Reaching the pinnacle with a building safety solution

Buildsafe’s company motto is ‘Safety Through Innovation’, and that’s exactly what it has achieved with the development of an award-winning fall prevention solution for the housing construction industry.

Determined to find an alternative solution to an issue that has plagued the entire building and construction industry, Buildsafe set out to create a versatile, functional and affordable alternative to first-floor access via ladder on residential building sites.

Statistics show that falls from ladders is one of the most common causes of injury on construction sites and that even a fall of one metre or less can result in death. Work with ladders is made ever more dangerous when workers are carrying tools or building materials, as three points of contact cannot be maintained. And although void protection systems and temporary stairway systems are available, no system existed that combined both functions.

Designed to specifically address falls from ladders, Buildsafe’s Void Platform Stair System provides a void protection cover in conjunction with a set of stairs for unrestricted access to the first floor. The solution also addresses the risk of falls though a void area, which has been identified as one of the four major safety issues on house construction.

“By implementing stairs as part of the void protection cover and removing the ladder we have significantly reduced risk of fall,” Buildsafe Safety and Compliance Manager Bo Ceprnja said.

“In more specific detail, we have minimised the risk of fall while egressing through the void by use of stairs, but we have also addressed any of the other risk which may have been created by the introduction of stairs to a void protection cover.”

The system has been structurally engineered to enable different configurations to suit different working environments and ceiling height. It can be installed at the earliest point in the construction process providing a safe working environment for all tradesmen carrying equipment and tools, including Buildsafe’s own workers that transport scaffolding up and down the stairs during the erecting and dismantling process.

The system is also engineered to act as a catch platform should a worker fall while completing work on the roof above the void area, turning the upper void area into a safe working platform. An easy-access hatch deck with soft-close hinge allows safe and simple entry to the first floor. A handrail is incorporated to minimise fall risks when the access hatch is opened.

“We have delivered a solution to the market that builders are viewing as the new standard in height safety management on building sites. This is a huge achievement considering the short period of three months that the system has been available,” Buildsafe Director Grant Edwards said.

The Buildsafe Void Platform Stair System is a universal system that can be applied to any residential building site. It was the winner of the Best Solution of a WHS Risk as well as the Pinnacle Award winner at the 2017 NSCA Foundation/GIO Workers Compensation National Safety Awards of Excellence announced in October.