Oerview

Oerview

Workers are at risk of injuries, or even death, if hazards exist when operating, maintaining, or working around heavy equipment at construction projects.

Incidents can be prevented by ensuring heavy equipment is:

• properly operated and maintained

• used as per manufacturers’ operating manuals

• equipped with readily available manufacturers’ operating manuals

• operated by competent workers with a clear view of the pathway for the equipment or load

• operated with the help of a competent signaller who does not perform any other work while signalling

• in compliance with all applicable regulatory requirements, including any required National Standards of Canada standards

• in compliance with all applicable requirements in the Regulations for Roll-Over Protective Structures(O. Reg. 856)

Employers are responsible for protecting workers from hazards involving operation of vehicles and mobile construction equipment at construction projects.

Hazards include workers being:

• struck by moving equipment

• crushed between equipment and other objects

• subjected to electrical contact while operating a vehicle or equipment

• struck by an inadequately secured load while being lifted or moved

• struck or crushed by equipment tipping over

Between January 1 and August 31, 2015, nine workers were killed in incidents at construction sites. Seven of those fatalities involved heavy equipment.

In two cases a mast climber collapsed. In another two cases, tip overs occurred – one involving a crane and the other a power-elevated work platform. Another fatality occurred during installation of heavy machinery. In yet another fatality, a dump truck lost control. In August, a worker was crushed between the guardrails of the power elevated work platform he was using and structural steel.

In 2014, six workers were killed by moving vehicles or equipment, two of whom were signalmen who were killed in separate incidents by vehicles they were directing.

Vocabulary

Maintaining - fabricantes

Heavy - pesado

Properly - corretamente

Manufacturers - fabricantes

Pathway - caminho

Signaller - sinaleiro

Compliance - conformidade

Vehicles - veículos 

Climber - alpinista

Collapsed - entrou em colapso

Occurred - ocorreu 

Structural - estrutural

Killed - matou