GB2465426A - Safety compliance apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

A safety compliance apparatus for attachment to workplace equipment such as ladders, scaffolding, fork lift trucks etc. comprises a receptacle for accommodating a safety inspection checklist. The receptacle is operable between an open condition to allow the insertion of a safety inspection checklist, and a closed condition wherein the safety inspection checklist is fully enclosed and protected from the external environment. The safety status information provided on the safety inspection checklist enclosed therein is visually perceptible to a user of workplace equipment through a transparent portion 18 on the receptacle. The apparatus of the invention is tamper evident due to the provision of a highly visible tamper-evident locking tag (30, figure 11) which in use is inserted through aligning holes 28 in external protrusions 26 when the apparatus in in a closed condition.

Description

Safety Comrliance Apparatus The present invention relates to safety compliance apparatus and particularly, but not exclusively, to apparatus adapted for attachment to workplace equipment to provide a visual indication that the equipment is either safe or unsafe for its intended use.

Employers must comply with a wide range of legislative requirements aimed at preventing or controlling the risks to employees' health and safety from dangers associated with the equipment they use at the workplace. For example, in the United Kingdom, the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER) require that equipment provided for use at work is, amongst other things, suitable for its intended use, safe for use, maintained in a safe condition and, in certain circumstances, inspected to ensure that this remains the case. Similarly, the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER) require that lifting equipment provided for use at work is, amongst other things, subject to ongoing and thorough examination.

It is important for employers to be able to clearly demonstrate to the relevant authorities that legislative requirements and industry best practices are being properly followed. To do so, some form of record keeping is essential and this is particularly important from an insurance/legal perspective should a workplace accident occur.

Accordingly, it is known for employers to draw up safety checklists intended to be completed by a competent person at regular intervals. The checklists can be stored by employers to provide a historical paper trail of safety compliance.

According to the present invention, there is provided safety compliance apparatus for attachment to workplace equipment, the apparatus comprising a receptacle for accommodating a safety inspection checklist; the receptacle being operable, in use, between an open condition to facilitate insertion of a safety inspection checklist, and a closed condition wherein a safety inspection checklist can be fully enclosed and protected from the external environment, at least a portion of the receptacle being transparent to the extent that safety status information provided on a safety inspection checklist enclosed therein is visually perceptible to a user of workplace equipment.

Preferably, the receptacle comprises two members, at least one of the members being concave such that the respective members can mate in the closed condition to define a fully enclosed hollow receptacle.

Most preferably, the receptacle comprises front and rear members of the same or similar outer dimensions, at least one of the members being concave such that the respective members can mate in the closed condition to define a fully enclosed hollow receptacle.

Preferably, both members are concave and are each defined by a major wall and having two side walls, a base wall and a top wall depending from, or proximate, its peripheral edges.

Preferably, the receptacle is substantially parallelepiped in shape when in its closed condition.

Preferably, the front and rear members are hingably connected.

Preferably, a window is provided in the front member.

Optionally, the mating front and rear members are maintained in their closed condition by means of either a friction fit or a catch arrangement between one or more of their respective sets of side, base and top walls.

Preferably, the two members are each provided with external protrusions which at least partially overlap when the receptacle is in its closed condition.

Most preferably, the front and rear members are each provided with external protrusions on at least one of their respective sets of side, base and top walls, wherein the outward extensions at least partially overlap when the receptacle is in its closed condition.

Preferably, an aperture is formed through each external protrusion such that the apertures are substantially aligned when the receptacle is in its closed condition.

Preferably, the receptacle further comprises a tamper-evident locking member adapted to pass through the aligned apertures to lock the respective members in their closed condition.

Preferably, the tamper-evident locking member comprises a shaft portion provided at one end thereof with an enlarged base dimensioned such that it cannot pass through the aligned apertures, the opposite distal end comprising a one-way catch member facilitating insertion of the shaft and the catch through the aligned apertures in one direction but preventing removal of the one-way catch in the opposite direction.

Preferably, a portion of the locking member between the enlarged base and the shaft portion is frangible such that the enlarged base can be removed from the shaft portion upon the application of a sufficient removal force applied either manually or with the aid of a tool to release the respective concave members from their locked condition.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a receptacle according to the present invention in its closed condition; Fig. 2 is a front view of the receptacle of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a rear view of the receptacle of Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is a side view of the receptacle in the direction of arrow A in Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is a side view of the receptacle in the direction of arrow B in Fig. 2; Fig. 6 is a top view of the receptacle in the direction of arrow C in Fig. 2; Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a receptacle of Figs. 1 to 6 in its open condition; Fig. 8 is a front view showing the external surfaces of the receptacle of Fig. 7; Fig. 9 is a front view showing the internal surfaces of the receptacle of Fig. 7; Fig. 10 is a top view of the receptacle in the direction of arrow D in Fig. 8; Fig. 11 is an enlarged perspective view of the tamper-evident locking member shown in Figs. 1 to 6; Fig. 12 is a side view of the tamper-evident locking member in the direction of arrow E in Fig. 11; Fig. 13 is a top view of the tamper-evident locking member in the direction of arrow F in Fig. 11; and Fig. 14 shows an example of a safety inspection checklist for a forklift truck with alternative safety status indicators positioned below for presentation through the window of the receptacle.

In the example shown in Figs. 1 to 6, the invention provides a fully enclosed hollow receptacle (10) defined by generally rectangular front and rear concave members (12, 14) connected together along a longitudinal hinge (16). The receptacle can be made from any suitable material but is most preferably of a moulded plastics construction to provide a degree of rigidity and a lightweight, durable and weatherproof protective enclosure for a safety inspection checklist (see Fig. 14).

The hinge (16), which is shown most clearly in Figs. 8-10, is defined by a longitudinal flexible web of, preferably, plastics material which joins two peripheral edges of the front and rear concave members (12, 14). Each concave member (12, 14) comprises a major face (12a, 14a) and, as best seen in Figs. 7 and 11, is provided with two side walls (12b, 14b), a base wall (12c, 14c) and a top wall (12d, 14d) depending from, or proximate, the peripheral edges of its major face (1 2a, 1 4a). As is best seen in Figs. 7, 9 and 10, the side, base and top walls (1 2b, 1 2c, 1 2d) of the front concave member (12) are slightly recessed from the peripheral edges of the front major face (1 2a). This arrangement serves to allow the side, base and top walls (1 2b, 1 2c, 1 2d) of the front concave member (12) to be nested within the corresponding walls of the rear concave member (12) when the receptacle (10) is in its closed condition. When the receptacle (10) is in its closed condition as shown in Figs. 1 to 6, the respective walls define a generally parallelepiped shape. The receptacle (10) may be maintained in its closed condition by means of a friction fit between the respective side, base and top walls, or by means of a catch arrangement (not shown).

A window (18) is provided in the front major face (1 2a) to allow a portion of a folded safety inspection checklist accommodated within the closed receptacle to be viewed by a user of workplace equipment. The positioning of the window (18) in the front major face (1 2a) is selected to match the dimensions and arrangement of a safety status indicator portion (44) provided at the bottom of the foldable safety inspection checklist shown in Fig. 14.

As is best seen in Figs. 3-6 and 10, the rear major face (1 4a) is provided with two protuberances (20) presenting a recessed profile (22) shaped as the arc of a sector of a circle. Such a profile (22) facilitates the secure attachment of the receptacle (10) onto a correspondingly shaped part of equipment, for example, a cylindrical scaffolding pole. It will be appreciated that, if required, various differently shaped profiles (22) could be provided to match the surface profiles of different pieces of workplace equipment. As is best seen in Figs. 3 and 7-9, the rear major face (14a) is also provided with a pair of apertures (24) immediately below each protuberance (20). The apertures (24) allow the receptacle to be securely attached to a piece of equipment by, for example, cable ties or screw fixings.

As is best seen in Figs. 7-9, protrusions (26) extend from the top walls (12d, 14d) of the front and rear concave members (12, 14). The protrusions (26) are equal in shape and dimension, extend along more than 50% of the length of each top wall (12d, 14d), and are each positioned in an off-centre arrangement. Each protrusion (26) is provided with an aperture (28) which is laterally positioned such that it corresponds with the mid-point of the length of each top wall (12d, 14d). This arrangement ensures that when the front and rear concave members (12, 14) are pivoted together about the hinge (16), the protrusions (26) overlap and the apertures (28) become substantially aligned.

Figs. 11-13 show a locking member (30) comprising a shaft portion (32) having an enlarged base (34) at one distal end thereof, and a one-way catch member (36) at its opposite distal end.

The shaft portion (32) is dimensioned to have a marginally smaller diameter than the aperture (28) to facilitate its insertion and removal from the aperture (28).

The enlarged base (34) cannot pass through the aperture (28) and is dimensioned for ease of handling and such that its presence on the receptacle (10) is visually obvious to both users of workplace equipment and persons responsible for conducting safety checks. In this regard, the enlarged base (34) may be coloured so as to create a clear contrast with the receptacle (10) such that its presence of absence may be easily determined.

The one-way catch member (36) is provided in the form of an arrowhead shape. The stem (38) of the arrowhead is narrower than the diameter of the shaft portion (32). The angled portions (40) of the arrowhead are directed back towards the enlarged base (34) and, as is most clear from Fig. 12 and 13, are radially wider than the shaft portion (32). Preferably, the locking member (30) is of plastics construction and is integrally moulded in one piece.

In use, a competent person conducts a safety check on a piece of workplace equipment by ticking off checkpoints on a safety inspection checklist (see Fig. 14) and completing all required fields. Once the checklist is completed it is removed from the checklist book and, using the markings (42) as an aid, the competent person creates four folds in the checklist ensuring that the safety status indicator portion (44) is outwardly facing. The checklist book will contain a copy of the removed checklist and this should be stored in a separate and safe location in case the original is lost.

If not already done, the rear concave member (14) of the receptacle (10) is securely attached to the workplace equipment at a convenient location.

The receptacle can then be opened by pivoting its front concave member (12) about the hinge (16). Dependent upon whether the equipment passed or failed its safety check, the safety inspection checklist is placed into the receptacle with the "Good-To-Go" or "Do-Not-Use" messages in its upper half. The front concave member (12) is then pivoted about the hinge (16) to close the receptacle (10) such that the appropriate message is displayed through the window (18). As can be seen in Figs. 7 and 9, a lateral rib connects the side walls (1 2b) substantially midway along their length and provides the dual function of retaining the safety inspection checklist in position (i.e. by retaining it against the internal surface of the rear concave member (14) to avoid any slippage), and providing added structural integrity to the receptacle (10). When in the closed condition, the safety inspection checklist is fully enclosed and protected from the external environment. Accordingly, there is less likelihood of the checklist being lost or damaged or rendered illegible by moisture, dirt etc. The receptacle (10) is temporarily retained in its closed condition by means of a friction fit of its respective side, base and top walls, or by means of a catch arrangement (not shown). However, there is a danger that the front concave member (12) may inadvertently become disengaged from the rear concave member (14) and the safety inspection checklist may fall out. Furthermore, there is a danger that unscrupulous employees will deliberately remove the safety inspection checklist, perhaps to overcome the inconvenience associated with not being able to use a particular piece of equipment which has failed a safety check.

Importantly, employees do not have duties under the PUWER or LOLER legislation referred to above thus causing potential liability problems for employers. The apparatus of the present invention alleviates this problem by providing a locking member (30) to prevent, or at least expose, unauthorised tampering with the receptacle (10). As discussed further below, the locking member (30) provides a failsafe means of verifying that the receptacle (10) has not been tampered with by providing employees and competent persons alike with visual reassurance that the safety status indicator portion (44) accurately reflects the safety status of the equipment.

Accordingly, immediately after the receptacle (10) is closed, the competent person attaches the locking member (30) by inserting the one-way catch member (36) and the shaft portion (32) through the aligned apertures (28) in the overlapping protrusions (26). During insertion, the angled portions (40) of the arrowhead are resiliently deformed towards its stem (38) to reduce their radial width and thus facilitate the passage of the arrowhead through both apertures. Once the arrowhead emerges from the other side of the aligned apertures (28) the angled portions (40) resiliently expand radially to their original shape. In doing so, the arrowhead cannot easily travel back through the aligned apertures in the opposite direction and the receptacle (10) is maintained in a locked condition. In one example, the receptacle may be bright yellow in colour whilst the locking member (30) is coloured red. Accordingly, if the locking member (30) is accidentally or deliberately removed, its absence in immediately apparent and an employee or competent person knows that the displayed safety status information cannot necessarily be relied upon.

Since safety checks must be repeated by competent persons at regular intervals the locking member (30) must be removable to allow the enclosed safety inspection checklist to be replaced. Accordingly, the locking member (30) is adapted to be frangible by providing a weakened portion of lesser diameter between the enlarged base (34) and the shaft portion (32). Upon the application of a sufficient removal force applied either manually or with the aid of a tool the enlarged base (34) can be separated from the shaft portion (32) to release the respective front and rear concave members (12, 14) from their locked condition.

Modifications and improvements may be made to the foregoing without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, whilst the hinge (16) above has been described as a web of plastics material, any other hinge construction, such as a two-part hinge, could also be used. As an alternative to a pivoting connection, the two members (12, 14) may instead be connected together in a slidable fashion, or indeed be entirely separable. It will also be appreciated that the shape and dimensions of the receptacle (10) can be varied to match the shape and size of the safety inspection checklist to be enclosed therein. Finally, it will be appreciated that the particular construction of the frangible locking member (30) described above is merely one of many different possibilities.