Archive for May, 2013

Why do I need a racking inspection?

Racking inspections are required to ensure that organisations meet their health and safety requirements and that they provide a safe environment for their employees. What is required of a UK organisation when it comes to health and safety is laid out in multiple pieces of legislation, with the key ones profiled below.

The basis of British health and safety law is the Health and Safety at Work Act etc 1974. Section 2 of this act states that “It shall be the duty of every employer to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all his/her employees”. This includes maintaining the workplace and equipment so that it is practical, safe and without risks to health, and ensuring that articles and substances can be used, handled, stored and transported safely.

This was built upon by the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1992, a key feature of which was to require employers to carry out risk assessments, regularly review them, take appropriate steps to improve safety if it can be improved, and familiarise themselves with potential hazards.

The Provision and use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 covers any piece of equipment which is used by an employee at work. This includes racking. It requires that equipment is suitable for use, maintained so that it is safe and that people’s health and safety is not put at risk, and inspected to ensure that it continues to be safe to use.

However, until 2008, a corporation could only be found guilty of manslaughter if every part of the offence had been carried out by one senior person within the corporation who was seen as embodying the mind of that organisation. This meant that corporations rarely were convicted or punished for manslaughter. The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Bill, introduced in the House of Commons by the then Home Secretary Dr. John Reid in July 2006, changed that. It received royal assent a year later in July 2007 and came into force in April 2008. It created a new offence which is called corporate manslaughter in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and corporate homicide in Scotland.

Under the act, if the way an organisation’s activities are managed or organised leads to a person’s death and was a gross breach of a relevant duty of care owed by the organisation to the deceased, then an indictable offence has been committed. A gross breach is a breach of a duty of care by an organisation that falls far below what should reasonably be expected of an organisation. If a company fails to meet what is required of it in the above legislation and this leads to a death, then it can expect to be prosecuted under this act.

Logical Storage are an independent company that provide impartial advice. Our surveyors will provide a comprehensive report detailing any damaged or missing parts of racking or structural imperfections. Our team are highly experienced and will provide a summary of your operational facility and make recommendations regarding working practices, mechanical equipment, floor marking, signage, lighting and layout if required. Inspections can be annual, bi-annual, or quarterly. Please call us on 0845 689 1300 for a tailored proposal.