We’re back to those dark mornings and frozen car windows, and whilst we’re digging our thermals from the back of our wardrobe, we’re giving some advice on what you can do to make sure your construction is prepared ahead of the winter months and what you can do to make sure your workers and plant equipment is looked after.
Safety first.
Health and safety is something that should be monitored all throughout the year. Within the construction industry, falls are the most common cause of injury and death, so with slippery surfaces and more rainfall, it’s paramount that you are taking the time to make sure all health and safety precautions are taken.
Things to stay on top of
- Workers are provided with suitable and required safety equipment and PPE to keep them fully insulated and protected from the cold weather. When digging through frozen ground, eye protection is crucial.
- Grit walkways and pathways on site to prevent workers slipping on site.
- When experiencing extreme weather conditions such as storms, site materials and equipment must be secured and raised above any known flood levels.
Disruptions are inevitable. Prepare for the worst.
With the colder months, disruptions on construction sites are pretty much unavoidable. However, with the right preparations, you can minimise the impact of delays on your site. A key thing to do regularly is to check the weather forecast. Both short and long term forecasts will give you the extra heads up before any disruptive weather conditions, giving you time to prepare the site, machinery and your team.
Get it in the calendar. Hire machinery in advance.
No one can predict the weather. But by staying prepared and scheduling, regardless of your project, you can be sure that getting your plant machinery and equipment will be the one thing you won’t have to worry about. Planning and scheduling the work that will be done each day and when it will be done will boost your site efficiency as staff will be able take breaks, in turn, helping their productivity and reduce overworking in unsuitable conditions.
Break the day up with adequate staff welfare facilities.
No one likes being caught out in the rain. Keeping your site workers safe and protected from any extreme weather conditions is just as (if not more) important as keeping your site machinery and materials safe. Welfare units can be used all throughout the year, but are especially handy during the winter months. Having an adequate break space for staff to shelter and take a break from work is crucial to give them the opportunity to dry off, warm up and pop the kettle on.
Ensure you’ve got the right equipment and attachments.
Making sure you have suitable equipment and attachments for your machinery for extreme weather conditions will reduce any chance of disruption. For projects that involve digging foundations and laying concrete, delays from the weather are highly common due to the conditions needed for the concrete to set. However, for jobs that involve drilling, a wide range of breaker attachments can be hired and installed to keep your equipment running how it should. Get looking at that calendar and get your machinery booked in!
The weather may be doom and gloom, but your plant hire doesn’t have to be. We provide reliable and trusted plant hire across the UK, and can even supply you with the relevant plant machine attachments and even an operator if needed. Give us a call on 0330 118 5030 or email us at hire@rockthorn.co.uk to find out how we can help you.