Incident alert
LOCATION:
CONCRETE PRODUCTS PLANT
SUB ACTIVITY:
NO SUB ACTIVITY AVAILABLE
DATE ISSUED:
23/02/2015 18:25:14
TITLE
Lifting Operation resulting in injury – a broken toe
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN
United Kingdom
ACCIDENT / INCIDENT DETAILS
A lifting beam was being lowered onto the floor with the crane hoist at the
limit of its cross travel. As the beam was almost on the floor the injured party (IP) and crane operator both stepped forward to push the beam towards the wall of the building. This was done in order to get the lifting beam as close to the wall of the building as possible due to limited space in the area. In doing so the IP inadvertently placed his foot under part of the lifting beam which came down onto his foot behind the steel toe cap of his boot. The IP immediately pulled his foot out before the full weight of the lifting beam had been placed on it, thus minimising the potential injury.
ACCIDENT / INCIDENT IMAGES
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LEARNING POINTS / ACTIONS TAKEN
• Ensure all lifting operations are suitably planned
• Lifting operations are supervised by a competent person
• Ensure the suitability of the area when storing lifting beam
• Ensure new starters are supervised until competent and aware of the hazards
• Avoid putting your body in line of fire.
• Alternative location found to store lifting beam to allow one man operation (crane operator only) and no manual intervention.
Further advice on planning a lift
The planning of individual routine lifting operations may be the responsibility of those who carry them out (eg a slinger or crane operator). But for much more complex lifting operations (eg a tandem lift using multiple cranes), a written plan should be developed by a person with significant and specific competencies - adequate training, knowledge, skills and expertise - suitable for the level of the task.
For straightforward, common lifting operations, a single initial generic plan may be all that is required (eg fork-lift trucks in a factory), which could be part of the normal risk assessment for the activity. However, from time to time it may be necessary to review the plan to make sure that nothing has changed and the plan remains valid. Routine lifting operations which are a little more complex may, depending on the circumstances, need to be planned each time the lifting operation is carried out.
The plan for any lifting operation must address the foreseeable risks involved in the work and identify the appropriate resources (including people) necessary for safe completion of the job. Factors to include may be any or all of the following:
• working under suspended loads
• visibility
• attaching / detaching and securing loads
• environment
• location
• overturning
• proximity hazards/people/processes
• derating
• lifting people
• overload
• pre-use checking
• continuing integrity of the equipment
• setting down area, stability of item
• communication with operators
The plan should set out clearly the actions involved at each step of the operation and identify the responsibilities of those involved. The degree of planning and complexity of the plan will vary and should be proportionate to the foreseeable risks involved in the work.
LEARNING POINTS / ACTIONS IMAGES
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