The link will take you to the latest Video Safety Alert from the UK (VSA03.2019 – HIPO-TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT).
While the incident occurred outside of the West Europe Materials operations, it is a very effective reminder of why we are focusing on traffic management in our improvement plans this year.
In the incident, a truck driver had just climbed down from his cab moments before it was struck by a loading shovel that was reversing at speed; it was only a matter of luck that the outcome of the incident wasn’t much more severe.
Operational Managers and Supervisors should be aware of the CEMEX Global Standards for Traffic Management. Some of the basic principles we must ensure are in place on every site, include:
- Effective traffic routing, with one-way systems and holding areas where required and the need for reversing minimised.
- Areas for loading and unloading, vehicle maintenance, sheeting/netting of loads, etc. separated from the main flow of traffic.
- Demarcated walkways for pedestrians, physically segregated from vehicles where possible.
- Trained/competent and formally authorised vehicle and mobile plant operators, whose driving styles are regularly reviewed.
- Documented pre-start checks, helping to ensure road vehicles and mobile plant have good all round vision from the driver’s seat and both audible and visual reverse warning.
- Driver inductions on all sites.
- Full “Class 3” high visibility PPE, tops and trousers.
In a number of site visits recently, it has been disappointing to find gaps in our procedures where, for example, pre-start checks have lapsed or reversing cameras have been defective. If we are to avoid tragedy for ourselves or a colleague in our operations we have to ensure essential safety requirements are in place 100% of the time.
The Video Safety Alert can be accessed via the following link: