Category Archives: Safety

How to avoid heavy equipment disasters?

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We all know that construction equipment or other heavy equipment are extremely dangerous. Construction sites and very prone to fatal accidents and disasters, every worker in such sites have to exceedingly cautious while handling such heavy equipment. It is pertinent for every single one of the employees to follow safety guidelines to avoid potential disasters at all times. Even one second’s ignorance can cost them their life or limbs. Similar other types of accidents construction accidents also take place mostly due to the person’s negligence or usage of faulty instruments.

It has been observed that a large number of accidents are reported every year that take place in construction sites and account for the death or injury of thousands of workers. For these reasons not only does the project owners lose huge sums of money but the employees of these families also suffer from great loss and go through pain. Four construction site accidents were reported in the 2012, all of which took place at the World Trade Centre (WTC) construction project.

So what are the common types of accidents that occur in construction sites?

Classification of construction accidents or heavy equipment disasters can be done on the basis of their severity, whether the economic loss encountered is big or small or if the amount of loss of lives and injuries caused are big or small. It can be caused either due to design ignorance, equipment failures, and worker’s carelessness or simply due to natural disaster causes. On the basis of the location of such heavy equipment accidents they are grouped as and residential building site accidents, tunnel accidents and highway construction site disasters.

Some types of heavy equipment accidents can be listed as:

  1. Ladder Accidents
  2. Saw Blade Accidents
  3. Crane and Truck Accidents
  4. Elevator Accidents
  5. Power Tool Accidents
  6. Welding Equipment Accidents
  7. Scaffolding Failure
  8. Cable and Rope Accidents
  9. Forklift Accidents

To name a few of them other categories may be listed as collapse of building components, labor related disasters, fire and explosions, falling of objects, OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) violations leading to disasters etc.

Some labor related disasters can be listed as:

  • Iron Worker Accidents
  • Painter Accidents
  • Brick Layer Accidents
  • Plumber Accidents
  • Carpenter Accidents
  • Union worker Accidents
  • Maintenance Worker Accidents

Based on the project type or location they can be categorized as: –

Parking garage collapse, tunnel construction accidents, highway construction, demolition mishaps, residential building site disasters, bridge building site disasters, excavation accidents etc.

What are the common causes of disasters in sites with heavy equipment?

  • Most commonly accidents involving being struck by tools, equipment or being hit by falling objects usually take place due to insufficient planning of site storage, inadequacy of tool belts to ensure safety while using them, lack of toe boards on scaffoldings.
  • Improper usage of heavy construction vehicles such as cranes, trucks, hoists etc. can also lead to fatal disasters.
  • Certain trenching disasters may place workers in danger of being trapped under soil and rocks, increasing their risk of having asphyxiation, breathing of poisoning fumes and drowning in underground water. Derisory excavation wall support, failure of protective systems, unsuccessful soil inspection and unsafe passage into and out of the trench may generate such kind of construction accidents.

 

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Accidents associated with construction equipment

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Construction equipment are generally heavy and one has to be cautious at all time to minimize the risks that can happen from bad handling and lack of proper maintenance of this equipment. Heavy construction equipment used in big construction companies make the construction much faster and easier. There are always some risks associated with the heavy construction equipment which can have disastrous consequences. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), 75% of workers at construction equipment factory became victims of accidents. Some of the risks of using construction equipment are listed below.

  • Site fall: It includes roof related falls, scaffolding falls, elevator shaft falls, crane falls and falling objects. Over three hundred deaths arise from construction site fall every year. Though some companies pay compensation for the injury caused to the victim, but do you think it’s enough? Safety precautions should be taken by the construction equipment to ensure well being of the worker.
  • Roof related Falls:– Roof fall is one of the most common form of accidents. This includes skylight falls, communication tower falls and fall through existing opening. Many of the deaths and injuries can be controlled by proper protection equipment.
  • Crane Falls on Construction Site:– Cranes are designed to control enormous pieces of powerful machinery. The operators can also fall from crane due to loss of its balance.

 

  • Other common form of accidents using construction equipment are:
  • Forklifts
  • Backhoes
  • Bulldozers
  • Front-end loaders and
  • Skid Steers.
  • Steps to avoid such construction site accidents
  • Allow only trained and expert professionals for operating heavy equipment.
  • Equipment has been designed properly and safely manufactured.
  • A display of warnings on the machinery should be there.
  • Equipment is needed to maintain regularly with periodic checkups.
  • Find out whether the machine is properly carried out or not with tightened bolts, nuts and screws.
  • Check the trailer deck, stability and clearances.
  • Be careful of overhead hurdles and underground utilities like water, sewer, electrical lines, gas and telecom.
  • Find out whether any unconventional sound is coming or not from the construction equipment.

Accidents related with construction equipment is mostly categorized into two categories. Firstly, it’s improper maintenance management system and the way of its handling. And secondly, defect in the design or manufacture of the equipment including absence of proper warnings.

Sometimes there are also electrical accidents due to the construction equipment. OSHA has issued some guidelines for the safety of the workers with construction equipment and some precautionary steps that should be taken to face such hazardous accidents. Electric shock is another such common accident. It can cause many complications like muscular spasm, internal injury, cardiac arrest and respiratory arrest. A fire plan should also be there to evacuate the workers safely when an explosion occurs.

We all know the fact that accidents are not natural but they are manmade mainly because of their ignorance. So, to minimize such accidents the construction equipment companies should take proper steps and guarantee a safe life to its workers.

Highway Construction and Maintenance to Reduce Accidents

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We all know that road is a chief means of transport that helps in developing the nations in all aspects. Roads help the nations to unite with each other. Earlier, travelling from one nation to another by roadways is quite problematic for the people but as the world is developing technologically, different modernised equipments are discovered to make the roads smooth so that travel becomes easy. Highway construction is basically a part of the civil engineering course that comprises of planning, design, construction, operation and preservation of roads, flyovers, and subways to provide safe and time-saving travel to the people. The highway engineer planned and design highways keeping in the mind the augmenting problem of traffic. There are many methods in constructing highways.

Various Designs of Highway Construction

The location, configuration and the shape of the highways are decided in the designing phase by the engineers. The engineers design the highway after completing the phase of planning and development. The designs of the highways depend on three features that are human, vehicular and roadway. It is the duty of the highway engineers to design the road properly so that the number of the accident cases reduced a little bit. There are many designs involved in highway construction that are as follows:

  • Lane width
  • Alignment, super elevation and grades
  • Level of Service (LOS)
  • Design traffic volume
  • Design speed
  • Number of lanes
  • Sight distance
  • Cross section
  • Horizontal and vertical clearance

Other than these there is a kind of design that is known as flexible pavement design. This design comprises of three or four layers and the longevity of this type of designed highways is 15 to 20 years. The speciality of this design is that the pavement is made up of hot mix asphalt.  Rigid pavement design is another important genus of highway construction design. This design is chiefly employed in building airports and foremost highways. Portland Cement Concrete is the most common substance that is used in this design. The longevity of this sort of design is more than 30 years and is constructed in three layers.

Methods of highway construction

  • Subbase course construction is a technique of highway construction that is positioned between the subgrade and base course of the path. The width of the subbase usually comes in the range of 4 to 16 inches and it is planned to support the structure of the pavement. The different materials used in this method are gravel, crushed stone, fly ash, cement or lime.
  • Base course construction is another kind of highway construction mode that is placed directly under the surface course. The usual thickness of this base course varies from 4 to 6 inches. When the heavy loads are put on the surface of the pavement, this base course becomes powerful to handle that load. The materials utilised in base course construction are often applied with cement, calcium chloride, sodium chloride, fly ash or lime. This amalgamation helps the base course to carry the heavy load of the pavement properly.

 

 

 

 

Be Safe When Operating Heavy Construction Equipment- Check Your Safety Checklist

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If you are into the field of construction, then you are sure to be well acquainted with the nature of the various hazards associated with the business. In fact, working at a construction site and not facing hazardous situation is like learning to swim without getting wet- not really possible, is it? However, there are ways in which you could minimise the probability of their occurrence, if not completely eliminate it.

Why Is It Important To Have A Heavy Equipment Safety Checklist?

One of the many ways you can ensure that you are absolutely safe at a construction site is to make sure that the heavy equipment used are in complete order. And how are you going to that? Well, having a heavy equipment safety checklist is one of the many ways of accomplishing this. What with all the heavy equipment, bricks and mortar etc involves n the whole business, one could say the construction sites to be a potential site for casualties. In such a scenario, the heavy equipment safety checklist not only enables workers to be safe but you will also be able to take preventive measures and minimize the hazards involved in working with heavy construction equipment, thereby reducing untoward accidents.

Things to Look Out For In Your Checklist

Heavy equipment safety checklist is important. But what are the aspects that must be covered by a heavy equipment safety checklist?

  • Your heavy equipment safety checklist must have the working conditions of all of the parts of the heavy equipment covered. Be it the engine, brakes, buckets, teeth, or anything else- ensure that you do not miss out on any of these.
  • There is no doubt about the fact that the smoke emitted by construction equipment along with the loud noise forms a cause of hazard not only for the workers but also for the people near the periphery of the construction site. It is, therefore, important to incorporate points on the compatibility of the heavy equipment with the environment in order to minimize the levels of pollution.
  • Another safety aspect that must be included in your checklist is the concerns related to power consumption. Making sure that your equipment is not in the danger zone with respect to electricity is also important. It is, therefore, best to incorporate points related to this in your heavy equipment safety checklist.
  • You could also consider incorporating points related to the operator in your heavy equipment checklist. Factors associated with the age, training and skills of the heavy equipment operator should have priority in that list.
  • You could also consider including points related to safety gear and the like in your heavy equipment safety checklist. This will ensure that you are absolutely safe when using the heavy equipment.

The safety of your workers along with yours plays a crucial role in the completion of your construction project and on this depends the success of your company. It is, therefore, important to have a good safety checklist at hand before operating the heavy equipment.

 

 

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Protect Your Eyes At The Construction Site. Use Heavy Equipment Safety Glasses

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One of the major concerns among those involved in the construction business today is the safety of the workers on construction sites. And it is for these reasons that the construction market is now flooded with a number of safety devices to facilitate the safety of the working community. Among all other safety gears available on the block, the safety glasses have acquired quite an important position in the entire chain of events.

The Importance of Heavy Equipment Safety Glasses

The construction area is never hazard free. Mishaps and accidents can come to the forefront in any form and cause damage to those involved in the arena in a number of ways. And one of the most vulnerable parts of the body that can be injured is the eye. It is for the prevention of the eyes from injury that manufacturers have come up with safety glasses. Available in different makes, models, styles and usage, the heavy equipment safety glasses have become an indispensible part of the entire heavy equipment safety gear.

In a survey conducted on the various accidents taking place at construction sites, it has been found that around 800,000 people suffer from eye injury every year by working at construction sites. It was also revealed that around 20% of these injuries were fatal enough to cause temporary or permanent injury to the eye. When issues regarding the prevention to these mishaps began to be taken into consideration, it was found that almost 90% of these mishaps could be avoided if one took to the use of safety glasses.

What Can Heavy Equipment Safety Glasses Prevent You From?

Heavy equipment safety glasses have acquired quite an important position in the entire safety scheme at construction sites. All the construction workers have been advised to put these safety glasses to use and they now form an important part of the safety kit of all construction workers.

  • Construction sites have flying particles of all shapes and sizes flying in various directions, and it does not really take a genius to figure out the effect that these particles can have on your eyes if they manage to penetrate them. The use of heavy equipment heavy glasses can prevent the eyes from such a thing.
  • Construction sites may also involve working with electrical equipment.  There is every chance that as a heavy equipment operator can get a sting of the flying sparks in the eyes. Heavy equipment safety glasses can save the day anytime for the workers.

There cannot be any doubt about the fact that dealing with heavy equipment can be the cause of lot of mishaps in the construction arena. The eyes being one of the most vulnerable organs of your body have been found to be more prone to damage than any other part. The heavy equipment safety glasses have been found to be indispensible in this case.

 

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