NECDM November Newsletter for your information

1. www.necdm.co.uk
Newsletter Edition 37 - November 2009
In This Issue
Introduction - Fall From Height Prosecution - Build Safe UAE - HSE Asbestos
Campaign - Shocking Photographs - Forthcoming Events
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Introduction
This month sees our final seminar for 2009 - ‘Planning for Emergency‘. Bookings are now
being taken so reserve your place by e-mailing Elizabeth Brown at necdm@hotmail.co.uk.
Please let us know what topics you would like covered in future seminars.
Also please keep your articles and photographs coming for future editions of the
Newsletter.
Fall From Height Prosecution
HSE recently prosecuted both Weber Trading Ltd and one of
the Directors, Jeffrey Robinson, following a serious incident
in which Mr Lucasz Czuba, 26, of Longbenton, Newcastle fell
seven metres whilst carrying out refurbishment work on the
roof of a building at "Shoe City", Sands Lane Industrial
Estate, Gateshead in July 2007.
The building owners contracted Webber Trading Ltd to carry out industrial roof repairs
which involved fitting steel sheets over the existing fragile plastic roof lights. The team of
four working on the roof included the director Jeffrey Robinson.
During the course of the work, Mr Czuba stepped onto an unprotected fragile plastic
rooflight which gave way and he fell seven metres to the warehouse floor, sustaining
serious injuries.
On 29 September 2009, at Gateshead Magistrates Court Webber Trading Ltd, of Keighley
Mill, 43 Bank Parade, Burnley, was fined £6,000 after pleading guilty to charges under
section 3(1) and section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. The company
was also ordered to pay £2,838.20 costs and £15 victim surcharge.
1

2. Jeffrey Robinson, director of Webber Trading Ltd, who was present on the roof directing
the work at the time of the incident, was fined £1,000 after pleading guilty to charges
under section 37 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 - for breaches of section
3(1) and section 2(1) . He was also ordered to pay £200 costs and £15 victim surcharge.
Interestingly the company has a previous health and safety conviction from 2002 following
an accident where a worker fell 10m through a fragile roof sheet.
HSE Inspector Martin Smith commented after the case:
"Last year (2007-08) more than half (52%) of the workers who died on construction sites
worked in refurbishment, repair and maintenance. Of these, 34 were killed following a fall
from height during construction work."
"The measures which should have been taken in order to prevent this incident happening
are straightforward and well documented. It is clear that the director and the company
failed to recognise the risks posed in working on the fragile rooflights. This serious incident
could have been avoided."
Build Safe UAE
We are please to inform you that the Group has informally
linked up the Build Safe UAE who are the leading health &
safety organisation aimed at improving the health, safety and
welfare conditions of all construction industry stakeholders
through the free exchange and sharing of information
between organisations working in the UAE.
Build Safe UAE consists of a number of major (International and Local) Developers,
Contractors, Consultants, Project Managers and Service Organisations of the UAE
Construction Industry who have agreed to share their ‘Best Practice Safety Information’ in
the forms of risk assessments, safe working methods, safety presentations, safety alerts,
tool box talks, best practice case studies, etc. for the greater good of the whole industry in
an effort to improve the general standard of Health, Safety and Welfare across the UAE.
Build Safe UAE have agreed to allow us to distribute this information to our Members and
publish it on our Website. We will be reciprocating and encourage you to submit Safety
Alerts following accidents / incidents on you sites. All submissions will be anonymised.
You can visit their website at www.buildsafeuae.com
HSE Asbestos Campaign
HSE’s Asbestos - Hidden Killer Campaign re-launches 2
November 2009. The campaign was originally launched in
October 2008 following a regional pilot in the North West.
The campaign succeeded in raising awareness of asbestos
risks - 8 out of 10 tradesmen were aware of the adverts and
71 % said they had or planned to take further precautions.
Asbestos-related disease accounts for around 4000 deaths a year, the biggest single
2

3. cause of work-related deaths in Great Britain. More people die as a result of exposure to
asbestos than in road accidents.
To keep the messages hitting home, HSE is running a similar campaign this year, starting
on 2 November. It will aim to help tradesmen and maintenance workers know when they
might be working with asbestos and what they can do to protect themselves.
The campaign will run for 4 weeks and will include:
• national radio and press advertising,
• PR activity using real-life case studies,
• a direct mail and
• online activity.
Shocking Photographs
This month we have some more photographs from Riyadh that is proving to be a hot bed
of unsafe practice! The photo on the left shows unfenced demolition work in the middle of
a row of shops and next to a four lane highway. The photograph on the right needs no
explanation.
Forthcoming Events
25th November 2009 – Planning for Emergency
The event will be held at the Esporta Sunderland Health & Racquet Club, Doxford
International from 1 p.m. (for coffee with seminar to commence at 1.30 p.m.) to 4.30 p.m.
The programme for the first few months of 2010 will be published in a future edition of the
Newsletter.
3