Legislation Relevant to Construction Health and Safety in the Swansea High Street Project - Case Study Example

Health and Safety Assignment [Name] [Institutional Affiliation] [Date] Table of Contents Introduction 2 Legislation Relevant to Construction Health and Safety 4 Construction Regulations 2007 4 The Machinery Directive and CEN Standards 5 Dangerous Substances & Explosives Atmospheres Regulations 2002 6 Work in Compressed Air Regulations 1996 6 The Construction (Head Protection) Regulations 1989 7 Driving at Work Regulations 1997 7 Conclusion 8 References 9 Introduction The purpose of this essay is to identify and explain major provisions of legislation relevant to construction health and safety. This research captures on six laws or regulations from HSE and offers an explanation on how those laws are linked to the project whose location is High Street Post Code SA11LN in Swansea. Health and safety is paramount to management of any project and several legislations in the UK are involved in enforcement. The Health and Safety at Work regulation -often referred to as HWS in short, traces its origin to the Health and Safety at Work Act of 1974. The initial Factories Act of 1961 forms a vital stepping stone for legislation in this matter but has since ceased to be applied( Great Britain 2002). It is solely used for historic interest. The HSW Act was put in place with a view to safeguard both the security and health of workers at workplace. It is widely applied in the Great Britain. The Isle and Man and Ireland have instituted pieces of legislation that are similar to the ones in the Great Britain. This Act is cognisant of the possibility of having diverse health hazards and risks at workplace. These hazards and risks are factors that are likely to compromise the safety and health of the workers. In order to ensure that these laws are adhered to, the Department for Work through the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) appoints inspectors. The inspectors are given the mandate and power to confirm whether the legislations instituted are adhered to. In addition, they are vested with the power to commence legal proceedings for any individual or company that fails to comply with the set out laws. The inspectors often have the power to issue improvement or prohibition notices. The improvement notice is given to a company or individual telling them to make adjustments in their safety arrangements. A prohibition notice is issued in circumstances where there is adverse breach of the safety and health regulations. In this regard, the inspectors demand closure of such a company, organisation, business, or premise until further notice. Therefore, since Swansea High Street project falls under the jurisdiction where this laws apply, a breach can lead to dire consequences. From the background information developed above it is evident that legislation with regard to safety and health at workplace will be key in Swansea High Street. Legislation Relevant to Construction Health and Safety There are several major provisions of legislation that find application in the Swansea High Street Project and six of them are discussed herein. Construction Regulations 2007 The Construction Regulations 2007 relate to design and management. When they came into effect, they replaced the regulations of 1994. The Construction Regulations were put in place to ensure that designers too take keen interest in the implications that the design of the structures has on the persons using the structure and those involved in its construction and maintenance process (Summerhayes 2008).The regulations place on the contractor, the responsibility of ensuring safety and health of persons involved in the construction process. In the Facade Retention and construction of new offices in Swansea (shown in Figure 1), the contractor is thus necessitated to develop a safety plan. In this plan, the contractor of the new offices needs to identify all the health hazards and risks likely to be encountered in the construction of the structure, information on Safety and Health of the users of the structure and those people involved in the maintenance of the structure. One risk of construction materials accidentally falling on vehicles and passers-by of Swansea Street. As part of the plan therefore the construction site should be secured in manner that it the construction can not affect users of the streets on all sides. Figure 1: Facade Retention and Construction of New Offices in Swansea The Machinery Directive and CEN Standards The purpose of this law is to ensure that all type of machinery and equipments used for the construction of a structure meet the required standards. They cover all machinery used in construction ranging from demolition machinery, earthmoving, drilling, and piling rigs, and those machines used to produce bricks, glass, and cement (Delaney et al. 2001). The law requires that manufacturers of the aforementioned machinery comply with the required Safety and Health Standards. For the new offices to be built in Swansea, there is need to demolish the old buildings. The machinery for demolition must be safe to use. In addition, such machinery should execute the demolition and clearance of the debris in a safe manner. The Swansea Street is a busy street and if this is not taken into account it can result into accidents and injuries to the workers and passers-by. Similarly, the limited space of the site calls for use of machinery that are less likely to affect safety and health of the workers and persons affected by the construction. Dangerous Substances & Explosives Atmospheres Regulations 2002 The Dangerous Substances & Explosives Atmosphere Regulations came into force in the year 2003. Their goal was to compel the employers/contractors to ensure that the working environment is secured from potential explosives and dangerous substances in the atmosphere. These regulations stipulate that the working environment should be assessed to verify if an explosive atmosphere is present or not. If such an environment exists it is mandatory for the employer to provide protection against such explosives and substances. The safety procedures in this regard include controlling the points of ignition, provision of adequate ventilation, provision of protective helmets, gloves, and other safety gear, outlining the emergency procedures to be undertaken in case of an accident and training of the workers on the emergency and procedures involved in handling the chemical substances used. Work in Compressed Air Regulations 1996 The work in Compressed Air Regulations replaces the Work in Compressed Air Regulations of 1958. Their application in the construction industry often draws a lot of insight from the recent knowledge in medicine and engineering. The 1996 Regulations introduced the Comprised Air Contractor that is used to manage work safely. The regulations further call for manlocks and prohibit the use of vertical locks .In addition to these requirements ,the employer is obligated to produce an health report and exposure record of every individual exposed to a compressed air working environment. The Construction (Head Protection) Regulations 1989 The Head Protection Regulations of 1989 were put in place in a bid to protect workers and any individual affected by the construction work from head injuries that may arise. Construction of the new offices at Swansea should take this area seriously. The demolition and construction poses risks of falling materials and thus necessitates the use of head protection. At Swansea construction site, head injuries inevitable and thus there is need to ensure that everyone is protected. The law requires workers at the site and any person affected by the construction work to put on a protective gear on the head. The head gear should be of good condition (not damaged or worn out). It must also be of the right size in order to able to fit the head of the person wearing it. The head gear, when put on, must not hinder the person wearing it from hearing whenever they are supposed to listen to instructions given. Driving at Work Regulations 1997 Driving is a major construction industry and is often associated with civil engineering (particularly marine). Driving is also part of other construction activities. It is for this reason that the government instituted laws to minimise accidents, injuries resulting from driving at work and most importantly to safeguard the Safety and Health of persons involved and affected by the construction process (HUGHES 2011). . In accordance with the law, the construction demands the contractor in this project to make a safety plan. The plan entails a description of the risks suspected to occur at the site or during errands or journeys and strategies the company intends to employ to minimise and prevent such risks from occurring. The contractor in this regard has to consider three factors. One is a safe driver. The drivers of ferrying materials to and from the site must be of sound mind and most importantly be trained and certified to drive the particular vehicle he/she is driving by the authorities. The second consideration is a “safe vehicle”. The vehicles used should meet the requirements of the law such as being roadworthy and regularly checked and serviced. In addition to this, the vehicle should be loaded with the designated amount of load .The other thing to be considered is taking “safe journeys”. The streets leading to Swansea are not only busy but narrow and this might pose unexpected risks to the drivers and other road users. In this regard, transport can be done when the traffic jam to the site is off peak. The driving regulations highly regulate commercial driving. Before driving a heavy commercial vehicle an individual has to go through medical check-up, physical fitness check- up, thorough training before the authorities can certify them to drive such vehicles. Conclusion In summary, the article has examined six legislative pieces in place to ensure Safety and Health at workplace. They include Construction Regulations 2007, The Construction (Head Protection) Regulations 1989, Driving at Work Regulations 1997, Work in Compressed Air Regulations 1996, Dangerous Substances, & Explosives Atmospheres Regulations 2002. All the above regulations have been put in place with one goal. This is to safeguard the Safety and Health of the individuals involved in the construction process, those who might be affected by the construction work and the eventual users of the structures. Given that the contractors bear the greatest liability, they are therefore tasked with the responsibility of keeping up with the standards set up. The law upholds that the life of human beings is central and overrides the material wealth investments by individuals or the state. Presence of such laws, however, does not give anyone the licence to be careful. There is need for all and sundry to be keen on their safety and health no matter what. References Delaney et al. 2001. A guide to the EU machinery directive. Gaithersburg, MD, U.S. Dept. of Commerce, Technology Administration, National Institute of Standards and Technology. Great Britain. 2002. Health and safety regulation: a short guide. London, Health and Safety Executive. HUGHE S, P. 2011. Introduction to Health and Safety at Work: the handbook for the Nebosh National General Certificate. Oxford, Elsevier butterworth-hein. Summerhayes, S. 2008. CDM regulations 2007 procedures manual. Oxford, UK, Blackwell Pub. http://site.ebrary.com/id/10279131. . . Read More