Rank: Forum user 
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Could anyone advise me on where to start with health and safety systems of staff working on wind turbines.
I can see many regulations that could apply, it looks like I need to study this rather quickly and I can imagane the safe systems of work, risks, controls and liabilities that will come with this type of work.
Thanks for any constructive advice.
Steve
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Rank: Forum user
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Hello Steve,
You might find this feature article from the Feb 2012 issue of SHP interesting:
http://www.shponline.co....-offshore-wind-of-change
It's not a blow-by-blow account of all the applicable regulations but it's a good overview of and introduction to the industry.
Tina (SHP editor)
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Rank: Super forum user 
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The umbrella body is RenewableUK and they have several wind farm related H&S standards, guides, etc. on their website. Their 2013 annual H&S conference is at the end of this month - so might be a place to make contacts?
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Rank: Super forum user
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Tina - As this thread is about wind farms I guess that some forum users will be wondering whether your reference to a "blow by blow" account was coincidental or not!
Puns in publishing certainly seem to be in vogue at present. The front cover of the latest edition of SHP magazine shows a photo of Oscar Wilde, the famous Victorian writer, poet and wit, behind the caption "Who's wild about OSHCR?" However, the pun might have been lost on any readers who didn't recognise the photo.
Steve - My apologies for the jocular deviation from your topic. With no experience of wind farms myself the only direct response I can offer is that the photo on currrent IOSH membership card shows someone wearing a harness and lanyard while working on top of a wind turbine. The photo was the subject of a thread last March at http://forum.iosh.co.uk/...spx?g=posts&t=104561 which elicited a brief reply from one IOSH member who said he worked in the wind farm industry.
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Rank: Super forum user
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Rank: Super forum user
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Steve
I work for the Transmission System Operator in Ireland and we were on of the stakeholders involved with the Irish Wind Energy Association who recently developed some very good H&S guidelines through detailed and extensive consultation with key players, including the enforcing authority.
It is freely available, link below.
http://www.iwea.com/cont...%20Wind%20Guidelines.pdf
Regards
Jonty
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Rank: Forum user
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Steve,
I work for a company that owns and operates wind farms in the UK. Is it wind farm operations and maintenance or construction you are interested in?
If you let me know through IM exactly what you are after, I'll try and point you in the right direction.
Chris
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Rank: Forum user
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Thanks All for the advice.
Chris its on the maintennance(painting) side.
Steve
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Rank: Forum user
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Is it onshore or offshore? Inside or outside the turbine? Work at height or at ground level. Will you be working inside the substation? The nacelle? (the bit at the top with all the machinery in) the HV or switchger room?
If I knew a bit more about the task I would be happy to offer more advice on what you should consider for your safe system of work.
The owner/operator will have their own set of wind turbine safety rules. They will ensure that the turbine is in a safe condition and all isolations are in place before your guys are allowed anywhere near it.
Things you should consider are remote locations, work at height (anyone climbing a turbine must have specialist equipment and training), bad road or track conditions to access the site (if it's onshore), sea survival training (if its offshore), adverse weather, physical fitness, medicals and anything associated with the actual painting itself.
The owner/operator will have a list of requirements that your guys must meet before they are allowed on site
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Rank: Forum user
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Also if anyone is interested in learning more, IOSH run a managing safety in the wind industry course that is pretty good, and Renewable UK have some good, free, info on their website.
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