at height.
We also provide support to organisations in some of the following areas:
- Support in the development of rescue plans
- Review of equipment required to support entry and rescue operations
These ensure you have the skills needed to assess and plan a rescue, make the casualty safe and remove them from the area using suitable rescue equipment and safe rescue techniques.
Drone Inspections
Internal inspection drones can be used for a variety of at height situations. We have used the drone previously in a Limestone kiln to inspect the internal refractory lining, also a 100m tall exhaust stack was inspected internally checking for cracks and defects. This avoided the need for expensive scaffolding and illuminates the need for workers to work at height, thus removing the fall from height hazard/risk.
By using an indoor drone to eliminate the need for scaffolding, cranes and rope access can save you significant money and time. Scaffolding can take several days to put up and take down, adding hours of downtime to the internal inspection process and cost for the additional labour required to put it up and take it down again. Indoor drones eliminate the need for scaffolding by taking the place of inspectors in collecting visual data.
