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» DOOR & HARDWARE Federation ( DHF ) has urged caution with improper installation , maintenance and specification following the tragic death of thirty-threeyear-old Mark Mathers who was strangled by his hoodie when it became hooked and wrapped around the balancing system of a sectional door he was working on at Specialist Cars Volkswagen in Aberdeen .
The incident , which took place on 15 September 2018 , resulted whilst Mr Mathers was replacing a broken sectional door spring . The court case earlier this month resulted in a £ 165,000 fine for the door company concerned .
Aberdeen Sheriff Court heard that Patrick Forman
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Industrial Doors had neglected to make a sufficient assessment of the safety risks faced by its employees , such as those associated with door springs . The company also pleaded guilty to failing to implement and maintain a safe system of work for staff while repairing and maintaining doors . It also failed to provide the necessary information , instruction , training and supervision to ensure the safety of its personnel when working with the door springs in question . Sheriff Christine McCrossan told the court that it is the ‘ duty of every employer to ensure the health and safety of all its employees ’, adding that ‘ it is an offence to fail to discharge that duty ’. |
DHF ’ s Senior Training & Compliance Officer , Nick Perkins explains : “ To avoid a repetition of such an incident , we strongly urge installation and maintenance companies that , in all circumstances , all of the tension on all of the springs must be removed carefully and methodically , using the correct specification |
properly fitting tensioning bars or other task specific tools and methodology as a first step before any further work is undertaken .
“ Appropriate clothing , personal protective equipment , and safe access equipment are also vital to ensure the safe execution of door maintenance tasks . Companies are reminded that adequate risk assessment and creation of corresponding method statements ( RAMS ) are necessary for most tasks on site under management of health and safety law .”
DHF provides safety and legislation training at https :// bit . ly / 2Xbb7ZY
www . dhfonline . org . uk
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