Rank: Forum user 
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Hi
Just past a building site where a flat bed lorry was being unloaded.
People standing on the bed of the lorry were tethered with fall arrest harnesses to a rope (I think) barrier that ran round the lorry at about 3ft from the bed. The rope barrier was supported at about 6 ft intervals, and didn't seem that tight. The people did not need to stand on the load to arrange the slings.
My questions is why the fall arrest harness? Surely the fall from the bed of the lorry would not be far enough to allow the harness to catch you before you hit the ground.
Roughly: the harness is attached about let's say 8 feet from the road. It's round the persons waist so he'd fall perhaps 5 feet before his feet hit the ground.
Are these harnesses that good?
Something for a Friday I guess.
Graham
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Rank: Forum user
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stupid is that stupid does
forest gump.
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Rank: Super forum user
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Graham
Saw something similar myself the other day, in this case the staff were attached to a tape that ran down the middle of the length of the flat bed at a height of about 6 or 7 feet above the bed. At first sight it looked ok, but it was only when you got closer that you could see that the lanyards were not short enough to act as fall restraint. The people could have still fallen off the edge of the bed and if not hit the ground have been swung into the side of the vehicle with all the hook's and stick out bits (technical term) that you find there. Needed a little more thought in my opinion.
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Rank: Super forum user
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Rank: Super forum user
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You will have to excuse my bluntness on this.
Many (Not all)of the UKCG and other major contractors shirk there responsibility in ensuring they have supplied a means under the WAHR to assist deliveries of goods from suppliers or hirers of plant.
These people percieve that they can demand that short term work on trailers or flatbeds requires some type of restraint. Therefore suppliers give their Transport drivers fall restraint or fall arrest systems and say use it sadly everybody is then happy!
This type of work is everyones responsibility not just the PC or the supplier and they need to work together on this.
I deal with this frequently and it is sad when you see what you have seen Graham which is just so someone can say well he had his harness on?
Things will never change in my opinion whilst buyers and quantity surveyors are left responsible for the expenditure on sites.
Rant Over
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Rank: Forum user
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Well said, Alex. There are some occasions when the easy thing to do is to provide everyone at risk with what appears to be suitable PPE. I remember the early days when I worked in commercial forestry, all we had to trim the branches of the felled trees was a 5lb axe. No hard hat, no kevlar trousers, no toe-tectors, no ear defenders, nothing. It was all down to information, instruction & training/education. You got it right because the consequences were severe if you didn't. I recall an occasion when a tree which had been felled got stuck up in the branches of another one. I was felling the second tree to assist in getting the first one down when there was a rustle and a crack. I was just in time to move out of the way when the first tree decided to come down anyway!!! If I had been wearing all the paraphernalia including ear defenders - would I still be here? I'm glad to say that I have almost reached my bus pass so must have been doing something right.
Discuss
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Rank: Super forum user 
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Graham
it makes me cringe every time I see anyone on the back of a flatbed but in this case at least someone has put some thought in to reducing the risk for their employees; and I expect that it would not have been a fall arrest system but a fall restraint system.
You say that there was no need for them to be on the back and in 9 out of 10 cases I see, that's true, there's no need to be on the trailer. Most operations can be carried out from the ground level with a little thought.
In most cases it comes down to planning and fore thought from whoever places the order or arranges the delivery by considering how much, how will it be off loaded, where will it be off loaded / stacked and other hazards in the area. From this we can decide on the most suitable vehicle to use to prevent the need for WAH.
I accept that I made the solution simple but behind this there needs to be good policies, procedures, training, supervision and behaviour changes.
Steve
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