SA Affordable Housing July - August 2019 // Issue: 77 | Page 20

FEATURES
essentially means that the trainee’s ‘certification’ is
invalid. You also cannot expect a one- to two-hour crash
course to give your team what they need either, which is
often requested,” says Jacobs.
As this is such a huge topic, this article will focus on
roofs [and ceiling work] as every development in the
affordable housing space contains at least one of these
two elements. In upcoming issues, we will also consider
all of the other segments of working at heights such as
ladder work, scaffolding, tower access, rope access and
formwork – all of which have specific requirements and
best practices to follow. These all fall under the IFWH
that holds official recognition by the South African
Qualifications Authority (SAQA) as the professional body
for the industry in South Africa. The IFWH controls two
separate structures namely the trade association and
the professional body.
Risk is unavoidable on site as there are usually many
elements of the process being executed simultaneously.
Each site will be different but will usually have the same
starting point.
Johan Vorster, CEO of Evolution Height Safety says, “A
risk assessment must be carried out by a supervisor on
site, this will assist in identify potential hazards such as
the height of work, tripping hazards, possibility of
falling objects and holes or weak spots as examples. The
risk assessment conducted will include all employees
and all employees will also have to acknowledge the
risk assessment by signing the register.”
Naturally, minimum safety equipment must be
provided to the employee, such as safety shoes and a
fall arrest helmet (hard hat with a chin strap), as well
as fall arrest equipment that includes a full body
harness with a double lanyard, retractable lifeline and
rooftop kit.
Vorster adds that one thing that should also be on the
list of requirements is the hard issue of fitness. Fitness
is something that can quite easily be overlooked. All
personnel working at heights need to be medically fit –
physically and psychologically, which means that those
working at heights should be declared fit by an
occupational health practitioner. Psychological fitness is
an ongoing process which can be traced through risk
assessment and ‘toolbox talks’, for example if a person
is undergoing a stressful situation or depression, it is
the responsibility of the supervisor on site to identify
any such indicators as these circumstances can affect
the employees ability to work safely and effectively.
“All personnel working at heights further require
training that is specific to the job they will undertake,
for example lifeline installation, the use of shock
absorbing lanyards, retractable lifelines and more
importantly the rooftop system. Some of the common
challenges when working on or with roofs are lack of
anchor points, lack of scaffolding, short distances from
one level to the other or simply a lack of minimum free
space. Rescue training is just as vital, because fall arrest
systems don’t guarantee or fully eliminate the chances
of a fall incident,” says Vorster.
Vorster additionally recommends inclusion in the
suggested best practices, to designate one employee to
install temporal lifelines and self-identified anchor
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JULY - AUGUST 2019
COVERING THE BASICS
An example of harnessing and fall lifeline.
points from one area to the next as the work progresses. This
employee will guide and advise his co-employees on where to
hook (shock absorbing lanyards) connect (retractable lifelines)
or restraining systems (rooftop systems). An important note is
that the designated employee must be familiar with the actual
work being carried out and be competent on correct rescue
procedures should an incident occur.
CEILING WORK
According to the good practice notes (GPN) of the IFWH, it is of
concern when accessing ceiling areas with ladders, where the
installation of anchor points or the safe attachment of the
ladder is not viable as well as the use of fall arrest equipment
on the ladders which cannot be anchored. The other concern is
for the worker performing work within the ceiling is the high
risk of falling through the ceiling.
It is suggested that technicians use aluminium access towers
to gain height access as ladders are just too unstable and
technicians do not have a place to secure themselves. Access
towers provide a stable platform and can easily be erected
when the technician is in a safe zone within the guardrails.
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