Victorian construction industry to receive free safety info

Each year, the guide is distributed at no cost to construction companies throughout Victoria with the aim to increase awareness of major health and safety issues within the Industry.

As with other states, the latest releases of the construction guides, Power Tool Safety is a prominent focus this year. This is in response to the "dark" statistic that close to 30 per cent of tradesmen are injured each year by the power tools they use every day.

These statistics remain an estimate, because incidents go largely unreported, but they still remain a great concern and are the cause of much lost productivity every year.

The contents of the guide ensure that every section contains up-to-date and detailed information of the highest standard. The high visibility of the guide serves to provide workers with a constant reminder of the importance of safe handing and usage of power tools.

The information covers every area, from safety checks such as legal requirements, pre-use inspections, training and competency and safety data sheets, to guidelines for proper tool use such as work area preparations, ventilation and noise control, electrical safety and general maintenance.

"I am continuously impressed by your commitment to the reduction of injury, illness and fatality throughout workplaces in all industries across the nation," Jessica Bakic of The Safety Institute of Australia said.

"The professionalism of your organisation is to be commended. The way in which you work to bring each entire industry – the workers, consultants, suppliers and associations – together is fantastic."

"I would like to thank all of the sponsors for their support of the latest Victorian edition of the Construction Industry Guide to Site Safety, who have made it possible for it to be distributed free of charge to the industry," John Hutchings, CEO, Pro-Visual Publishing said.

"Power Tools may be one of the most commonly used pieces of equipment in the building and construction industry, but with familiarity can potentially come complacency, and it’s important that their safe use is never overlooked."