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BASIC SAFETY PROCEDURE

PRECAST ERECTION

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Basic Safety Measures:
Introduction: In the erection of precast elements there are basic safety precautions which must be observed. These include the obvious precautions of not standing under loads being hoisted, ensuring that equipment having adequate lifting capacities is provided, and the safe working conditions are established. It is however worth detailing some of the more specific hazards involved in precast unit erection work and the special precautions to be adopted to minimise and control these risks. Securing of Lifting Device: In addition to checking that the devices themselves are sound, are of appropriate rating and have been recently tested, an examination of the lifting points themselves should be carried out. Before any unit is offloaded from the delivery vehicles the lifting points should be examined to ensure that they have not been damaged during handling or loading and have not suffered corrosion. It could well be that loading was carried out using straps and not the lifting lugs or inserts which could have suffered corrosion during an extended works storage period. When fitting lifting eyes into sockets (where provided) prior to lifting a components, a check must be made to ensure that the eye is fully screwed into the socket. Lifting Operations: It is a given that all items of equipment will have been checked to ensure that their rating are adequate for the loads to be lifted and that adequate cleared areas have been marked to ensure the safety of personnel. In many instances it is likely that the operation will be close to the lifting limits of the equipment. Careful inspections should therefore be carried out to ensure that crane outriggers are located on secure and stable ground, particularly after adverse weather conditions, and that wind conditions etc do not endanger the lift. Tag ropes should be sufficient in number to control the lift and be long and strong enough for purpose. Prior to the lift operation consideration should be given to the minimum safe area to be cleared for all orientations of the crane during the lifting process and through the crane traverse. Releasing the Load: Once the lifted has been secured, a cherry picker or similar equipment can be used to release shackles to free the crane. Care should be taken to ensure that this equipment also is operating on safe ground conditions and that it is working within its safe operating reach.

Care must also be taken to ensure that the released lifting tackle will not side swipe the access equipment once the tackle is released, since the tackle itself can be very heavy. Tag lines should also be released upon complete of the lift to avoid entanglement with other lifts.

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Security of Erected Area: As areas are progressively completed secure barriers to protect edges of erected areas are to be erected to afford protection against falls, and toe boards secured to prevent items being kicked off the elevated areas.