The Health &  Safety Executive for Northern Ireland (HSENI) will be carrying out an inspection initiative focusing on machinery guarding, safe isolation and maintenance procedures across Northern Ireland concrete premises from 13th November through December 2023.

After a couple of recent fatalities in the sector, inspectors will be checking that machinery is adequately guarded to prevent access to dangerous parts.

Inspectors will be checking that operators have proper procedures in place for safe isolation and lock-out of equipment, and reviewing the measures in place to ensure both routine and non-routine maintenance can be carried out safely.

HSENI principal inspector Brian Pryce said: “Machinery guarding, isolation and maintenance activities remain a major risk for the sector. Our key message is to prevent access to dangerous parts of machinery, and to develop, implement and supervise appropriate procedures for carrying out maintenance (i.e. isolation and lock-out).

“In the past two years two fatal incidents have occurred at concrete premises involving work equipment. Our inspectors will be checking that adequate arrangements are in place to guard dangerous moving parts of work equipment, and that suitable procedures are in place to safely complete both routine and non-routine maintenance.”

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