Safer and superior access solutions for home builders
Filed Under Country Curtain | Posted on January 12, 2008
For home builders, balancing safety responsibility with the need for high productivity at manageable cost has never been greater. This is especially true when working at height is involved. For safe, innovative, total access solutions, many organisations are turning to market leader SGB.
Whatever the scale or demands of the housing development, the unrivalled product selection and wealth of experience available from SGB means complete peace of mind being brought to any project.
The extensive range of access solutions available from SGB are all employed to a greater or lesser extent throughout the home build market, and include traditional and system scaffolding; Mastclimbers%26reg;; temporary roofing systems; edge protection and fall arrest equipment; powered access in the form of self-propelled scissor lifts and telescopic booms plus, of course, a huge range of light access aluminium and GRP equipment for light duty maintenance and fit-out applications.
Maybe its a traditional build, brick and block classic housing development, where flexibility and timing are of the essence in the provision of progressive scaffolding. Or possibly its a timber frame, where all the lifts have to be built at once. This form of construction, in particular, is increasingly meeting demands for fast-track housing projects. This has been recognized by SGB, whose CUPLOK%26reg; system scaffold can easily be adapted to meet these specific requirements.
Due to the ease and speed of erecting the system, CUPLOK%26reg; can be installed as a compliant Work at Height access solution during construction of the timber frame itself and, when this is completed, it can quickly be adapted to provide access for brickwork or external fa%26ccedil;ade works.
Russell Adams, business development director of SGB, comments: Modern methods of construction and fast-track construction programmes need fast-track access solutions and CUPLOK%26reg; offers a quick, cost effective and proven system. House builders and developers are increasingly acknowledging the safety and performance benefits that we can offer.
Every situation is vastly different and needs an access partner with a real understanding of what is needed and the ability to provide it. Fast-track steel-frame affordable housing is another increasingly popular method of construction, where speed is everything and the built scaffolding needs to be both on-site first and adaptable. Regeneration and social housing projects often involve the complexity of brown field sites and moving up the scale, the very different demands brought about by new build or refurbishment of multi-storey concrete frame structures present differing challenges, all which SGB is able to overcome.
In hardware terms alone, SGB has the most comprehensive stock inventory in the country and the largest network of branches. Added to that, is its unrivalled long-proven expertise in planning, design, scheduling, logistics, cost management and training not to mention its total financial stability.
For complex projects, expert design and engineering skills are fundamental to creating safe and efficient, cost-effective access, and by combining its experience and extensive product solutions with the very latest design software, SGB is able to provide a complete structural analysis and arrive at the optimum solution every time.
When it comes to safety management, it is the implementation of proven health and safety control processes, coupled with effective training, communication and systematic risk assessment that has seen SGBs safety record set the standard for the industry.
The company has even introduced a new %26lsquo;Tie tag scaffold safety system that minimises the risk of human error. One of the main causes of scaffold collapse is ineffectual inspection and for the first time, by using the pioneering new %26lsquo;Tie tag system, tie quantities and patterns can be visibly checked from the ground.
CUPLOK%26reg;, designed and developed by SGB, has grown to become the most widely used system scaffold in the world. It is a lightweight, fully galvanised multi-purpose steel scaffold system that can be used for general access and vertical load support on a wide range of applications including continuous fa%26ccedil;ade, circular scaffold, birdcage access and staircase access.
It is much quicker to erect than traditional methods and has a %26#39;node point%26#39; or fastening method, by which four horizontals can be fastened at one time making a very rigid connection. The horizontals bear directly on to the verticals, are firmly clamped by the action of the top cup and there are no loose parts to misplace. CUPLOK%26reg; is also highly resistant to site damage and accepts scaffold boards, battens or decking platforms and heavy duty access up to 3kN/sqm platform loading.
The uniquely diverse range of traditional and powered access solutions available from SGB is certainly demonstrated by the Mast Climbing Work Platform, an automated platform system that provides fast, efficient access for both men and materials to their precise work position at up to 100m. It is ideal for cladding, fa%26ccedil;ade work, new construction, restoration and demolition, and the range includes double or single mast work platforms and transport hoists. Telescopic extensions can be tailored to suit the building profile and safety features include automatic levelling, safety limit switches to control travel, manual brake release levers and centrifugal brakes on motors.
Glasgow Harbour%26hellip;
Mast Climbing Work Platforms are an ideal access solution for largescale refurbishment and over-cladding projects, but their advantages are also being acknowledged within the new build sector. A major development at Glasgow Harbour, comprising three blocks each up to 18- storeys high, is a good example, where a combination of twenty single and twin Mastclimbers%26reg; have been installed for the duration of the three-year project, which is due for completion in spring 2009.
This multi-storey development features balconies, which can present a major challenge to some access systems and on this project the balconies project up to 1.8m from the fa%26ccedil;ade. The solution offered by SGB was to erect the work platform masts outside the balcony line, and then to fit the 24m long platforms with sliding cantilevered extensions that provide the operatives with access to the fa%26ccedil;ade at any level.
Camden Housing%26hellip;
Installing new curtain walling onto existing residential tower blocks can pose specific access challenges, particularly if it is a high block and incorporates residential balconies. Careful specification of the right type of access equipment is important for its impact on efficiency, safety and security on site.
Major refurbishment work was undertaken recently by specialist contractors Harley Curtain Wall UK, who needed to install external curtain walling on five, 22-storey residential blocks for Camden Council in London. Four of the blocks each required three single mast units and six twin mast installations, with the fifth block needing two twin masts and four single masts. Harley chose the system for the project because of its ability to provide fast efficient and safe working on 20m platform lengths, the installation time being days instead of weeks with traditional scaffolding, and the fact there are fewer fa%26ccedil;ade anchor fittings.
The new Tie Tag system is a major safety breakthrough%26hellip;
SGB was also appointed access contractor by Rialto Homes, part of Fairview New Homes Ltd, for a development in London Road, Croydon, where CUPLOK%26reg; system scaffold is being used for the access requirements. The focus here is very much on SGBs innovative new scaffold tagging system, being the first project to use the system in full and be completely tagged.
The principle behind the system is to control safe use and access by keeping scaffold users clearly informed as to the status of the scaffold whether it is incomplete, or fit to use and, in addition, it clearly identifies scaffold ties as critical components of the scaffold.
There are other tagging systems used in the industry, but the SGB system is particularly simple and highly visible. It consists of a three-step %26lsquo;traffic light process. The first action is to ensure that immediately after the base lift and ladder fixings have been completed, red and white %26lsquo;Danger Incomplete Scaffolding Tags are secured to the scaffold at the access point. At step three, when the whole scaffold is complete, a green %26lsquo;Scaffold Inspection Record Tag is fitted and signed by the competent SGB person in charge.
The key element is step two, where during the building of the scaffold, a unique yellow %26lsquo;Scaffold Tie Tag is securely fixed to every single tie in the structure, stating Do not remove this scaffold tie or tag. These yellow scaffold tie tags can be seen clearly from either the ground or platform, so when the scaffold is being tied to an adjacent structure, everyone can monitor the progress.
For home builders, balancing safety responsibility with the need for high productivity at manageable cost has never been greater. This is especially true when working at height is involved. For safe, innovative, total access solutions, many organisations are turning to market leader SGB.
SGB is continually demonstrating its ability to deliver innovative, safe and cost-effective access solutions to home builders, and no matter how straightforward or complex the project, the company is committed to making a positive difference wherever it is on site.
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