Come and visit us at this week’s Queensland Safety Show to go in the draw to win $5,000 worth of nationally accredited training from Pinnacle Height Safety or a Premium Roof Access Safety Kit from WorkSafeGEAR Australia.

This year’s Safety Show is on from 18-20 June at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, and entry is free.

Nearly 150 safety-centric exhibitors will be at the show, along with Pinnacle, providing attendees with a rare opportunity to network with safety professionals, receive expert advice and gain cutting-edge knowledge on the latest safety trends and service offerings to help build a safer workplace.

Come and talk to our team at stand E22 about some of the exciting new training packages and services Pinnacle Height Safety now offers across Australia. We have industry-leading training courses available in areas such as Road Crash Rescue, Vertical Rescue, Rope Access, Confined Space Entry and Rescue, Fire Team Operations and HAZMAT Response. This is in addition to the safety-related services Pinnacle offers in the areas of audit and compliance, emergency response and height and confined space entry.

We’ll also have a guest company attending our stand called WorkSafeGEAR Australia, who sell a range of industrial safety equipment that complements the training we provide. WorkSafeGEAR Australia specialise in the provision of height safety and confined space equipment.

Come and see us this week and accelerate your journey to Zero Harm.

To register, or for more information about the Queensland Safety Show, go to www.qldsafetyshow.com.au or call the visitor hotline on 1300 656 184.

It is 7.30 am at Pinnacle Height Safety's custom built training facility in Gladstone. Training manager Lloyd Cooper instructs a bleary eyed team before him. He gets to the point immediately.

"OK team, a 54 year old man has collapsed, he reports of a tight chest and pain in his arm. He is currently on a scaffold four stories up. He appears to be having a heart attack and is in a critical condition. He needs to come down, quickly, and the only way to get him down is by rigging up a rope lowering system. LET'S GO! What can you show me?”

The casualty is actually our rescue dummy "Buster". The scaffold is a purpose-built structure at our Gladstone training facility, and this is the start of another Pinnacle Height Safety Vertical Rescue (VR) course.

Over the next four days the students from Bechtel APLNG, GLNG and QCLNG will be taught all the necessary skills required to complete this rescue.

They will learn to respond with safety, speed and accuracy, methodically, starting with correct harness inspection and fit, ascending and descending ropes, tying knots, setting up anchors, rigging hauling and lowering systems, using mechanical advantage, setting up high points such as tripods and performing rescues utilising stretcher rigging.

This is the 8th VR course that Pinnacle Height Safety has delivered for Bechtel. With the implementation of the Advanced VR course this year, these students will be able to further develop their knowledge and skills, equipping them with a greater ability to perform more complex rescues in real life emergencies in the field should they occur.

Who are Bechtel?

Bechtel has the contract for providing engineering, procurement, and construction services for the development of Gladstone LNG project, building a $16 billion liquefied natural gas processing plant in Queensland, Australia. The Gladstone LNG (GLNG) project will feature two liquefaction trains with a combined capacity of 7.8 million tons of LNG per year. The project will create up to 6,000 jobs. Bechtel has a zero harm policy regarding safety culture with its employees and has earned an industry-leading record of achieving zero lost-time incidents on projects worldwide. Safety performance is a top priority for Bechtel, and the Pinnacle Group is helping them achieve this goal with training for their workers on the Gas Pipeline Project. Because of Pinnacles training relationship with Bechtel through the Rio Tinto Yarwun project with approximately 1400 people trained, Pinnacle has been involved in the training process from its inception with the LNG Curtis Island projects and has been approached from Bechtel central services to help with the course design for training as well as the setup for there training facility on the island as Pinnacle were perceived as the experts in this process.

Job Specifics

Pinnacle provide Bechtel with a range of custom-designed courses including Confined Space and Working at Heights. Vertical Rescue and Advanced Vertical Rescue have also been provided for training of their Emergency Rescue Teams. Fire Team Operations training with Pinnacle is to begin soon and there is some enquiry coming from Bechtel's "Central Services" for Occupational Health and Safety to be conducted in the near future. In 2012 the majority of training was conducted at our training facility in Roseanna Street Gladstone but the demand for onsite training on Curtis Island in 2013 has increased significantly.

At the moment it is training for QGC (the BG Group - Queensland Gas Company) but the GLNG (Santos) site is progressing well and we expect training from this division to be starting in the second quarter 2013, training for APLNG (Asia Pacific LNG) should come online towards the end of 2013.

Specialist skills provided

Specialist training including:

• Training Working at Heights
• Training Confined Space
• Training Vertical Rescue
• Training Fire Teams Operations
• Training Occupational Health and Safety.

Who are Bechtel?

Bechtel is a multinational company which provides engineering, construction, and project management services across energy, transportation, communications, mining, oil and gas, and government services with projects that span the globe. Bechtel has the contract for providing engineering, procurement, and construction services for the development of Gladstone LNG project, building a $16 billion liquefied natural gas processing plant in Queensland, Australia. The Gladstone LNG (GLNG) project will feature two liquefaction trains with a combined capacity of 7.8 million tons of LNG per year. The project will create up to 6,000 jobs. Bechtel has a Zero Harm policy regarding safety culture with its employees and has earned an industry-leading record of achieving zero lost-time incidents on projects worldwide. Safety performance is a top priority for Bechtel, and the Pinnacle Group is helping them achieve this goal with training for their workers on the Gas Pipeline Project.

Because of Pinnacle's training relationship with Bechtel through the Rio Tinto Yarwun project with approximately 1,400 people trained, Pinnacle has been involved in the training process from its inception with the LNG Curtis Island projects and has been approached by Bechtel Central Services to help with the course design for training as well as the setup for their training facility on the island as Pinnacle were perceived as the industry experts in this area.

Pinnacle Gladstone 

Pinnacle Gladstone was set up primarily for the requirement of servicing the LNG Projects and specifically for Bechtel’s construction teams and since its inception, we have taken on board major customers such as Boyne Smelter, QAL, Gladstone Area Water Board, Rio Tinto Yarwun, Gladstone City Council and Orica.

Training with Bechtel has proceeded well with a good working relationship with Central Services and good participation from course attendees. Some initial difficulties with training facilities on the island were encountered, but overall the feedback from Bechtel's management has been very positive regarding the high quality of training that has been provided.
 
We have trained to date over 900 Bechtel staff with the expectation from Curtis Island for that amount to increase dramatically over the 2013-14 period as the remaining two projects ramp up.

We have also completed training for McMahons onsite for the initial earthworks crews and some rope access work for Boral Cement on their cement silos on the island.

About The Gas Pipeline Project - Curtis Island

Santos GLNG Project is a world first, converting coal seam natural gas (CSG), or coal bed methane as it is sometimes referred to, to liquefied natural gas (LNG) for export to global markets. The first exports are predicted for the 2014 financial year. Coal seam natural gas is considered a cleaner energy source and fuel for the future. Based in Queensland, Australia, the Project involves developing gas fields from the Bowen and Surat Basins in South-Western Queensland, and will transport the gas via a 420 kilometre underground pipeline to an LNG plant on Curtis Island, off the coastline of Gladstone. This groundbreaking US$16 billion project is a joint venture between Santos and three of the world’s largest LNG companies: PETRONAS, Total and KOGAS.

GLNG’s Project involves:

• Expanding coal seam gas production in the Surat and Bowen basins in Queensland
• Building a 420 kilometre one-metre (42”) diameter buried natural gas pipeline from the gas fields to Gladstone
• Constructing a natural gas liquefaction plant on Curtis Island, Gladstone

Job specifics

• Pinnacle were contracted by Ostwald Energy to provide a third party CSE and rescue compliance audit for Origin Energy.

Skills required

• Experience in hazard identification
• Risk assessments and report writing
• Strong knowledge of current legislative requirements.
• Experience in implementation of safety methods/systems
• Management of safety systems

Pinnacle provided hazard specific audit and report writing services to Ostwald Brothers, an engineering business, for work within the CSG industry. Origin Energy, the main contractor, required a third-party audit of their procedures, safety plans, work method statements and operating procedures for a welding job within a pipeline they were constructing.

An experienced auditor from Pinnacle provided Origin with an initial desktop audit of all of their associated paperwork to make sure it met current legislative requirements within the guidelines of the Act, Regulations, Codes of Practice and also the relevant Australian Standards including AS 2865.

We produced a report with a range of recommendations to tighten procedures which was then approved by the principal contractor, Origin. We visited the site just prior to work commencing to discuss upcoming scope of works and make sure all relevant rescue plans were effective and workable. Dummy trials were then run in a safe environment to ensure all procedures were properly managed and implemented before work commenced.

Why Auditing?
Hazard specific audits address particular issues such as confined space entry, or working at heights and involve the inspection and testing of current workplace control methods. This type of audit has a narrow focus and looks at the effectiveness of policies and procedures in dealing with specific hazards. These audits differ from compliance audits in that the standards set by the organisation to address a risk of injury may exceed legislative requirements.

Many organisations use suitably qualified external providers such as Pinnacle Height Safety to undertake these types of audits especially when hazardous tasks are being undertaken.

Did you know?
The Work Health and Safety Act 2011 requires that workplace health and safety officers conduct a hazard based assessment of the workplace using criteria. These assessments must be conducted at least once every twelve months, or at intervals agreed between management and the Occupational Health and Safety Committee.

Job Specifics

• Pinnacle were contracted by Thales at the request of the Australian Navy to provide Standby Rescue provision for Thales employees. 
• 8 radar circuit boards on the HMAS Parramatta and HMAS Ballarat II needed to be installed on the mast of the ships.

Specialist skills provided

• Standby Rescue Provision / Rope Access Technicians

Skillset required

• Standby rescue provision
• Provision of rescue plans and safe work method statements
• Installing equipment from a difficult access position 10-15 metres above a ship deck
• Rigging solid and reliable anchor systems
• Rigging access lines
• Rope management
• Diversion systems to redirect rope trajectories
• Selection and correct use of equipment

Pinnacle provided Thales with an experienced Stand by Rescue Team and rope access solutions. Our team comprised of 2 technicians who helped with the logistics in the installation of expensive communications equipment from a small platform some 10-15m above the deck of three Navy vessels.  

” The Radar circuit boards were heavy and costly, with each being worth $250,000 and 8 being installed on each boat. ”

One panel on its own weighed 80kg, and with their delicate nature, systems needed to be used that would avoid them swinging in any way. 

The Pinnacle team set up a  rigging system to haul the panels into place and keep them from hitting anything during the process. This needed to be done as the permanent access line system that Thales had in place could not be used as it did not reach the installation area. It was a difficult job with many obstacles around the work area which would have made a rescue difficult. It was therefore decided if a rescue needed to be performed, it would be a full pick off rescue.

Pinnacle provides this as a regular service to Thales Australia for their Garden Point Operation.

Garden Island, located at Potts Point, Sydney, is the home port for major fleet units based on the East Coast of Australia and is a major marine engineering and refit centre for work undertaken by the Navy and Thales Australia. Thales Australia (formerly ADI Limited) is a primary defence contractor for the Australian Defence Force. The two main users of Garden Island are the Navy and Thales Australia and it is the main base for the Navy Fleet on Australia's East Coast. Thales Australia manages and operates a graving dock (dry dock), a floating dock and a range of ship engineering and maintenance facilities at Garden Island.

Thales Group is a large French multinational company that designs and builds electrical systems and provides services for the aerospace, defence and transportation markets internationally.

Job Specifics

• Contract for installation of Vector Foiltec's Texlon Roofing System at Perth Arena

Specialist skills provided

• Rope Access technicians

Skillset required

• Experience installing Texlon Roofing systems
• Rigging solid and reliable anchor systems
• Selection and correct use Equipment
• Descending skills using twin rope techniques
• Ascending skills using twin rope techniques
• Rope management
• Loop traverses
• Use of bosuns chairs (to avoid suspension intolerance)
• Diversion systems to redirect rope trajectories
• Handling of work tools and equipment during rope access
• Performing work tasks while supported by a rope suspension system

Pinnacle's experienced Rope Access Technicians were contracted to install Vector Foiltec's Texlon Roofing System as part of the design for a new Arena built in Perth. This massive project was in the final stages when the Texlon roofing was ready to be installed. When Pinnacle workers were finally able to access the site for the installation of the Texlon roofing system, there was a very fine timeline for works to be completed before the grand opening in November 2012. Due to our involvement installing the roofing system in numerous other projects in Australia and New Zealand (including Forsyth Barr Stadium NZ, Adelaide Entertainment Centre, Energex, University of Adelaide), our technicians completed the contract in 2 months on time and within budget without any problems in time for the 10th November Grand Opening of the arena with a performance by Sir Elton John. Free tickets? Well, no unfortunately!

The Perth Arena is the first stage of the Perth City Link, a 13.5 hectare major urban renewal and redevelopment project which involves the sinking of the Fremantle Railway Line to link the Perth central business district directly with Northbridge The project, managed by Western Australian construction consortium BGC, has been wracked with cost and time blowouts beginning in 2007 and completing in late 2012, with initial estimates for both being unrealistic. The project's original $150 million estimate has blown out to $550 million upon the project's completion. The Perth Arena was jointly designed by architectural firms Ashton, Raggart and McDougall and Cameron Chisholm Nicol and its design is based on the Eternity Puzzle.

Pinnacle Height Safety are ARAA committee members and contributed to the following recommendation.
 

ARAA Technical Guidance Note 14.11.12

Rope Access | Appropriate Connection Points for Fall-Arrest (Back Up) Devices

Introduction
At the recent 2012 ARAA AGM it was reiterated to all attendees that the back-up device we use in our twin rope systems will, in the event of a main line failure, be arresting a free fall that is highly likely to be greater than 600mm. This is undeniable and implies that this device should then only be connected to a specified free-fall arrest point on a given full body harness.

A motion was placed and subsequently passed unanimously by 22 attendees, that the ARAA should endorse a change in practice stipulating that such backup devices should only be attached to the sternal or dorsal attachment points of a full-body harness (NB the ventral attachment point is not a rated free-fall attachment point on any of the harnesses used for rope access).

This change is already partially in place by default; Petzl ASAP's are required by the manufacturer to be attached sternally or dorsally via a proprietary energy absorber. Further, this change will bring ARAA practice in line with other similar organizations such as SPRAT who have had this policy in place for a number of years.

This guidance note then seeks to outline the rationale for this decision, the specific nature of what it entails and who is affected by it.
 
Specifics
Fall arrest or ‘back up’ devices used during rope access works shall be connected either to the sternal (S in diagram below) or in limited cases dorsal (D in diagram below) attachment points of the operator’s harness. Whilst it has been extremely common in the past (& still is at present) for fall arrest type devices to be attached to the end of a ventrally (V in diagram) anchored lanyard this method is largely untenable. Certainly no form of fall arrest device may ever be used attached to a single lateral (L in diagram) attachment point.

Research, testing and anecdotal evidence stretching back more than a decade has demonstrated that ventral connection in a fall arrest situation, and subsequent post fall suspension, has significant limitations. Fall arrest forces may in certain circumstances be greater than an adult human body can withstand without injury if applied to the lower spine / pelvic region. To compound this issue, post fall suspension of a semi or unconscious person ventrally would place the individual in an extreme position of hyperextension (waist high, head and feet low). This position may lead to a host of issues, not the least of which being a compromised airway.

Dorsal attachment is always an option in certain circumstances but needs to weighted against the inherent risks. Post fall dorsal suspension places an operator at great risk of Harness Hang Syndrome (Compression Avascularisation Re-Perfusion Syndrome) & could make self-rescue very difficult if not impossible.

Sternal attachment of one or more fall arrest devices will potentially give the highest margin of security & place the operator in the most appropriate post fall suspension position.

Equipment
All fall arrest type devices used for rope access works need to be used in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions. If in doubt technicians should consult the information included with the product or on the manufacturer’s website.

What does this mean?

1. ARAA strongly recommends all rope access operators and supervisors in the field adhere to this policy.
2. Assessment candidates undergoing ARAA Level 1, 2 or 3 assessments will be awarded a major discrepancy (and hence a fail result) if they use a fall arrest / back up device attached ventrally during suspended works.

Further information
For more information please contact ARAA via email links found at www.araa.net.au.

"Our online course will qualify you to work safely in confined spaces."

This is the catchcry of just one of the operators who are popping up, claiming to offer cheap, online-delivery safety training to industry in Australia.

To many people it's obvious, but you do get what you pay for!

Here at Pinnacle, we are absolutely passionate about providing the very best confined space training in Australia, and it frustrates us no end to keep hearing horror stories from workers who are taken in by these online safety courses.

Our confined space course is a minimum of one full day of face-to-face training, which includes a number of hands-on practical tasks, like conducting hazard and risk assessments, and entering a variety of confined spaces. Our most popular two-day course gives workers the ability to issue permits, perform gas testing, and conduct rescues in confined space. This is real-life stuff!

The problems with online safety courses:

1. They are generally not nationally accredited training, meaning you don't end up with the national unit of competency, and will be rejected when trying to get on a work site.
2. They don't offer any practical elements whatsoever. Practical training is vital!
3. They aren't taught by industry experts.

Don't fall into the trap! Choose training that will actually benefit you at work. Face-to-face training is your best choice.

Based on industry demand, we are now conducting a five day, blended delivery of our Confined Space Rescue and Vertical Rescue programs.

Participants gain fantastic, cross-domain rescue knowledge and experience which will be invaluable for those wanting to serve on Emergency Response Teams on mine sites and in other industry sectors.

We're finding that many participants are coming to us because this course gets them many of the units required for the RII30709 Certificate III in Mine Emergency Response and Rescue.

Give us a call to find out when our next VR+CSR course is scheduled or click here for more information on the course.