DHF steps up training following roller shutter door accident
Posted by: electime 8th February 2018
Tamworth-based trade association, the Door & Hardware Federation (DHF), is emphasising the significance of proper training, following the fining of a principal contractor, after a roller shutter door damaged a market stall in Walthamstow. ‘Flex D B Construction Ltd’ of Rydal Gardens, London, was found guilty of breaching Regulation 13 (1) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015, and was ordered to pay a fine of £45,000, plus £4,064 costs, together with a victim surcharge of £170.
The incident, which took place in August 2016, involved employees removing a shutter door on the boundary of a site on the High Street, when the door fell onto the pavement, badly damaging a market stall. Furthermore, there wasn’t a risk assessment for the task of removing the shutter door nor was the site manager supervising or on site when the incident occurred, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has found.
The investigation went on to prove that the site issues could have been rectified by appropriate planning, managing and monitoring of the construction work.
The fine follows the death of a man crushed by a roller shutter whilst fitting a shop in a retail premises in Woking during October 2017 to which an investigation is underway.
DHF has called for higher quality and compliance in terms of training standards. The organisation has launched a new code of practice (DHF TS 012:2018) designed to help raise standards of safety in the industrial door industry.
It has also offered a two-day Industrial Door Safety Diploma course for both members and non-members, in order to encourage a greater understanding of legislation affecting the supply, installation, inspection, risk assessment, maintenance, and repair of industrial doors.
A one-day Industrial Door Safety Diploma course for installers and engineers will be launching soon.
DHF’s CEO, Bob Perry says: “It is absolutely essential that those with responsibility for installation, maintenance, repair and dismantling of potentially dangerous equipment are properly trained and working within the framework of the law.”
“Fortunately, in this particular instance, there were no injuries, but this accident and the subsequent legal proceedings should serve as a stark warning that work on roller shutters should be carried out by trained operatives with careful planning. Those who use DHF members can do so in the knowledge that the level of safety, quality and compliance we insist upon, is reinforced by comprehensive training and is subject to rigorous audit and inspection.”
For further information about domestic security, please visit: http://www.dhfonline.org.uk/product-groups/locks–building-hardware/1.htm or call 01827 52337.
