TB Davies Reach New Training Heights
Congratulations to Mat Gray & Chris Chivell who recently qualified fully as Ladder Association training professionals. David Gray, Director said, “We identified professional ladder training courses as an area that would benefit the real safety of our customers. So we are very pleased that Mat & Chris have successfully passed the rigorous training laid down by the Ladder Association”. The Work at Height Regulation (Reg 5) state a place is ‘at height’ if a person could be injured falling from it, even if it is at or below ground level. Regulation six goes on to state that those involved in work at height are trained and competent.”This is the first phase in developing our training program portfolio and we plan to add several other working at height disciplines shortly,” continued David Gray.
The new training courses will run from the recently expanded manufacturing centre at the Bridgend site. In a purpose built suite of air-conditioned offices and training rooms each with state of the art presentation facilities offer the perfect environment to learn and become competent, safe users of ladders and towers.
Bob Baldock, General Manager added, “The investment in training will allow us to meet increasing customer demand, and as we supply nationally, we can not only deliver the training at our factory in South Wales but also at our customer’s premises where that is more convenient.”
Places on training courses are available for booking now. Contact sales at sales@tbdavies.co.uk or on 029 2071 3000.
For more information on Ladder Safety or Ladder Training contact TB Davies directly on 029 2071 3000 or via email
OSHA To Provide Ladder Training For Rubbermaid Staff
A federal work safety inspector has recommended that officials at Winfield’s Newell Rubbermaid plant make voluntary efforts to better train workers who use mobile ladders and mobile ladder platforms.
On April 7, a fall from a manually propelled mobile ladder stand sent Steve Wiggs, 47, to the hospital with critical injuries.
He later died because of those injuries. The Wichita office of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration performed an inspection of the Rubbermaid plant on April 26. In a letter dated June 21, OSHA area director Judy A. Freeman advised the company that a lack of training with mobile ladders was creating a fall hazard at the plant.
Production operators had not been provided with correct ladder training in how to properly use the ladders.
Freeman said no OSHA standard applied to the hazard and thus the issue did not rise to a level that would warrant a citation, or fine, from the agency. She asked that Rubbermaid instead voluntarily make an effort to have employees comply with safety standards and follow manufacturer’s standards for the ladders.
For more information on Ladder Safety or Ladder Training contact TB Davies directly on 029 2071 3000 or via email
TB Davies New “Safe Ladder” Category Preview
At TB Davies, we are committed to keeping people safe and for the past 60 years, TB Davies Ladders have been considered the safest ladders on the market. Today we are offering you the chance to preview the entirely new `safe ladder` category that we are proud to bring to the UK market from our US partners Little Giant during 2010.
For more than 100 years ladders remained unchanged. There were virtually no advancements in ladder design, functionality and safety until 1972 when Little Giant Ladder Systems put its first product on the market.
Our focus on product innovation and our commitment to setting the new safety benchmark in the ladder industry has paved the way for the introduction of the upcoming release of the SumoStance, SelectStep, and MicroBurst brands will revolutionise the ladder category in the UK.
One-of-a-kind safety features found only in the new SumoStance, SelectStep and MicroBurst product lines deliver stability, comfort and ease of use for professionals and homeowners.
SumoStance
The patent-pending SumoStance is the world`s only wide-stance extension ladder with adjustable outriggers, which triple its base width and increase side-tip stability by over 500%. Both SumoStance outriggers adjust 23 centimetres up and down to work on nearly any surface. Proper tilt angle and level indicators help ladder users set the SumoStance in the safe operating position. The SumoStance is the safest extension ladder in the world.
SelectStep
The world`s only multi-position stepladder is also the world`s most comfortable stepladder. The heavy duty rated yet lightweight SelectStep is a multi height stepladder, and is the only stepladder that can be safely used on stairs and sloping ground. No matter the chosen height or angle of the ladder, the patent-pending SelectStep provides a comfortable built-in standing platform. In addition, the AirDeck utility tray and handrail makes standing on the SelectStep feel as good as standing on solid ground.
MicroBurst
The MicroBurst is the only stepladder in the world with Fold-Flat technology, storing in nearly half the space of an ordinary A-frame stepladder, making it easy to store and carry. The StableLock spreader system is the strongest part of the ladder, constructed of high-strength steel, creating a solid A-frame structure that virtually prevents ladder shifting or walking. The patent-pending MicroBurst`s rear base width is 10 centimetres wider than traditional stepladders for optimal side-tip stability.
For more information on Ladder Safety or Ladder Training contact TB Davies directly on 029 2071 3000 or via email
TB Davies Introduces Possibly World’s Safest Ladder – SumoStance from Little Giant
At TB Davies, we are committed to keeping people safe and for the past 60 years, TB Davies Ladders have been considered the safest ladders on the market. Today we are offering you the chance to preview the entirely new `safe ladder` category that we are proud to bring to the UK market from our US partners Little Giant during 2010.
For more than 100 years ladders remained unchanged. There were virtually no advancements in ladder design, functionality and safety until 1972 when Little Giant Ladder Systems put its first product on the market.
Our focus on product innovation and our commitment to setting the new safety benchmark in the ladder industry has paved the way for the introduction of the upcoming release of the SumoStance, SelectStep, and MicroBurst brands will revolutionise the ladder category in the UK.
One-of-a-kind safety features found only in the new SumoStance, SelectStep and MicroBurst product lines deliver stability, comfort and ease of use for professionals and homeowners.
SumoStance
The patent-pending SumoStance is the world`s only wide-stance extension ladder with adjustable outriggers, which triple its base width and increase side-tip stability by over 500%. Both SumoStance outriggers adjust 23 centimetres up and down to work on nearly any surface. Proper tilt angle and level indicators help ladder users set the SumoStance in the safe operating position. The SumoStance is the safest extension ladder in the world.
SelectStep
The world`s only multi-position stepladder is also the world`s most comfortable stepladder. The heavy duty rated yet lightweight SelectStep is a multi height stepladder, and is the only stepladder that can be safely used on stairs and sloping ground. No matter the chosen height or angle of the ladder, the patent-pending SelectStep provides a comfortable built-in standing platform. In addition, the AirDeck utility tray and handrail makes standing on the SelectStep feel as good as standing on solid ground.
MicroBurst
The MicroBurst is the only stepladder in the world with Fold-Flat technology, storing in nearly half the space of an ordinary A-frame stepladder, making it easy to store and carry. The StableLock spreader system is the strongest part of the ladder, constructed of high-strength steel, creating a solid A-frame structure that virtually prevents ladder shifting or walking. The patent-pending MicroBurst`s rear base width is 10 centimetres wider than traditional stepladders for optimal side-tip stability.
For more information on Ladder Safety or Ladder Training contact TB Davies directly on 029 2071 3000 or via email
How To Reduce The Risks When You Work At Height
All contractors should be working to a height safety hierarchy, in order to prevent onsite accidents. Most people recognise the hazards associated with work at height naturally, through a sense of vulnerability. For many years the normal solution to the first hazard, was to issue a harness and lanyard (frequently with no training in its use), and for the second hazard, to cordon off the area below the work.
There has been a long established safety hierarchy, which identifies the best route to follow when solving safety problems – avoid, prevent, and then mitigate. This hierarchy has now been broken into nine easy steps, to assist the selection of the best solution to any work at height problem. First, we should still avoid the need to work at height. We should try to find another way of carryout out the work. One example would be to preassemble components prior to them being lifted, and to modularise the construction process.
Any action, or work sequence, that removes the need for some work at height, is of primary safety benefit to any construction project. Having said that, we must recognise that avoidance is not always possible, and that some work at height may be necessary.
At this point, we should also recognise that measures, which offer protection to all, are better than measures, which protect an individual, and that measures, which offer protection without the need to act, are better than those are that require some action to be protected.
We are therefore looking for collective passive safety. This is the next level in the work at height hierarchy, and the subsequent route through the hierarchy is best shown as a matrix.
On the left of the matrix we have the four levels of protection, prevention, minimising height and consequence, minimising consequence, and doing nothing. We have two columns within the matrix, collective measures, and personal measures. We then follow down the matrix, zigzagging between the collective and personal columns, as shown.
Examples of preventative measures that offer collective protection would include edge protection systems, advanced guardrails, and working platforms. If not suitable, we can move to preventative measures that protected only a single person, such as alsipercha, pulpit steps etc. If we cannot avoid the need to work at height, and we cannot prevent falls, we should then minimise the height and consequence of any fall.
In the collective column we should be looking at safety nets and other soft landing systems, as these gather the faller, or falling material, into them and they slow down and stop the fall event with minimal chance of injury. If we cannot use collective measures, we move to the personal column and can now reach for the harness and lanyard solution of old (personal fall protective equipment or PFPE).
When specifying the use of PFPE, it is important to consider all aspects of the work sequence and the equipment needed, from the anchor point to the worker. Many accidents in the past have resulted from poorly or incompletely specified solutions, when the worker has been left to choose their lanyard and their anchor. The general rule of thumb is to use as short a lanyard as possible, and to anchor above and behind the worker. Bear in mind that, to safely resist the fall load, an anchor point should be capable of supporting a small car.
Also remember that the energy absorber can increase the lanyard length by 1.75m if fully deployed, and this can lead to clearance distances of over 6m below the anchor point being required. It is extremely important to consider the need for immediate rescue when using PFPE. The fall event will frequently lead to significant injury, and once arrested, a faller needs attention before the potentially fatal effects of suspension trauma set in.
This will often lead to the need for complex equipment and highly trained rescuers to be available, on site, in case they are needed. This adds to the cost, and reduces the effectiveness of PFPE based solutions. Once we have considered these top five layers within the hierarchy, we are starting to the final four levels in the hierarchy to offer some form of protection. At one point there was the suggestion that ladders should be banned from construction sites, as they offered no real protection from the fall hazard and they are for single person use only (personal).
As you can see they appear in the hierarchy and there are many applications for which a ladder is the best solution, when the decision maker has moved steadily through the hierarchy and carefully considered and rejected all the other resolution types. The most common hazards associated with work at height (falls and falling objects), can be risk managed by carefully applying the hierarchy and using it as a guide to finding the most practical and safe method for working at height safely.
For more information on Ladder Safety or Ladder Training contact TB Davies directly on 029 2071 3000 or via email
TB Davies Positions Itself To Provide Safer Access To The Rail Industry
Access industry specialists TB Davies is making significant investments to develop its customer and product portfolio in the rail industry. During the last sixty years, the South Wales firm has developed a nationwide network of national and independent resellers of their temporary access products. Whilst their specialist access and ground support division creates bespoke solutions traditionally in the aerospace and defence sectors.
The huge investments in the rail industry are creating a continuing demand from their resale partners and directly from the industry for both standard products suitable for trackside maintenance and more tailored solutions for use in production and vehicle maintenance environments. Steve Meredith Managing Director of manufacturing division TBD UK said, “Customers as diverse as Laing and the MOD are coming to us for solutions to allow their operatives to working more safely at height. The design expertise and production capabilities we have in place are perfectly suited to the demands of the rail industry.”
The Company provides solutions for a wide array of working at height applications, with a particular focus on docking systems and staging, industrial work platforms, specialist access and maintenance steps, including a wide selection of glass fibre steps and ladders. In the Access Industry arena, TB Davies provides market-leading products including globally recognised brands such as Little Giant along with their well respected Horizon, Summit and Pinnacle range of ladder and access products.
At their Cardiff facility General Manager Bob Baldock comments, “Many of the products we stock here and consider as standard have never really been presented to the rail industry. The glass fibre articulated and combination products from Little Giant are extremely robust, electrically insulated and can be used in multiple configurations.
“This makes them a safer and more flexible alternative to step ladders allowing the engineer to move from task to task getting the job done quickly and safely.”
The manufacturing division has recently deployed a number of multi functional platforms designed to ensure safe, stable and fully compliant access to all parts of the vehicles on which they are being utilised. This turnkey solution has revolutionised the maintenance environment for the end user and provided the business managers with considerable savings by bringing major efficiencies along with improved safety standards.
From its birth, TB Davies has established a worldwide network of strategic alliances, including product development with key customers and other access equipment manufacturers. This commitment to innovation and product quality has allowed the company to successfully deliver a diverse range of ladder and access related products to many global customers from British Airways to the London Underground and Shell to BMW.
Baldock continued, “TB Davies has built an enviable reputation for exceptional design, quality and service. We are building on this pedigree by combining our development, marketing and production resources to target this exciting growth area for our business.”
The company has recently made several business acquisitions to strengthen its product and production portfolio. Meredith added, “The recent acquisition of companies like Owen Holland will help not only help complete our standard product offering but extend our product development capabilities. By the end of the year we will also have completed a move into our new manufacturing facility that will further aid our expansion plans.”
TB Davies can offer a next day delivery service an all of its standard ladders, podium and tower products. The service is complimented by the unique ability to offer training and individually tailored designs for use in almost any production, overground or underground environment. The company has already begun working with the several of the major rail contractors both directly on larger bespoke projects and through its resale network with standard product.
For more information on Ladder Safety or Ladder Training contact TB Davies directly on 029 2071 3000 or via email
TB Davies Launches Safe Vehicle Access Review
Vehicle maintenance including loading and unloading can be dangerous. Machinery can seriously hurt people. Heavy loads, moving or overturning vehicles and working at height can all lead to injuries or death.
A report by the Health & Safety Laboratory looked at 253 separate incidents relating to falls from vehicles. The study identified that drivers in the process of loading, unloading or adjusting the load accounted for 70% of accidents. Whilst staff involved in other activities such as cleaning or maintenance accounted for the rest.
To reduce the risks associated with the access or egress from a vehicle or if employees are involved in vehicle maintenance TB Davies has introduced a range of solutions to protect the operator. These include the Cargo Step which enables easy access to the bed of any goods vehicle and is available in two sizes up to 1.4m.
The Truck Dock provides a mobile staircase and work platform solution flatbed trucks and lorries. Whilst the Windscreen Access unit has been specifically designed to provide safe access for the removal and installation of large vehicle windscreens. Double guard rails are provided to three sides with a side access gate leaving the windscreen working area free.
The Tankmaster completes the range and is a purpose built access platform for industrial applications where tank top access is necessary. Powered by a simple hydraulic ram, the Tankmaster Access Platform offers an adjustable operating platform height of between 3.0 – 4.5m, and can be easily deployed by one person.
Tankmaster is suitable for use with rigid tankers, trailer tanks and most ISO containers and are designed to ensure the operator is safe and secure whilst climbing onto the tanker and working within the safety cage.
There are some basic principles for working at height, and they apply equally to working at height on a vehicle. In law, work at height means ‘work in any place where a person could fall a distance likely to cause personal injury if no precautions are taken’. It includes getting on and off a vehicle trailer or climbing into or out of a lorry cab. Although some people might not regard work below average head height as ‘work at height’, the law requires people to consider falls from any height where someone could be injured, including falls from trailers or the tops of vans. In fact, most of the injuries reported to HSE resulting from falls from vehicles are from a fall from below head height. The most common area of the vehicle for people to fall from is the load area, followed by the cab access steps and fifth wheel catwalk – you don’t have to fall far to land hard.
For more information on Ladder Safety or Ladder Training contact TB Davies directly on 029 2071 3000 or via email
Stepmobiles Help Keep Kew Gardens Gardeners Gardening
TB Davies was proud to supply a quantity of its Stepmobiles to the Herbarium at the Roayal Botanic Gardens at Kew this spring. Within the Herbarium there are currently over 7,000,000 specimens, representing nearly 98% of all of the genera in the world which are housed in four wings. The curators needed to ensure that each step was easily identifiable and remained in its designated area.
As the steps are supplied in a variety of colours as standard this was easy to achieve by ordering the steps in Yellow, Blue, Red and Green. The steps were purchased as part of a larger program to upgrade the facilities and in particular provide long term safe access to the largest collection of historical plant specimens from all regions of the world.
Herbaria are collections of dried preserved specimens that document the identity plants and fungi. They represent reference collections with many and varied functions including identification, research and education. At the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, the Herbarium has a central role for research on plant and mycological biodiversity on earth, with 7 million specimens, including approximately 350,000 type specimens. Read this post
Ladders – A Brief Guide: How To Choose Them And How To Use Them
The purpose we use ladders is a simple one so you think that using something so straightforward to use would be quite simple as well. Some people claim the ladder was invented before the wheel so after thousands of years of trying how is it that up and down the country many people still misuse and misunderstand adders on a daily basis.
On average 13 people a year dies at work falling from ladders and nearly 1200 suffer major injuries, with more than a quarter of all falls from height being from ladders. These tragedies can easily be avoided. The answer lies in learning how to choose the right ladder, not using one that’s damaged, knowing how to properly set one up and working safely while you are elevated up above terra firma.
Before you use your ladder check it carefully for defects. Don’t use your ladder if it has any dents or splits and ensure that all of the feet are present and don’t need replacing.
When choosing the right ladder for the job, look carefully at the surface conditions make sure you have a levelling and anti slip device on hand to secure it if required. If you don’t have a device recommended by the manufacturer then you will have to secure the ladder to the adjacent wall or have someone foot the ladder as a last resort.
With extension ladders, the base and upper sections must maintain some overlap for support. So you will lose about a metre from the top of the ladder. The top rungs must also extend at least metre above the upper edge of a roof or elevated destination for safe access and hand-held support.
Other key considerations are the “Load Rating” which determines how much weight a ladder will safely support and the type of material from which a ladder is made. There are three recognised ratings in the UK; however other standards are available so check with the manufacturer if you are in doubt.
The maximum vertical static load to be applied to a piece of equipment.
- BS2037 Class 1 – maximum static vertical load 175kg (27.5 stone)
- EN131 – maximum static vertical load 150kg (23.5 stone)
- EN14183 – maximum static vertical load 150kg (23.5 stone)
- BS2037 Class 3 – maximum static vertical load 125kg (19.5 stone)
These ratings are found on labels placed on the side of the ladders.
Remember, that even a perfectly good and correctly chosen ladder can still be extremely unsafe if not used properly. Be sure that stepladder legs are fully extended, that hinges are locked into place and that the feet are level and firmly planted. With extension ladders, always place the bottom feet one-fourth the height of the ladder away from the wall.
With stepladders, never stand on the very top cap, which usually reads: “This is not a step” (for good reason) or on the very first step below the top cap. With extension ladders, never stand on or above the third rung form the top.
If you need any further help or advice please call our sales team on 029 2071 3000. Additional training material themed from the popular TV show the Simpsons is available to help you develop in house training courses or we provide accredited Ladder Association training where required.
For more information on Ladder Safety or Ladder Training contact TB Davies directly on 029 2071 3000 or via email
TB Davies Keeps Chester Zoon Running with Working at Height Solution
The monorail at Chester Zoo will shortly be back in operation, due to the completion of a programme of engineering works. The monorail runs every day around the 110 acre park allowing visitors to get close to over 7000 animals from 400 different species.
Parts of the works require regular safe access to the trains for essential maintenance and inspections.
Following a consultation with our internet executive Paul Creeden the zoo decided that a fixed industrial step from our Summit range would be the ideal solution. The steps are both robust in their construction and the wide base ensure there is little movement. The high hand rails to the side and pulpit add to the user’s security both when climbing and working from the platform.
For more information on Ladder Safety or Ladder Training contact TB Davies directly on 029 2071 3000 or via email
