Proper management of hazardous substances on-site is important to keep everyone and our environment safe. Legally speaking, hazardous substances refer to substances which have any of the following properties:
If you are using any hazardous substance in the workplace you need to make sure they are stored, used, transported and disposed of correctly, which will help to reduce the risk to anyone who uses or comes into contact with them.
To capture what hazardous substances you are using you must by law have a hazardous substance register along with the relevant safety data sheet (SDS).
This is a list of all your hazardous substances (including hazardous waste) that is used, handled, or stored at any of your sites. Having a register will ensure you know the substances you have on-site, the safety measures you need to follow, and what to do in case of an emergency.
Keeping your register in a central location on your site means that in case of an emergency, it can be accessed quickly by anyone who needs it.
Here are some key bits of information that need to be included on your register:
Not only do you need the information above, but you must also make sure that the register is up to date and available on-site.
As the register represents the maximum amount of the substance held, it means it’s not going to be a daily task to keep it up-to-date. But if the maximum quantity changes, the register needs to reflect this. We recommend that you review your register each time you make a change to ensure it’s up to date and accurate.
Creating your hazardous substance register is made much simpler with our Hazardous Substances Register, HazardCo members can access this via the HazardCo Hub in the templates section.
The purpose of a safety data sheet (SDS) is to provide key information about hazardous substances to the people who handle, use or store them or who could be exposed to them.
An SDS tells you
Remember it is the business owner’s responsibility to have an up to date SDS for each hazardous substance and make sure that their workers have access to it. The SDS must be less than 5 years old.
If you need a hand getting started with your hazardous substances register or would like more information, get in touch with the friendly HazardCo team today – we’re always happy to help.
When it comes to construction sites, ensuring the health & safety and wellbeing of everyone on-site is the top priority. It’s more than just wearing hard hats and high-vis vests. It involves careful planning and preparation of the specific needs, hazards and risks of each project. That’s where Site-Specific Safety Plans (SSSPs) come into play.
A SSSP is a detailed roadmap designed to ensure everyone stays safe from start to finish. It identifies the hazards, how you will minimise the risks, sets clear guidelines, and helps to create a culture of safety on-site.
Setting up health and safety with HazardCo Projects is quick and simple. All you need to do is log in to the HazardCo Hub and “create a Project”. You receive the completed SSSP straight away while the physical scan-in board will be sent out for you to display on-site.
Not only does HazardCo’s Project save you time at the start of your project, it saves time for everyone on the site. Once the project starts, everyone entering the site inducts themselves on-site using the QR code on the site scan-in board, and the QR scanner in the free HazardCo App. That’s right, everyone inducts themselves using their smartphone, no lengthy induction meetings or paperwork required, and you get a record of every completed induction too.
Make sure you request a Task Analysis from each of your contractors so you can include their Hazards and controls in your SSSP. This will help ensure you and others on site are well informed of all the hazards from start to end of the project.
Share the SSSP with the team. Anyone scanning into the site using your QR code and the HazardCo App will have immediate access. Every worker who sets foot on-site needs to know and understand the SSSP. This can be done during the site induction, where the workers learn about the project, potential hazards, and safety protocols, which they can do using the App. If you need more information on working with contractors you can check out this blog.
While there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to creating a SSSP, using digital tools like HazardCo can offer great time saving and streamlining benefits. Among many other benefits of using HazardCo, using it for SSSP means that you have:
Going digital with the HazardCo App means information flows more efficiently and this allows your teams to better collaborate with one another.
So, whether you’re building a multi residential, a new build or doing a big reno, remember: safety first, always. And with a solid SSSP in place, you’re one step closer to a successful and safe construction project.
For health and safety sorted in a flash, right from the very start of your new build, look no further than HazardCo Projects. It’s the smart way to maintain a safe site and have more time to focus on the job at hand.
If you would like to discuss your upcoming project please give our team a call on 0800 555 339.
On the farm or in the factory, transport is a major part of daily life, making vehicle safety a top priority no matter what you are doing. When using vehicles you can break down transport activities into distinct areas Safe Stop, Safe Vehicle, Safe Driver, and Safe Site – so that you can better identify the hazards and take proactive steps to manage the risks.
The concept of Safe Stop shows the importance of proper shutdown procedures for vehicles and machinery. The steps are straightforward but critical:
Following Safe Stop procedure is essential:
A Safe Vehicle is one that is well-maintained and suited to the tasks. Consider the following checklist:
Additionally:
The Safe Driver makes sure they are competent, and fit to carry out the task:
Passengers should only be allowed in designated seats that do not hinder the driver’s visibility or access to controls. Mounting or dismounting moving vehicles is strictly banned for safety reasons.
A Safe Site is characterized by organized and secure traffic management:
By addressing these four key areas—Safe Stop, Safe Vehicle, Safe Driver, and Safe Site—you can significantly improve transport safety.. Regular training, clear procedures, and a commitment to proactive safety measures are essential for protecting everyone involved in transport and vehicle movements.
If you need any advise get in touch or give the HazardCo team a call on 0800 555 339
When it comes to working safely at heights, make sure you’re eating a pie every Sunday. Wait…what?
Yep, you heard that right.
Remember the phrase: Every Sunday I Eat A Pie. It’s a handy way to remember the steps for staying safe: Eliminate, Substitute, Isolate, Engineer, Administrative, and PPE. These steps help you figure out what safety measures to use when you’re working at heights.
No matter the height you are working at, you have to make sure that you are controlling the risks, it doesn’t matter if that work is 40mm from the next surface or 40m.
Just like people argue about the best flavour of pie, there are different ways to working safely at heights, choosing the best methods such as the following examples of controls will be based on your specific situation, and the work being carried out. .
Eliminate: Not everything that needs doing has to be done “up there”. What tasks can be done on the ground before you have to do it at height? Every step achieved where you don’t have a risk of dropping objects is a reduction of other things to concentrate on when at height.
Substitute: What other methods can be used to get to the workspace? Instead of a ladder could you use a scaffold? MEWPs (like scissor lifts & boom lifts) can be really handy here, not only with safe access but also with making it easier on your body to get there and work all day.
Isolate: This means to physically prevent the contact between you and the risk (falling or even dropped objects etc) this can come in the form of guardrails, scaffolding, or nets to prevent things or people from falling to lower levels.
Engineer: This is a more permanent solution, think of your handrails on staircases or cleverly built seats with high backs around the edges of a raised deck. It’s built for purpose and will continue to deliver that outcome without you having to interact with it (passive protection) this is often referred to as safety in design.
Administrative: This is simply making people aware. Think about hazard boards, signs, warnings, toolbox talks or paperwork to communicate what you will be doing, how, and who is doing it when.
PPE: This is the likes of harnesses to prevent you getting to a place you can even fall if possible, and if you do fall then to lessen the severity of the injuries you would receive from a fall if set up correctly, a hard hat to protect your head from small items falling like screws and small items etc.
It’s important you and your team are actively involved in ensuring any work carried out at heights, is done in the safest way possible. Empower your team to speak up, highlight unsafe working situations or practices, and swiftly act to handle them.
We recommend doing a Task Analysis to put a plan in place to manage the risks involved with working at height. This will help you decide whether it’s possible to eliminate the risk of falling from height or what the most effective control/s are to minimise the risk.
So from the above, what’s your favourite flavour combinations? Which ones will satisfy your cravings to keep the team safe today?
If you’ve got a question about working at height or any other health and safety matter, the HazardCo Advisory Team is here to help. Give them a call on 0800 555 339
Running a safe site isn’t just about wearing hard hats and harnesses; it’s about effective communication and staying aware of what’s going on on-site. One of the most powerful tools is the humble toolbox meetings. These gatherings are the backbone of ensuring everyone on site is up to speed with hazards and safe working practices.
Download the Simple Guide to toolbox meetings to get tonnes of ideas for toolbox meeting topics.
Toolbox meetings are a forum to highlight safety expectations and encourage participation from everyone on site. They don’t need to be lengthy; a quick stand-up meeting will do – maybe even with a side of chocky biscuits to sweeten the deal! We recommend holding these meetings weekly, or at least twice a month, to keep safety at the front of everyone’s minds.
Some building companies take it a step further by incorporating toolbox meetings into their daily routine. Starting each day with a brief safety discussion helps to make safety a daily habit, rather than an afterthought.
The success of a toolbox meeting hinges on a few key factors:
Here are some prompts to kickstart discussions in your toolbox talks:
Toolbox meetings help with communication, collaboration, and continual improvement. Remember, safety is a team effort, and toolbox meetings are where that effort begins.
The HazardCo App includes all the on-site safety reports you need, such as a handy tool to record toolbox meetings.
Task Analysis (TA) is an important tool in your health & safety toolbox. It helps you to break down complex tasks into smaller, manageable steps while ensuring safety and efficiency. In this guide, we’ll explore what TA is, when and why it’s used, how to complete one effectively, and the benefits of using digital platforms for streamlined TA management.
A Task Analysis (TA), also known as a JSA or SWMS, breaks complex tasks into a sequence of smaller steps and actions. They are used as a planning tool to make sure all risks and controls are identified and appropriately managed for your job. A Task Analysis should describe how you plan to complete the job safely and proves that you are managing the risks effectively.
A Task Analysis should be used to identify and assess the hazards before each high-risk job to reduce the risk as much as possible. For repetitive tasks, you don’t need to create a new Task Analysis each time, as long as the prepared Task Analysis is relevant to the work being completed and understood by all persons involved.
Completing a Task Analysis helps to make sure all risks and controls are identified in each work step to improve safety and performance. It also ensures that the correct tools, people, and processes are identified before you start the job which minimises the risk of injury, provides a clear understanding to workers, and increases productivity.
To complete a Task Analysis, carry out the following steps:
Remember the Control hierarchy is:
It’s a simple and easy to repeat approach, where you can:
Manage subbies? If you are on our Premium, Complete or Project plus tiers you can even digitally collect TA’s from subcontractors without the fuss!
The TA template on the App guides you through a step-by-step creation process. It gives you the confidence that the potential hazards have been thought through, and that the appropriate controls have been put in place to eliminate risk where possible or minimised.
You can create a Task Analysis template in preparation for your upcoming works. This template can be updated with the job specific details. Creating a Task Analysis before arriving at the site and customising it for each job will set you up to quickly communicate with the team, manage the risks and get on the tools. When making your templates avoid ticking controls you won’t implement. The suggested controls list is not exhaustive, so make sure to include any additional controls you plan to use.
Once you have selected your hazards, the controls you will implement, and noted the steps you will follow to complete the task, hit SAVE. A HazardCo Task Analysis is then created, emailed to you, and saved securely in your App and Hub so you can easily share it with the main contractor and anyone else you may need to coordinate with.
If you need a hand getting started or would like more information on the HazardCo app read this blog or get in touch with the friendly HazardCo team today on 0800 555 339.
It’s never good to find out the hard way that there was a gas, power, water or communications line buried right where you needed to put something on your site! Safe excavation practices help you to get through the work without injury and avoid hitting critical services.
Digging blind is not the best way forward for your schedule or your safety, so we have put together some key notes for you to bear in mind when excavating to help save you some costs, time and help you to avoid tragedy.
Excavation work is referred to as any work involving the removal of soil or rock from a site to form an open face, hole or cavity, using tools, machinery or explosives. This includes open excavations, potholing, pit excavations, trenches, retaining walls and shafts and drives.
Employers have a legal duty of care to take reasonable actions to protect both the people and the services which may be affected by their work. Getting and using the appropriate information on the services is an important part of ensuring safe excavation on your site. There is a large range of options this can cover, so we will cover the basics in this article.
If you have more complex excavations and want advice then get in contact with us.
Remember any ground disturbance regardless of depth can damage infrastructure networks like gas, water, electricity so you need to get the right information to keep you & the utilities safe.
First, you need to get information on what the assets in the area may be. You can often get this information from BeforeUdig. This online system is the easiest way to request known plans from the asset owners. It is important to know that not all Asset Owners are members of BeforeUdig, so it cannot show you everything that is in the area of your excavation. You may need to contact any other asset owners directly to get hold of plans, drawings and information regarding their assets known positions prior to starting your work.
Wait to receive all information on the assets before commencing work, and only refer to plans that are current.
Once you have information on the assets, make sure the plans are with the workers on-site and that they have appropriate health and safety information and instruction. You should also isolate work around the underground assets from the public.
Pay attention to the clues around your site such as marker posts, inspection points and metres. Never assume pipes and cables run underground in a straight line or are at their correctly specified depth, and always assume all lines are live, even if they look as though they are abandoned or decommissioned.
Remember all digging activities can damage underground infrastructure. You should conduct a risk assessment for the task so that you can identify the hazards to focus on, and put in place suitable controls. Workers involved in the excavation need to be trained and competent to do their part of the work e.g the Excavator operator is appropriately licensed.
To minimise the risk of damage and potential loss of life, it’s best practice to follow the 5 P’s for safe excavation:
Remember to stay vigilant and watch for changes in the ground/soil as you dig.
If you’ve got a question about safe excavation or any other health and safety matter, the HazardCo Advisory Team is here to help. Give them a call on 0800 555 339.
The BeforeUDig NZ website has a tonne of resources available. Worksafe NZ also has a Best practice guide.
Having workers engaged in work health and safety will help your business be a healthier and safer place for everyone, and performance and productivity increases. It’s a win-win!
Under the Health & Safety at work Act (HSWA), businesses have a duty to engage with workers and enable them to participate in improving health and safety. The business must:
Remember that your subbies are also considered your workers when they are working for you.
Together with your workers, you can determine the best way to meet these requirements. What is reasonable and practicable will depend on your workers’ views and needs, the size of your business, and the nature of its risks.
Businesses must:
When is engagement required?
You will need to engage and consult with workers who are directly affected by a matter relating to health and safety. This includes when:
It’s important to have meaningful and effective health and safety talks. It’s good for people and for business. This doesn’t mean hour-long talks or lots of documentation, it’s simply about approaching H&S with the right attitude and aiming to get everyone involved.
HazardCo makes it even simpler to do this with our ‘Toolbox Meeting’ feature on our HazardCo App – handy for making sure everyone on-site is keeping on top of what’s going on.
You can also check out the health and safety at work strategy for worker engagement, participation, and representation here.
If you need a hand getting started or would like more information, get in touch with the friendly HazardCo team today.
Any work undertaken near live overhead power lines carries the risk of electric shock. Touching a live overhead line with any part of the body, tools or any other equipment can cause serious injury and even fatality.
Make sure that you and your team are aware of the following steps that can be taken to manage the risk of an electric shock.
Forward planning is essential. Before work starts, the person in control should:
Disconnecting the electric supply for work between 0.5 metres and 4 metres
The safest option to eliminate the risk of electric shock is to temporarily disconnect a property’s electricity supply from the electricity distribution lines so that the overhead line to the property is no longer live.
Keep people informed so they can plan ahead
Find out who needs to know that the electricity supply will be temporarily disconnected. Such as:
Anyone who could be affected by the disconnection of the electricity supply should be told:
If work needs to take place near an overhead electric line then the worker’s body, their tools, and their equipment must be kept a safe distance away from the overhead line, else the electrical supply must be disconnected by the approved electrical retailer. This safe distance is known as the minimum approach distance, or MAD.
For more information around consent visit Section 10 of the WorkSafe Working near low voltage overhead electric lines guide.
Keeping you and your team safe at work is a priority, so make sure you are aware of the requirements of working near power lines. The HazardCo App Site Review resource has a list of electrical controls that should be in place to mitigate the risk of electrical hazards. If in doubt, you can give our team of Health and Safety Advisors a call on 0800 555 339.
Worksites tend to be filled with constant noise from tools and machinery. Work-related hearing loss is a real threat for many who spend the majority of their working lives on-site. While noise often means things are getting done, there is a downside to it. Hazardous noise can affect a worker’s physical and mental wellbeing including hearing loss, stress, and lower productivity. So to help you protect your hearing, here are a few helpful tips to manage noise.
Understanding what makes noise on-site, how it impacts people and different areas on site is critical. Ask yourself and your workers:
Once you understand the answers to the above, you can start putting plans and checks in place to monitor noise on-site.
Be sure to review the plan throughout the project, as different stages will create varying levels of noise.
The easiest way to decrease the effect of excessive noise on your site is to eliminate the source of noise completely. But, chances are this isn’t possible on a busy site.
The next best thing is to reduce noise.
A couple of easy ways to do this include:
Isolation involves creating a dedicated space for ‘noisy work’. This could be an enclosed room or area of site where all noisy work and machinery is used. This helps manage the noise by blocking the path of noise and reducing the levels that reach your team.
Having a good understanding of how machinery and tools operate can help modify processes to reduce noise at the source. Engineering controls can include choosing attachments or parts that are noise reducing, or changing the way machinery and tools are used.
Perfect for when you are running a large generator or a dedicated workspace, acoustic enclosures help to trap the noise within its barriers.
Setting up an acoustic enclosure that has 2 or 3 barriers/ walls can reduce noise.
What makes a quality acoustic enclosure:
With noise comes vibrations. These vibrations can be just as harmful as the noise itself.
Here are a few strategies to help decrease vibrations when using machines or power tools:
It’s not possible to escape noise on-site, however we can manage noise and put steps in place to help reduce the effect that it has on us while we’re working.
If you have any questions don’t forget to reach out to the team!
