April 2015’s new CDM regulations state that clients are now regarded as the head of the procurement chain and the major influence on project standards and culture. A project is deemed to be more than a construction site. 

From February 2016, new sentencing guidelines for health and safety offences come into force. Businesses and individuals could face greater fines and more individuals could face custodial sentences for serious offences. See www.sentencingcouncil.org.uk

The top two categories of culpability are: Very High – deliberate breach of, or flagrant disregard for, the law and; High – the offender fell far short of the appropriate standard. Examples are: failing to put in place measures that are recognised standards in the industry; ignoring concerns raised by employees or others; failing to make appropriate changes following prior incident(s) exposing risks to health and safety; allowing breaches to subsist over a long period of time and serious and/or systemic failure within the organisation to address risks to health and safety.

As SEMA works closely with the HSE, we regard 'recognised standards' as those which we have established as best practice and which are enshrined in SEMA’s Codes of Practice and Guidelines.

Racking collapse and subsequent potential prosecution are simple to avoid where there is a safety culture and where correct protocols for inspection, maintenance and repair exist. It’s the duty of an employer to manage risk to life and property and to always demonstrate a safe system of work. As the law stands, investment in terms of money, time and trouble must ‘grossly outweigh’ the risk, not balance it. 

Appropriate regime

The first form of protection is for the racking to be specified, designed and installed with adequate clearances and carrying capacity. Secondly, it must be only be used by trained operators; and thirdly effective inspection and maintenance procedures must be in place. Staff need to be ‘safety aware' so that damage is reported immediately, inspections are undertaken weekly or monthly by a suitably qualified individual, and the need to employ a qualified rack inspector to undertake a six monthly or annual audit should be recognised. SEMA Approved Rack Inspectors (SARIs) have attained a high level qualification in this area.

When a SARI undertakes an inspection; a report is provided and a traffic light system indicates actions required and over what timescale. Green requires surveillance where defined damage limits are not exceeded as per the SEMA Code of Practice for the Use of Static Racking (available from the SEMA website).  Amber damage requires ‘Action asap.’ or normally within a four-week period. Red risk indicates serious damage; immediate offloading of the rack is required with repairs using identical undamaged components required, in line with SEMA’s Code of Practice.

Unfortunately, life is rarely straightforward and the use of rack protection in a warehouse has a lot to commend it. Rack protectors are NOT crash barriers and neither do they replace routine maintenance and repairs. SEMA has developed a specific code of practice: The Design and Use of Racking Protection to assist designers and suppliers in providing the right solution for the application. Considerations include the type of damage against which protection is required. Are protectors the right answer or are alternative methods better? Which type is best for the application? Will the protector reduce clearances, potentially leading to more damage or hide potentially serious damage? Will the protector lead to less reporting of damage, or worse, result in operatives using the protector as a buffer?

SEMA offers a one-day safety course – Rack Safety Awareness and Inspection for End Users. This takes an in-depth look at the need for inspections, details how to conduct an assessment, and offers guidance on follow-up measures.