17th February 2011, 11:49 AM
What Sadie says is absolutely true... and remember you are just as responsible as the employer. You do not take a risk.
In carrying out an excavation, the soil conditions can vary widely, often in short distances. No soil, whatever its nature, can be relied upon to support its own weight for any length of time - let alone any additional loads which may be imposed by plant and materials. Even a small fall of earth is capable of inflicting serious injury, even if it does not kill.
This is a useful document I find:
http://www.axa.co.uk/assets/documents/ax...ations.pdf
and includes info about such things as the safe angle of differnt types of soils under normal conditions that should be self-supporting.
and this of course
http://www.hse.gov.uk/construction/safet...ations.htm
In carrying out an excavation, the soil conditions can vary widely, often in short distances. No soil, whatever its nature, can be relied upon to support its own weight for any length of time - let alone any additional loads which may be imposed by plant and materials. Even a small fall of earth is capable of inflicting serious injury, even if it does not kill.
This is a useful document I find:
http://www.axa.co.uk/assets/documents/ax...ations.pdf
and includes info about such things as the safe angle of differnt types of soils under normal conditions that should be self-supporting.
and this of course
http://www.hse.gov.uk/construction/safet...ations.htm