14 May 2007 16:17pm

Getting to Grips with Ceiling Safety

EB500, firemaster ceiling, health and safety

Richard Wigley, Marketing Manager at Eurobond, discusses best practice guidelines for working on ceilings constructed using steel faced insulated composite panels. This type of composite panel is frequently used in the food manufacturing and storage sectors.

The key to ceiling work is to plan carefully and to recognize the key factors needed to form a cohesive approach to ceiling safety.

Designing out risk

The most important factor is to implement a design that reduces the risks involved with working on it. Under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 1994, whoever designs the ceiling must produce a design that eliminates risk wherever possible. Where it is not possible to design out the hazard, the risk must be reduced and details should be included in the Health and Safety plan.

Consideration should be given to the suitability of the composite panel. Eurobond’s composite panels, for example, have been put through stringent EB500 tests that look at the actual use and loading of a ceiling panel in a real life situation.

Correct Installation

It is vital that the manufacturers’ instructions are followed in terms of the sequence in which the panels are laid down and the number of fixings required. Ceiling panels should always be fully fixed as they are installed allowing work to progress safely.

Fall protection should also be incorporated. This could include safety features such as temporary edge protection, which can be fixed to the ceiling during construction, and safety barriers for access or maintenance purposes.

Access Procedures

When maintenance work necessitates accessing the ceiling at a later date, the starting point is to gather information about the ceiling – whether new or existing – and to pass this on to the appointed contractor. The information should include basic details about the manufacturer and the performance specification of the ceiling products. A copy of the information should also be held in the Health and Safety file.

Any competent contractor should understand and endeavour to manage/eliminate any risks. People or objects falling off or through ceiling panels are the main areas of concern. These hazards are most likely the result of unguarded edges, slipping on wet panels caused by spills or roof leaks, stepping on to or overloading incompletely fixed panels or old ceiling panels failing because they have become brittle with age.

A project specific method statement should be produced prior to work commencing, including a risk assessment specific to the project. This should cover those actually involved in working on the ceiling as well as managing the risks to people who will be in the vicinity whilst work is undertaken.

A list of people who will be involved on working on the ceiling should be provided along with a proof that they are competent to do so. These personnel must have undergone a safety induction course specific to ceiling safety. They should also be properly briefed on the hazards associated with the ceiling to be worked on and on gaining safe access to it, and they must have access to the correct safety equipment and understand how it is used.

In addition, the Health and Safety file specific to the project must be read. Then clear guidelines need to be set down for those working on the ceiling in relation to access and movement across the ceiling, storing materials and limiting carried loads.

In terms of accessing the ceiling, dedicated safe access points should be set up. Wherever feasible this should be via a stair-tower. If this is not possible and ladders are used, they must be tied at the top and extend at least 1.1m past the access point. Once on the ceiling personnel must not jump or bounce on the panels, nor should they gather in groups of more than two.

Finally, materials should not be stored on the ceiling but if there is no alternative provide some means of spreading the load.

While no one would under estimate the risks involved with roofing, work on ceilings are often viewed as a lesser risk. They are not - and the correct safety measures must always be followed to ensure the safety of those working on the ceiling and those in the vicinity.

Further Help

Eurobond has published a Best Practice Guide for work on ceilings constructed using steel faced insulated composite panels. Aimed at those responsible for managing work at height hazards, the guide is a source of essential information on the correct construction and maintenance of insulated panel ceilings and safe access procedures. The guidance applies to composite panels with all types of core material.

Download a copy of the guide