ConCEPS: The System That Ensures Heights Protection
All employers have a legal duty of care towards their employees. Part of this duty is to provide them with a healthy and safe working environment. There are specific rules about protecting employees when working at heights. Using ConCEPS by SHEARFORCE provides a straightforward and cost-effective way to comply with them.
The Basics Of The Working At Height Regulations
While the Working at Height Regulations (2005) can be extensive, they can essentially be distilled down to three basic requirements for employers.
1. Evaluate the risks to their employees.
2. Eliminate the requirement to work at height as much as possible.
3. Take all reasonable steps to minimise the danger of working at height.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) emphasises that even falls from a relatively low height can still lead to serious or even fatal injuries. They give falls of less than 2M as a reference point. For comparison, shipping containers are around 2.5M (8’6”) in height.
In the shipping freight industry, it’s highly unlikely that operators can eliminate the need to work at height. This is because the tops of shipping containers are often used to store equipment that needs regular maintenance (e.g. air-conditioning units). As a result, the emphasis is very much on evaluating and mitigating risks.
The Basics Of ConCEPS
ConCEPS stands for Container Collective Edge Protection System. The system comprises 6 posts (4 corner and 2 intermediate), fall-prevention ratchet straps (upper- and intermediate-level), an access gate and a 3-piece base post.
The posts and straps are used to create a barrier around the top surface of shipping containers (sized between 10 and 40 cubic feet). On 10’ shipping containers, only the 4 corner posts are required. With larger containers, the intermediate posts are needed for extra stability.
The base post is used to facilitate installation when there is restricted access to the edge of the container (e.g. due to plant). It hooks into the top container lug and locks into the bottom container lug. This post can be fitted by one person on the ground.
ConCEPS provides an effective layer of protection that reduces a worker’s reliance on fall-arrest systems. Essentially, using ConCEPS significantly reduces the likelihood that a worker will fall in the first place. The fall-arrest system therefore becomes an additional safeguard rather than the main form of protection.
The Benefits Of Using ConCEPS
The headline benefit of using ConCEPTS is increased safety. This delivers the corollary benefit of demonstrable compliance with safety regulations (particularly the Working at Height regulations). Using ConCEPS does, however, deliver broader benefits to the business. Here are three of the main ones:
More Efficient Operations
There is a strong link between high levels of safety and high levels of operational efficiency. This is due to two main factors.
Firstly, being in a safe environment means that workers do not have to devote excessive mental or physical energy to keeping themselves safe. This means they are better able to focus on their work.
Secondly, the safer an environment is, the less likely it is to be disrupted by a safety-related incident and, hence, the more efficiently it can operate.
Better Profitability
There are three ways using ConCEPS can help to improve profitability. Firstly, ConCEPS makes it easier for businesses to use the entirety of a shipping container. This means they get better financial value from each container.
Secondly, by increasing the efficiency of operations, ConCEPS helps to lower the cost of operations. Thirdly, ConCEPS helps protect employers from the potential financial consequences of safety incidents.
Improved Reputation
Operators that run safe operations tend to be well-regarded not just by regulators but also by (potential) staff and customers. This can create a strong competitive advantage.
To find out more about ConCEPS, our bespoke fall protection system, get in touch with us today!
