Friday 23rd July 2004

Manual Labour Kerbed

Don't lift that, we've got a machine to do it...

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The Health and Safety Executive hosted the second meeting of its 'Kerbs Forum' in London last week. Over organisations including kerb manufacturers, contractors and local authorities reviewed progress on the HSE initiative to encourage industry to change from traditional methods that involves laying kerbs by hand to systems where the kerb is carried by a machine.

HSE Principal Inspector Richard Boland, who chaired the July Forum, said: "The Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 have now been in force for 12 years and require employers to avoid the need for manual handling where possible, and control the risk of injury where manual handling cannot be avoided. For kerbs and similar products, aids such as vacuum lifters and grabs are widely available and therefore industry should be looking to use them where possible.

[RB Will]

bunch of poofs, I have a part time job delivering TVs some of which can weigh over 100kg and we only get 2 people to carry them dont see what the problem is with a kerbstone

[Bogga]

Well difference is, they work for the council....

[Rovertron]

Ah, the HSE.

The biggest cause of rising business costs in the UK.

Come the revolution, they will all be shot with very dangerous guns.

[Bobbins]

RB Will said:

bunch of poofs, I have a part time job delivering TVs some of which can weigh over 100kg and we only get 2 people to carry them dont see what the problem is with a kerbstone

That's far too heavy - if you injure yourself then your employer will be in a load of trouble.
Has the job been risk-assessed, do you wear a back-brace, steel toe-capped shoes etc.

If you properly analyse it, then your job is probably impossible to do safely. 100Kg telly's should be delivered by fork-lift truck.

>> Edited by Bobbins on Tuesday 27th July 20:57

>> Edited by Bobbins on Tuesday 27th July 20:58

[jimbro1000]

TV delivery used to be the quickest way to a hernia operation. The chances of giving yourself a hernia that way haven't changed but now it is motor engineers that have the honour of being top of the list. Apparently it is the level of torque needed for many fittings that is leading them to perform physical maneuvers that cause the necessary damage.

So where are the magic tools for precisely setting the torque automatically? Can you imagine any engineer worth his salt getting out the power torque wrench while any of his coworkers are around?

[nonegreen]

Rovertron said:

Ah, the HSE. The biggest cause of rising business costs in the UK. Come the revolution, they will all be shot with very dangerous guns.

The more business' that think that way that go bust the better. What on earth makes you think that it is Ok to ruin someones health because you are to damn greedy to buy the proper equipment. I spend part of my life looking at this kind of thing. A few weeks ago I went into a garage where the moron that owned it had a trichoethylene in one 45 gallon drum and petrol in another open drum next to it. All this was blocking the fire door. Do you really think this kind of thing is OK?

[piccy mate]

nonegreen said:

The more business' that think that way that go bust the better. What on earth makes you think that it is Ok to ruin someones health because you are to damn greedy to buy the proper equipment. I spend part of my life looking at this kind of thing. A few weeks ago I went into a garage where the moron that owned it had a trichoethylene in one 45 gallon drum and petrol in another open drum next to it. All this was blocking the fire door. Do you really think this kind of thing is OK?

Ah, but he may have been operating a no-smoking policy !
Dave