Money vs Safety

Can it really be true that in difficult financial times money men are potentially placing their employers at risk?

During the recent financial climate as an organisation who supply to many blue chip organisations, councils and government establishments throughout the UK it has been very disconcerting and somewhat alarming to witness the swing in the ethos of many in relation to the awarding of their contracts on a heavily cost weighted basis.

The steeplejack & lightning protection industry has taken huge strides in recent years to improve both it’s professionalism and quality of service within the construction sector, in the main this has been achieved by a change in the mindset of business owners with particular emphasis being placed on training and development and also a reduction in the amount of sub contractor labour otherwise known as ‘price work’.

All the hard work and gains made by many in our sector is now seriously under threat as the money men within awarding organisations look to cut costs by awarding contracts seemingly compromising on the level of training achievement and accreditation that is otherwise available.

The steeplejack sector in particular has long been an industry where little encouragement is required for those businesses less willing to train and achieve to take full advantage of such an opportunity, a fact that many of the long established steeplejack business will echo.
The outcome? - Sadly whilst those companies’s in our sector who have failed to invest in the development of their business benefit from an increase in activity those who have invested heavily in their business are left fighting a battle for contracts and as part of that battle face an uphill challenge in convincing the money men of the folly of their ways.

A tender recently received by Churchill’s issued by a UK council stated that the tender evaluation process would consist of 60% cost & 40% ability, in the world we live and in particular in our potentially high risk sector should the aforementioned ratios stated in the councils tender not require exchanging?

OHSAS 18001 2007

In theory the attainment of OHSAS 18001 2007 should serve to provide a springboard for any organisation to expand their market share via clearly being able to demonstrate to potential clients their proven and documented approach to health & safety in the work place.

However the sad truth is that organisations including blue chips fail to fully grasp the importance of such an accreditation and those that do are slow to promote a preference to working with companies who have achieved OHSAS 18001 2007 throughout their organisation.

This can be vey frustrating, listening on one hand to organisations promoting their values and approach to H&S but in reality experiencing their failings in ensuring companies holding such accreditations are actively promoted from within.

The most frustrating scenario is the one of familiarity, often large blue chips operate as satellites and the selection of a contractor can often be purely based on experience e.g having used a particular company for years.

Regardless of this Churchill Steeplejacks are still very proud to be the first Steeplejack company to be accredited to this standard.

Churchills Accreditation

A total of ten Churchill Steeplejacks operatives have successfully achieved the SSSTS accreditation for site supervision.

This level of commitment to training will ensure that all Churchill sites will have the construction industry requirement in relation to on site supervision. Add to this the following minimum requirement for a Churchill Steeplejacks (UK) Ltd site based team and our clients have arguably one the most highly trained and qualified workforces at their disposal;

The following are all managed by a team consisting of two NEBOSH in construction departmental managers

SSSTS
CSCS Industry Gold Card
CCNSG Passport to Safety
Quarry Passport
NVQ Level 2 Steeplejack/Lightning Protection Engineers
NVQ Level 3 Advanced Steeplejack
IPAF
Confined Space Working
NDT Dye Penetrant Testing
Abrasive Wheels
Mobile Towers
Safety Harness Inspection
PAT Testing
LOLER Equipment Testing
Appointed Person
Asbestos Awareness
Rescue & Recovery at Height
Slinger/Banksman
First Aid
Safe Earth Testing
Safe Road Digging

SPECIALISTS IN HIGH RISE DEMOLITION & STRUCTURAL MAINTENANCE

In 2004 Churchill Steeplejacks (UK) Ltd were awarded the contract to complete the external refurbishment of a115m tall concrete cooling tower at Ratcliffe On Soar Power station.

Following the successful completion of the contract that saw Churchills provide, install and maintain all motorised access cradles and complete the contract with no sub contract element the contract was extended for the following four year period to include 6 of the 8no cooling towers at Ratcliffe on Soar.

Each cooling tower project involved up to 12 operatives working on a tower at any one time from the motorised access platforms suspended from the summit of the tower

One of the biggest challenges faced was how to ensure safe access and egress for all operatives working on the tower together with ensuring systems for effectively rescuing and recovering operatives within a twelve minute period from any position on the tower were in place at all times. This was successfully achieved via the deployment of a full time rope access team positioned on the scaffold at the summit of the tower.

Over 56000 man hours were engaged and in excess of 5000 temporary anchor locations were installed to complete the six towers, all being completed within program, within budget and most importantly without incident.

Suspended Access Platforms in operation

Installation of access scaffold around the full circumference

Traditional Profession conforming to Modern Ways

The traditional steeplejack profession remains a peculiarity in this modern high tech world, with stringent legislative requirements for working at height bringing about trade groups such as ATLAS, IRATA, PASMA and IPAF, the steeplejack industry that previously relied on experience mixed with a certain amount of bravery has been forced to reinvent itself.

As part of this reinvention process the steeplejack industry now operates its own NVQ based qualification with it’s very own training college based at the Construction Skills Bircham Newton site in Norfolk. Possessing an NVQ qualification is not a pre requisite for employment in the steeplejack sector, however the number of steeplejacks whose only claim of competency is through industry experience is rapidly dwindling.  Like many traditionally based industries the process of changing the mindset of both employees & employers a like could be likened to turning an oil tanker around.

The experienced modern day Steeplejack Foreman will be able to recall a time in his youth when the wearing of a safety harness and attachment at all times to a means of preventing a fall was unheard of. These experienced long serving Foreman have witnessed vast improvements in their working environment over a period of 20 years and whilst bravery will always be a prerequisite for a steeplejack thankfully stupidity and unnecessary risk taking will not.

It is without question that the Steeplejack industry has become a much safer sector within construction, with an NVQ Level 2 & most recently level 3 in Advanced Steeplejacking (constructed by Churchill Steeplejacks very own Health & Safety Manager Darreth Crane) now available the mindset required for anyone wanting to make a career steeplejacking has changed forever.  

As a modern company operating in the steeplejack sector all 23no Churchill Steeplejacks site based operatives have completed or are currently enrolled on an NVQ Level 2 Steeplejacking qualification. Coupled with 10no Foreman who also posses the Site Supervisors Safety Training Scheme qualification our company wide CSCS Gold Standard and a raft of 3rd party training qualifications’ ensures our workforce is not only highly qualified but most importantly are adequately trained and competent to complete any task safely whilst working at height.