SECTION 12

SAFETY PROCEDURES

12.1

GENERAL
The Contractor shall be responsible for the safety of personnel and the public during
the contract period and compliance with safety requirements stated herein shall not
relieve the Contractor of his responsibility or liability under the Contract.
Prior to the commencement of the Works, the Contractor shall submit a safety policy
for the Contract detailing all proposed specific safety arrangements for the
agreement of the Engineer. This shall include but not be limited to the requirements
set out in this section.
If at any time safety requirements are not being met by the Contractor, the Engineer
shall have the right to instruct the Contractor on the necessary safety provisions and
the Contractor shall comply with such instructions forthwith.
The Contractor shall notify the Engineer immediately of any accident that occurs
whether on or off site in which the Contractor is directly involved which results in
any injury to any person whether directly concerned with the site or whether a third
party. Such initial notification may be verbal and shall be followed by a written
comprehensive report within 24 hours of the accident.

12.2

FAMILIARISATION WITH SAFETY PROBLEMS

The Contractor shall make himself familiar with the condition of the site before
tendering in order to assess the nature of safety problems he is likely to encounter
and the safety requirements.

12.3

SAFETY OFFICER
The Contractor shall appoint a Safety Officer who shall be responsible for all aspects
of safety. He shall be conversant with and experienced in all general civil
engineering construction and sewer safety techniques and emergency procedures,
and shall be on site at all times operatives are working. He shall enforce and
supervise the safety procedures at all places of works and make sure that adequate
safety equipment, required under Clause 12.5, is available in good working
condition and at all places of works at the time works are on-going.
The Safety Officer shall also be responsible for organizing, implementing and
maintaining any road closures, traffic diversions, removal of parked cars causing an
obstruction, etc., in adequate time to ensure compliance with the Contract
programme.

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12.4

SAFE WORKING CONDITIONS AT THE SITE

The Contractor shall provide Method Statements detailing proposed safe methods of
work with the Tender. The methods should generally follow the recommendations
of the following publications:
1)

Code of Construction Safety Practice as published by the Dubai Municipality.

2)

Administrative Order No. 330 in connection with Safety Manual of Dubai

Municipality.

3)

Health and Safety Guideline No. 2, Safe Working in Sewers and at Sewage
Works as published in the United Kingdom.

Accident procedures and emergency procedures shall be fully detailed.

No persons shall be allowed to enter a confined space until the safe methods of work
have been agreed upon and fully implemented to the satisfaction of the Engineer.
12.5

SAFETY EQUIPMENT
The Contractor shall make sure, prior to commencement of works on site, that
adequate safety equipment, apparatus and devices are available, and that as a
minimum the following equipment and devices are available at each entry point to a
confined space:Type of Equipment

No. Required

a. Safety harness and ropes

b. Lifting frame and tackle for safety harness
c. Gas detector (suitable for H2S)
d. Approved mechanical air blower and power supply
e. Emergency breathing apparatus
f.Atmosphere monitoring device, capable
of monitoring oxygen levels, and levels
of toxic and flammable gas
g. Washing facilities with disinfectants, toiletries
h. Communication facilities
i. Lighting (explosion proof)

2
1
2
1
2
1
As Required
As Required
As Required

All personnel working on, visiting or inspecting any part of the Works shall be
provided with and be required to wear appropriate protective clothing or apparatus.
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Safety helmets, coats, gloves, footwear, goggles, ear muffs, breathing apparatus and
any other protective apparel or any other equipment deemed necessary by the
Engineer.
Every hoist, lift, sling, chain, rope, pulley block and any other lifting tackle, used in
the Works shall be thoroughly examined by a competent person at least once every 6
months and shall be test loaded to 150% of the safe working load and shall then be
tagged with the safe working load and the date of successful testing by an authorised
testing authority.
All parts and working gear whether fixed or movable, including the anchoring and
fixing appliances of every crane and lifting machine shall be of good construction,
sound material, adequate strength and shall be properly maintained. All parts and
gear shall be examined at least once every twelve months.
A register of all such equipment and examinations shall be kept up to date by the
Contractor and be available for inspection by the Engineer.
12.6

SAFETY PROCEDURES

12.6.1

General
All excavation shall be adequately supported against collapse and provided with
protective safety barriers and appropriate warning signs and bunting.
Suitable and sufficient scaffolds shall be provided and properly maintained for all
work that cannot safely be carried out from the ground or from part of the structure
or from a ladder. Every scaffold shall be of good construction, of suitable and sound
material and of adequate strength for the purpose for which it is used. Unless
designed as an independent structure, every scaffold shall be rigidly connected to a
part of the structure which is of sufficent strength to afford safe support. Protective
headgear shall always be worn.
All manufacturers instructions and recommendations for the use, application,
erection or construction of any material or item of equipment or plant shall be
followed precisely.
Special care shall be taken to protect all employees when using power tools or
materials which will produce a fine dust and in particular all asbestos based
products. The operator should stand upwind of the operation and wear an approved
respirator and goggles. Wherever possible overalls should be worn and should
consist of 60% polyester fibre and 40% cotton.
Transportation of any material by the Contractor shall be in suitable vehicles which
when loaded do not cause spillage and all loads shall be suitably secured. The
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Engineer shall have the right to instruct the withdrawal from the site of any vehicle
which does not comply with these requirements or any of the Dubai or UAE traffic
regulations and laws.
The Contractor shall adopt the safety procedures as proposed by him as per Clause
12.4 for entry into a manhole or other confined space. However, the following
safety procedures are outlined as a guide only. The Contractor shall, where
appropriate, use these procedures in addition to his proposed procedures while
entering into a manhole or a confined space. Also included are additional
information on safety procedures for manhole entry in Appendix 3 contained in Part
3 of 3 of these Specifications for his guidance and use where appropriate.
It shall be explicitly understood that safety is the responsibility of the Contractor and
use of any of these procedures as outlined under this clause or in Appendix 3 shall
not relieve him of any of his contractual responsibilities.
a) The manhole or confined space shall be thoroughly vented by mechanical air
blower prior to entry.
b) A full gas check is to be undertaken prior to entry. If the level of toxic or
explosive gases is above the safe level (maximum acceptable for hydrogen
sulphide is 10 ppm) or the level of oxygen is below a safe level (18%) then
entry is not permitted without the use of full breathing apparatus.
c) All persons entering a manhole or a confined space shall wear a safety harness
properly rigged to the lifting frame.
d) The mechanical air blower shall be kept close by the manhole or confined space
which has been entered.
e) The hydrogen sulphide level in the manhole or confined space shall be
continuously monitored. If the level rises above 10 ppm then the manhole or
confined space shall be evacuated immediately.
f)

At least two people shall be available close to the point of entry to operate the
air blower and lifting tackle in the event of an emergency and who shall note the
location of the nearest telephone in working order and the telephone number of
the nearest hospital before entry is permitted.

g) No smoking shall be permitted and no spark tools shall be used.

12.6.2

Atmosphere Monitoring

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When any person is in a confined space, the atmosphere at the work place and at the
base of the access manhole or pit shall be continuously monitored by a Monitoring
Device to detect oxygen deficiency, flammable gas and toxic gases. The monitoring
equipment shall be designed to be lowered into the work place or access manhole
and shall not depend on a sample draw tube from the surface. The monitoring
equipment shall be the first piece of equipment to be lowered into the place of work
and shall be the last piece of equipment removed.
The Contractor shall provide, maintain and calibrate the approved monitoring
equipment in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions. The Contractor shall
provide adequate numbers of monitoring devices to fully cover all proposed work
places and open manholes or access pits with adequate spare devices, parts and
batteries as needed to ensure complete monitoring of all sites of work at all times
throughout the construction period. No entry into a confined space shall be allowed
until the monitoring devices have been properly placed at the work place or access
site and the readings indicate that the atmosphere is safe. Operatives are to be fully
trained in the use of the monitoring equipment and in the necessary response to
alarm conditions.
12.6.3

Atmosphere Ventilation
Before any person is allowed to enter a confined space, the atmosphere shall be
adequately ventilated. As a minimum, both ends of the sewer section or work place
shall be opened to the atmosphere either by removing the manhole covers or through
open access pits. Positive ventilation shall be provided at all times when a person is
in a confined space, even if the atmosphere monitoring equipment indicates that the
atmosphere is safe for access.

12.6.4

Safety Harness
Each person entering a confined space shall wear a harness at all times. The harness
shall be designed such that it will enable an unconscious person to be lifted to the
surface in a vertical posture.

12.6.5

Emergency Breathing Apparatus

Each person in a confined space shall have emergency breathing apparatus available
and ready for use within the confined space. The breathing apparatus shall have a
minimum capacity of 2 litres and a working pressure of 200 bar and shall be tested
daily, prior to starting work.

12.6.6

Active Confined Space Entry

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Before any person is allowed to enter a confined space that is in active service, the
Contractor shall ascertain the schedule of sewage flows which can be anticipated
over the duration of the work. This shall include average and peak gravity sewage
flows and the discharge flows from all upstream pumping stations. Should the
combined gravity and pumped flows exceed safe working conditions at the work
place, then the Contractor shall prepare a plan for the control and diversion of flows
around or away from the work place. The method of flow diversion shall be as
approved by the Engineer and by the Dubai Municipality. A "permit to work"
system shall be employed for work on sewers where incoming flows (from pumping
or diversion) are controlled by people remote from the work site.
12.6.7

Washing Facilities
Every work place where persons are entering a confined space, shall be provided
with facilities for washing.

12.6.8

Communication
The Contractor shall provide a means of communication, appropriate to the safe
system of work, between ground level and any work place within the confined
space.

12.6.9

Lighting
When permanent works are being constructed or inspected, the confined space shall
be adequately lit. The lighting apparatus shall operate at a voltage not exceeding
50 Volts. The circuit shall be protected against overload. No transformers, switches,
fuses, contact breakers, etc., shall be taken into the confined space. Bulbs shall be
protected against damage.

12.7

TRAFFIC CONTROL
Prior to initiating any work at a site, the Contractor shall prepare, for the approval of
the Engineer, a plan for the diversion and control of traffic around the work site. The
approved traffic control plan shall be submitted to the Dubai Municipality Roads
Department and Dubai Traffic Police for review. Work at the Site may not
commence until the traffic control plan has been approved by the Dubai
Municipality Roads Department and Dubai Traffic Police.
The traffic control plan shall include a street plan of the work site showing all traffic
lanes and building access drives that will be affected by the work. The proposed
system of traffic diversions and the manner of control shall be clearly illustrated,
including the location and types of traffic cones, warning signs and warning lights to
be used. The plan should indicate the anticipated schedule of works for which traffic
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must be diverted. Road diversions and road signs shall conform to Clause 1.3.4 and
to Appendix 1 contained in Part 3 of 3 of the Specifications.
The traffic control plan shall take into consideration the requirements of the work
crew for access to the work site, for positioning and parking of vehicles needed for
the work and for the temporary storage of equipment and materials.

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