Taking the initiative to help the construction industry work more safely has won a Safety Award for the McConnell Dowell Christchurch Earthquake Rebuild Safety team.
The team was today presented with the last ever SCIRT (Stronger Christchurch Infrastructure Rebuild Team) Bill Perry Safety Award, an award recognises SCIRT teams that continually raise the bar of safety and safety awareness.
The team developed a comprehensive Guide for Managing Risks From High Pressure Water Jetting/Hydro-Excavating, which is aimed at improving safety when undertaking this high-risk activity.
Based on a document produced by Safe Work Australia, the McConnell Dowell Guide has been developed to align with New Zealand law - the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 and Health and Safety at Work General Risk and Workplace Management Regulations 2016.
The Guide covers the risk management process, safety recommendations, equipment care and maintenance, personal protective equipment, planning, pre-operational and operational procedures, and hazardous waste. It has been reviewed by WorkSafe New Zealand, and compliance with it by a Person Controlling a Business Undertaking (PCBU) would be deemed to be “taking reasonable steps” under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.
Use of the document by hydro-operators on SCIRT sites has resulted in a noticeable reduction in hydro-related incidents.
The Guide is available to any person or organisation wishing to safely undertake High-Pressure Water Jetting or Hydro-Excavation and can be downloaded from the Publications page on the McConnell Dowell website.
The SCIRT Bill Perry Award is named after Bill Perry, the late CEO of Fulton Hogan and former member of the Alliance Leadership Team, to honour Bill's fierce commitment to workplace safety in construction. Bill was highly focussed on ensuring that everyone who worked on the infrastructure rebuild, and the public that worked around our work sites, were kept safe.
L-R: Craig Baynon (HS Advisor), Karen McIntyre (HSE Administrator), Ian Alsweiler (HSE Manager), George Rankin (HS Advisor), Anna Harrison (HS Advisor) and Phil Terry (SCIRT Project Manager)
