Give firefighters a break: train workers at height to self-rescue

Gary Johns, head of the windows and industrial division at In Depth Managed Services, explains why proactive contractors have a responsibility to ensure window cleaners and other workers at height are not only equipped to do their jobs, but trained to self-rescue.

Do you remember the 2010 Baker Street rescue during which two fire rescue units and 15 firefighters were called to rescue two window cleaners stuck in a window-cleaning cradle on the fourth floor of a seven-storey building?  Firefighters using specialist line rescue equipment secured the cradle and lowered the men to the ground. It reportedly took two hours just for the window cleaners to raise awareness of being stuck before the rescue could begin.

This is an example of a near miss accident that would not have happened had the window cleaners been trained to get themselves out of the dangerous situation. With knowledge of self-rescue techniques and using equipment that enables them to do this, they would have been on the ground long before the firefighters showed up.

Not only would this have saved them from their ordeal it would also have saved taxpayers’ money and prevented the duty holder or property owner involved from being fined by the emergency services or from facing legal costs, had there been any injuries or fatalities.

Preventing accidents and fatalities

Proper training for workers at height and their senior managers in preventing accidents and fatalities is not only good practice, but a legal requirement for duty holders, which is often simply not being met.

In terms of Regulation Four of the Work at Height Regulations, first published in 2005 (and updated in 2007), property owners or duty holders are responsible for planning for emergency and rescue situations.

The duty holder and contractor are jointly responsible for the provision of correct evacuation equipment or training. For instance, if the duty holder owns the cradle in our example above, the onus is on the duty holder to supply or specify within procurement the correct equipment. In both cases the operative should also be fully trained to use it and fully up to date in evacuation procedures should it become faulty or break down.

From September 2012 all In Depth Managed Services’ window-cleaners are undergoing self-rescue courses to reduce the risk of accidents with Impact43, a training company that delivers nationwide training for window cleaners and their managers.

Although the buck ultimately stops with the duty holder to ensure workers are adequately trained for the job, we believe proactive contractors should ensure its window cleaners are already fully trained in using self-rescue equipment and techniques.

This enables the duty holder or management agent to comply with the law, without any further efforts or costs on their part and should be an important consideration when choosing a contractor, outweighing any short term saving that could be had by procuring a contractor whose operatives are not adequately trained.

This ‘saving’ should be offset against the potentially far greater legal costs, if the duty holder should be held responsible for a workplace accident or fatality because the staff had not been trained.

What is self-rescue training?

Ideally, practical self-rescue training should start with generic training in rescue equipment in a controlled environment. This includes learning how to inspect equipment such as harnesses, as well as getting out of towers, masts and other structures during an emergency. The training is next taken into a site, normally focusing on structural fixing points, with different evacuation procedures and equipment needed for different buildings.

By taking the initiative to ensure our window cleaners, as well as managers and supervisors are adequately trained, In Depth Managed Services hope to set a precedent for contractors to commit to reducing risk and improving general standard of safety in our industry.

For more information on In Depth Managed Services call 0845 6052251

email info@indepth-cleaning.co.uk or go to www.indepth-cleaning.co.uk. 

For more information about Impact43, visit www.training43.com

Published in Tomorrow’s FM – November 2012