18 March 2021
The Health and Safety Inspectorate would like to remind all relevant contractors of the responsibilities that they need to ensure working platforms are not overloaded. There have been recent examples of working platforms such as loading bays, general scaffold platforms and trestles all being used beyond their designed loading capacity and consequently at a risk of failure.
The photographs below illustrate some examples of poor practice.
Fig 1: All working platforms must be appropriate for their intended use and anticipated loadings.
Loading Bays
It is recommended that signage be fitted to the front of a loading bay clearly showing the weight of the load it has been designed to take, the safe working load (SWL). This will act as a reminder to both delivery operatives and those in control of the scaffold to ensure the loading bay does not become overloaded.
Working platforms
Contractors are also reminded of the dangers of overloading general scaffold platforms/trestles. The temporary storage of blocks on a platform must be carefully considered to ensure weight is distributed accordingly and that there is no risk of any material falling from the platform, for example, fitting of suitable toe-boards and brick guards and not stacking higher than the top guard rail.
Guidance
The National Access & Scaffolding Confederation (NASC) also produces practical guidance for scaffolding, eg Guidance SG33:14 'Industry guidance on the construction and use of scaffold loading and loadbearing platforms'.
General guidance on the safety of working platforms can also be found in the Guidance Construction (Jersey) Regulations 2016.
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