Geoff Smallwood UK H&S Manager Shanks Group plc

Transcription

1 Awasteoflife and limb CIWM Eastern Region AGM Geoff Smallwood UK H&S Manager Shanks Group plc 1

2 Target industry HSE knows, for the first time, the waste management industry s accident record (Bomel 04) 10 x average fatal rate 5 x average serious rate 3 x average RIDDOR The industry is a stated target for HSE: These rates are unacceptable This is a growing, dynamic and innovative industry which has to rise to the challenge presented and reduce the appalling human and financial cost... - James Barrett, HSE Head of Manufacturing 2

3 Target industry What are the implications of getting it wrong? Prosecutions (fines and imprisonment) Civil claims and other costs Image g degradation Moral case Public pressure (whether an increased willingness to take civil action or the pressure for companies and individuals to be punished following fatal accidents) is very much towards all of the above becoming increasingly important for companies 3

4 Prosecution New fine record for UK - late 2005 Transco fined 15 m for multiple fatality Senior management knowledge Lack of action (prior incident problem well known about) Attempt p to avoid responsibility? No corporate remorse shown 4

5 Prosecution New imprisonment record for safety offences Tebay rail accident (4 workers killed) MD rail maintenance company jailed 9 yrs Employee jailed 2 yrs Brake fault known about and attempted cover-up of fault Employee competence an issue 5

6 Prosecution First manslaughter prosecution in UK waste management Sept 2005 Small recycling company (easier to prove case) Obvious faults - lockoff and E-stop Personal knowledge/connivance MD jailed 12 months/fined 30,000 6

7 Prosecution Personal responsibility? Manslaughter not often effective with larger companies (collapse of Hatfield trial) Government still searching for options Increasing guidance available for senior managers - damned if you do and damned if you don t 7

8 Prosecution Corporate killing New charge - in Queen s speech 2005 Delayed from July now due 2006 No additional standards - a bigger stick DOES NOT apply to individuals (e.g. directors) Duty y defined as below (dealt with under H&S law) or far below (dealt with by new charge) Changes g judge s rules on sentencing Removes ability to pay criteria (small companies often receive small fines) Fines to affect shareholders significantly If company should not be in business fines to be set to achieve this end 8

9 Civil claims and costs No-win-no-fee solicitors and the Woolf Reforms have made access to civil litigation easier: Time scales set for companies List of evidence disclosure Points mean prizes system? Injury j y claims cost Shanks 750,000 pa On top of insurance claims non-insured losses can also be high: Replacement labour and time Lost production Costs pa for Shanks = 500,000 Total accident costs for Shanks currently 9 stand at 1.25 million pa

10 Image and morality The waste management industry would like itself to be seen as: Responsible Innovative and forward thinking Nothing like its old cowboy image Having a fatal accident rate 10 times the average for UK industry is not compatible with the above In addition to image, if you have a fatal accident on your site/operation ti it is likely l you will know the person involved - it is unlikely to be the best day of your life 10

11 Getting it right If, as an industry, individual companies and personally, we want to avoid: High fines and imprisonment High g insurance and other costs Poor image and morale We need to improve our health and safety performance significantly To do this we need to target the higher risk areas and make sure we get it right 11

12 Most deadly? The most common waste accidents are: Slips p and trips - both on the level and getting g into/out of plant and vehicles Manual handling - both in street collection and on site activities BUT, these are NOT the most likely to be fatal Traffic - number 1 killer in waste management both on the streets and on sites Machinery - mainly specific to recycling operations and a new threat Falls - from lorries (less common with autosheeting) and maintenance/cleaning (mainly recycling specific risk) 12

13 Traffic example 1 A worker was unwrapping magazines on pallets in a protected zone (3m high concrete A frames on three sides) at the end of the tipping floor. He had a wheelie bin to place the plastic into, had been instructed (written and recorded) not to go onto the tipping floor and been given a radio to communicate with Telehandler Operative working in protected area Waste pile on tipping floor 13

14 Traffic example 1 The worker decided that he would empty pyhis wheelie bin when it became full onto the waste pile on the tipping i floor (against his instructions) rather than contact his supervisor for another bin. The telehandler driver did not did not see him. The worker suffered a broken thigh when he was reversed into Telehandler Waste pile on tipping floor 14

15 Traffic example 2 Vision assessment showing vision through standard mirrors (red zone), improved mirrors (green zone) and reversing camera (grey-ish zone) All-round plant vision is essential to traffic safety and never assume vision is OK 15

16 Traffic example 3 Rollonoff lorry yparked directly in front of no parking sign (long-standing issue at site - letters sent to company, driver banned etc) Loading shovel driver concentrating on other item of plant (FLT) Lorry driver under sheet at rear of vehicle 16

17 Traffic example 3 Loading g shovel driver did not see lorry driver Concentrating on FLT and hit rear of lorry Driver s arm trapped between shovel blade and door edge Driver s arm required amputating from below elbow two days later 17

18 Traffic - rules & controls Compile a traffic management plan Communicate it to everyone (employees & drivers) what the plan is and what the rules are Enforce it - discipline those who break it Physicaly rather than human controls Separate vehicles and pedestrians Traffic rules map 2 only 3 only NO ENTRY for bin lorries Take all possible care entering and leaving site look out for cars NO ENTRY for bin lorries Watch out for pedestrians if any are in the area do not tip Even when not tipping keep at least 5 metres from pedestrians when moving around the site 18

19 Traffic guidance There is a wide range of guidance available on traffic. In particular the HSE s recent best practice guide written with the CIWM s WISH Forum: Safe Transport in Waste Management and Recycling Facilities FREE on HSE web site Download it Read it Apply it 19

20 Machine safety I have never found an item of recycling static plant which 100% complies with the required legal standards - even though they all came with EU certificates of conformity etc Is this your recycling plant? It is someone s in the industry 20

21 HSE intervention project In sites visited (41% machines seen bailers). Only for hardware issues: 26% machines inspected - verbal advice 17% machines - written advice 7% machines - enforcement action taken 11% machines not satisfactorily guarded 22% standard of guarding not satisfactory 13% of isolators could not be locked-off 13% E-stops not clear/wrongly l positioned 10% interlocks not satisfactory Above from brief inspections 21

22 Machine safety All of the below are from plant supplied from new with EU certificates etc Nip point on trommel conveyor Direct access to plastic bottle spiker 22

23 Machine safety Completely unguarded defection roller on picking belt Interlock defeated by finger pressure Pull-wire E-stop with fixed point attachment 23

24 Machine safety Assume A the worst - NEVER rely on certificates for large static plant Set S t you specification in advance and ensure standards will be met Retain R t i part of the cost against snagging and make this a contractual issue Inspect I t thoroughly hl BEFORE use If required bring in an expert Think k of intended d use - such as skips etc under conveyors allowing access 24

25 Lock it off - always No matter how good safeguarding g is, there are always situations where complete guarding is not practical or where guards need to be removed Lock-off procedure Trained out Enforced If it is locked-off it will not bite 25

26 Falls Falls tend to be either from lorry tops/containers or during maintenance or cleaning of plant. For lorries/containers: If you have not done so already specify autosheeting for all ro-ro and bulk lorries Un-sheet and sheet skips on the ground Instruct drivers not to climb on containers and to report unsafe loads 26

27 Falls - recycling plant Recycling plant poses a whole range of fall issues Access to clear blocks (bailers, screen etc) Access for maintenance, inspection and greasing g etc Grease points etc at ground Safe access needs to be built-into the design of MRFs from the start For access to screens, bailers etc this needs to be safeguarded 27

28 A thought Accidents like the Tebay fatality seem obvious when viewed from the outside: Known fault with a safety critical system This fault was ignored and work continued The fatalities were a direct result Have you ever allowed/known that: A RCV/TRV/REL lorry was out on the road with a faulty rear-view camera? An item of heavy mobile plant had a faulty hand-brake and was still used? Recycling equipment was operated without all guards in place? We need a step improvement in safety 28

29 Synopsis Waste management has 10 times the average fatal accident rate for GB industry AND 5 times the serious accident rate There are few signs that this is improving Think fatal accidents: Traffic - most common killer Machinery - increasing risk Falls - probably reducing Think most common non-fatal accidents: Manual handling Slips and trips If we do not improve Fines, civil claims, poor image and potentially imprisonment 29

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