Working from heights on scaffolding structures already has plenty of safety hazards which must carefully be addressed to minimise the risk of any injuries. As you can imagine, working on scaffolding during the summer months compounds these risks as simple dehydration can result in a loss of concentration and alertness. Maintaining hydration and implementing control measures to regulate the heat properly is vital for worker safety, and both management and workers are responsible for taking the appropriate actions to ensure their workplace remains safe.
Working in hot environments naturally has adverse health effects which significantly affects efficiency, safety, and worker performance. To give you some insight into the types of control measures which should be implemented in the summer months, today we’ll be exploring some of the approaches used to address these workplace issues. Types of heat stress disorders The following describes the type of heat stress disorders which are typically experienced by workers in hot environments.
Educating workers To protect against these heat stress disorders and dehydration, it's very important that workers are educated in the signs and symptoms alongside the methods used to manage hydration. For instance, thirst is a late warning sign of dehydration where the body has already reached 2% dehydration and workers may suffer from a reduction in concentration, reaction times, and alertness as well as an increased heart rate. Dehydration at 3% is the same as blowing 0.08 on a breathalyser and has a significant effect on cognitive abilities. Dehydration at 4% stunts co-ordination and reaction times, whilst dehydration at 15% causes death. Work procedures To minimise the risks of working in a hot environment, management should employ the following control measures:
As well as this, workers have an obligation to take measures to mitigate the risks of heat stress disorders and maintain hydration. These measures include:
Always remember that fatigue speeds up heat stress disorders so sufficient sleep and rest is required in order to maintain energy levels throughout the day. A simple error caused by dehydration on the ground is pretty harmless, but it could have drastic results on a scaffolding platform. If you require any additional information on dealing with heat on scaffolding this summer, get in contact with the experts at Uni-Span by phoning their team on 1300 882 825.
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March 2019
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