Safe and sound with Kingspan

Mechanical handling can greatly improve the health and safety of roofing operatives - and make the roofing process faster and more cost efficient.

Mechanical handling can greatly improve the health and safety of roofing operatives - and make the roofing process faster and more cost efficient, explains Steve Ball, field service engineer of Kingspan Insulated Panels.

The Government, through the HSE, has made plain its determination to reduce the risk of fatality and injury on construction sites.

Every year, over 50% of fatalities (and a very high proportion of serious injuries) are caused by falls from heights.

Understandably, there is a spotlight on all activities that occur at height.

This includes roofing and cladding where, traditionally, lifting and fixing activities have always been carried out at height.

Although employers have for a long time, had clear responsibilities under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, the introduction earlier this year of the Work at Height Regulations have really focused the minds of designers and constructors on reducing the amount of work that is carried out at high level.

The new Regulations incorporate a hierarchy for decision-makers that starts off by asking whether the activity has to be carried out at height at all.

If the answer is yes, then there are further recommendations about how to do it safely, but the clear message from the Regulations is that to minimise - and ideally remove altogether - work at height.

Insulated roof panel systems have a clear advantage in this area because operatives only have to carry out one activity - fixing the panels - at height, as opposed to the three or four activities involved in fixing built up systems.

But there is more that roofing contractors can do to improve operative safety, by using mechanical methods for lifting and placing the panels.

Mechanical handling covers a wide variety of different types of equipment, including offloading facilities, cranes, remote control handling solutions and self-powered units.

They are being continually refined as the industry's needs change and, in recent years, because of close collaboration with materials producers, such as panel manufacturers.

Introducing mechanical handling to the cladding and roofing process instantly reduces the amount of manual lifting undertaken by workers and can drastically cut the number of man hours worked at height.

It can also contribute to a reduction in back injuries and muscular skeletal problems caused by lifting and manipulating heavy, awkward panels at ground level.

Significantly, mechanical handling also gives roofing contractors substantial productivity benefits and reduced labour costs, while clients often get a more efficient, cost effective solution.

By adopting mechanical methods for lifting and positioning roofing panels, it is possible to install up to 2,000m2 of roof per day.

This, understandably, has a massive impact on clients' profitability, where early completion can result in a building being let, sold or in operation weeks ahead of schedule, allowing the client to start recouping the construction costs.

These efficiency benefits come about in part because the mechanical systems on the market today are far more capable of handling long length panels than operatives using manual methods.

For example, a standard 6m long panel can be lifted at ground level by two operatives.

But if it is to be rotated or lifted above waist height, you need more operatives to do this safely.

And, while 6m panels are often specified, manufacturers are keen to supply longer length panels where possible as a single panel - for example 18m long - because this offers an efficient, joint-free roof solution and requires the minimum of activity at height.

Mechanical handling systems can easily handle panels of this length, with some being able to rotate the panels as well as simply lifting them.

They also, crucially, eliminate the need for operatives to be trying to lift, rotate and place heavy panels.

Most mechanical handling methods can also manipulate panels with far greater precision than is possible with manual methods.

There is very little risk of the panel slipping or colliding with other panels or obstacles, again improving construction efficiency by cutting down waste caused by damaged panels.

And panels can then be lifted, positioned and fixed far quicker than with manual methods.

The latest generation of insulated roofing and cladding panels have been designed for use with manual handling equipment, so together these products represent a complete solution.

This has been a significant challenge for both the equipment designers and panel manufacturers, but now we have a number of ingenious solutions on the market.

As a result, the mechanisation of roofing and cladding goes right through from manufacture to stacking, packing and installation, and manual handling can be eliminated almost entirely.

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