HEALTH AND SAFETY 29 to the understanding that the excavation would be deeper than 1.5m, the plumbers on this particular job had developed a small file with all necessary requirements for the job, and one of the risks identified was the potential for the excavation to go deeper than anticipated. The client agreed to pay extra for an excavation truck and excavation team.
The plumbing company had all their safety requirements in place even though it was not a construction site; they communicated this with the team and their client. It led to the following outcome, one I am sure you will appreciate.
The employees stopped working as soon as they realised it would be more dangerous and that extra precautions were needed. The client accepted the file issued at the start of the project and had to agree that the potential for further excavation and costs may be needed. Everyone was informed upfront and were protected from harm. This also helped to avoid that tricky conversation of extra costs with the client.
Now you may think that you could just put this wording in your quote and state that if changes are needed, the client agrees to a requoting process. And you may protect yourself from a difficult discussion for extra costs, but would you have instilled in your employees the safety mindset that stopped the unsafe work and proceeded to create the situation that led up to being safe and having the client ' s support? This was only achieved by having a safety procedure at the start of the project, no matter where work was going to take place, even if it’ s at your own home.
behaviour toward health and safety. Are you the type of plumber that is always prepared, regardless of the size of project or task you perform, or are you a reactive plumber that will wait for disaster before taking safety seriously?
What if something goes wrong, as it has on the many occasions we read of incidents in news articles, and someone gets hurt? How would you prove that you did everything in your power to protect yourself or your employees. Further to this, how did you protect the people near you, whether it be the householder or someone else? PA
" Now ask yourself this question, what if something goes wrong … and someone gets hurt?"
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The work area plays a pivotal role in what health and safety requirements we implement, but more important is our
It ' s important to get everyone on board with safety.
June 2025 Volume 31 I Number 04 www. plumbingafrica. co. za