With the cold weather and short days, extra care needs to be applied to our working practices to ensure the safety and comfort of our employees. From the depot and yard to project sites, every aspect of winter weather is meticulously planned by Millcroft, reflecting a commitment to the welfare and safety of teams and the continued success of our projects.
Yard and depot preparation
Millcroft’s winter preparations begin in the yard, where planning plays a crucial role. The fleet of trucks is equipped with de-icers for the windscreens, ensuring clear visibility during cold, frosty mornings. Vehicle cleaning materials are amply stocked for mirrors, reversing cameras and sideline to provide complete visibility in adverse weather conditions.
To combat icy conditions and prevent slips and trips, we regularly grit our yard, entrances, pedestrian paths and parking areas within the depot area with rock salt. We ensure our rock salt is well stocked and stored in tub bins in the yard to provide quick access to additional supplies when needed.
Elsewhere, winter preparation extends to the maintenance and servicing of the boilers to ensure the welfare facilities remain operational and comfortable for all our operatives.
Keeping workers safe and warm
Our operatives' warmth, comfort and safety are even more critical during winter, so we provide additional PPE and clothing. This includes suitable clothing for rail environments and high-visibility clothing for all other conditions. Thermal waterproof gloves, socks and jackets are issued to yard and site staff. Finally, beanies and snoods are also provided for added warmth when travelling or on breaks.
When our operatives work in areas where the ground conditions go above their ankles, such as wet, muddy or snow-covered ground, they have Dunlop Purofort Thermo+ Wellington boots that allow them to stand around comfortably without feeling the cold.
Site foremen look after operatives on site and assess whether additional breaks are needed. They look after our workforce by monitoring their work, keeping them hydrated and warm and ensuring the correct level of PPE and clothing is worn.
Monitoring weather and site conditions
Millcroft’s Operations Director receives regular weather reports and alerts from resources such as the Met Office and clients, including Transport for London. This information is communicated to the operatives, black hat supervisors and the safety teams across all projects.
Darker days and nights can present additional hazards, so we provide site task lighting to ensure all areas are well lit. In addition, our site foremen and supervisors continually monitor live conditions, watching for hazards such as black ice, dry ice and frost that could lead to a possible slip, trip or fall.
Daily briefings, pre-job start assessments, and risk assessments help us to continually evaluate conditions and ensure that tasks are only performed under safe circumstances.
We adopt a cautious approach to adverse weather conditions. High winds, for example, will call a halt to work at height or the installation of equipment susceptible to the wind. These can include scaffolding or systems with sheeting or netting that could fall off or blow away.
Designing structures for weather impact
There is always the risk that conditions such as snow and ice could impact the performance of our scaffolding systems. When our engineers design scaffolding frameworks, they carefully calculate seasonal weather and load shifts to confirm scaffolding integrity.
Using structural calculations and on-site specific data, they can simulate and assess wind, snow and ice impact on the planned systems across all seasons. This analysis pinpoints expected loads at precise structural locations for different times of the year.
Prioritising worker health and safety
From rain, snow and ice to freezing temperatures, working on site during the winter weather can increase risks to our workers. But we can't close down at this time; projects still need to be completed,
Our winter weather working strategy exemplifies our commitment to safety, adaptability and employee well-being. By combining detailed planning, protective measures and ongoing assessments, we ensure that our workforce remains safe, and our projects progress effortlessly in the face of changing and challenging conditions.
