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18/05/06 Certex Launches Free Height Safety Check Service

Certex UK – one of the nation’s leading suppliers of lifting products and services – is offering free safety surveys to any company across the UK with employees working at height.

The service follows the introduction of last year’s HSE Work at Height Regulations and is designed to help organisations comply with the new rules.

Certex is introducing the free height surveys in conjunction with fall arrest experts, Checkmate UK Ltd. The service is available to all companies – whether they are an existing Certex customer or not – and involves a Certex engineer visiting sites; checking that the legislation is being correctly adhered to; identifying any shortcomings; and advising on equipment and practices.

Work is defined as being ‘at height’ if it is at a place where a person could be injured falling from it – even if this is at or below ground level – and as such now applies to large numbers of UK workplaces.

Charles Gillespie, Certex UK Director, explains why the service has been introduced. “We have found that many employers are unsure as to how the new legislation affects them and more importantly what action, if any, they need to take. To give them peace of mind we will arrange for trained personnel to visit their workplace and offer free advice, with no conditions or obligations attached.”

Oliver Auston, Divisional Manager of Checkmate Safety, added: “There has been a lot of misinterpretation of the legislation, with people over-dramatising the implications of it. For instance, the removal of the two-metre rule is commonly being taken out of context and does not necessarily mean you require a fall arrest system when you leave the ground.

“We hope to clarify many of these areas of uncertainty, make sure people know what they are doing, and ultimately help them protect the safety of their employees.”

Certex is confident that the new service will not only help businesses stay within the law but also encourage employers to be more height safety aware in general.

Falls from height remain a big problem in the UK and there were 53 fatalities in 2004/5, with thousands more other serious injuries. This is the single biggest cause of workplace deaths and one of the main causes of major injury.