Working at Height

& Excavation
WORKING AT HEIGHT
1) Existing legislation in Malaysia does
not provide specific definition to work
at height.
c

2) The Work at Height Regulations 2005

(WAHR) in UK defined work at height as :
• Work in any place where, including a
place at or below ground level;
• Obtaining access to or egress from
such place while at work, except by a staircase in permanent workplace,
where, if measures requires by these Regulations were not taken, a person could
fall a distance liable to cause personal injury.
c

3) Platforms used for work at height job :

• Permanent Platform
• Temporary Platform
• Guidelines for the Prevention of Falls at Workplaces
• Apply to work carried out from 2 metres or more in height
• The provision of such information, instruction, training and
supervision as is necessary to ensure, so far as is
practicable, the safety and health of his employees.
(Section 15(2)(c) Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994)
Permanent Platform
Main causes of Accident How to Avoid This Type of Accident

Slippery Surface Must be Work on Oil Free Platform

Do maintain Three Points at All times While

Damaged Platform & Railing
Cimbing

Improper Use of Staircase Maintain Good House Keeping on Platform

Poor House Keeping

Keep Good Health Condition

Poor Health Condition &

Report Near Misses
Acrophobia (Fear of Height)
Temporary Platform
 Main causes of Accident How to Avoid This Type of Accident

Inspect the Scaffolding Before Starting any Work

Poor scaffolding condition
Keep Access and Egress Way are Clean and Neat

Bad House keeping

Keep Three Point Contact on Ladder

Lack of Knowledge About Work at Height

Use a Proper Tools and Equipment
Procedure

Use a Proper PPE and Fall Proctection System

Without Use of PPE’s

Only Worked Trained and Knowledgeable Person

Without Use of Fall Protection Systems
Barricade the Work at Height Area

Poor Health Condition Everyone should be aware of the rescue plan

4) The definition includes work :
• in or on an elevated place of work, for example on a ladder or a flat roof, from
which a person could fall;
• in the vicinity of an opening through which a person could fall;
• in the vicinity of an edge over which a person could fall; or
• in any other place (whether above or below ground), for example fall through a
fragile surface, from which a person could fall, from one level to another.
5) Despite the discrepancies between the prescribed distance, the purpose of the
regulations is the same which is to prevent personal injury to workers.
6) Fall from a height of prescribed distance has been classified as high risk3, 5, and
most likely to cause personal injury.
 Fall Protection System

Railing Safety Harness

 Fall Protection System

Safety Life Line Safety Net

 Related Act / Regulations/ Codes of practices / Guidelines
FMA 1967 -
• PART II SAFETY, HEALTH AND WELFARE Regulation no.10 Provisions relating to safety : all
floors, working levels, platforms, decks, stairways, passages, gangways, ladders and steps shall be of
safe construction so as to prevent a risk of persons falling, and structurally sound so as to prevent a
risk of collapse, and shall be properly maintained and kept.
• Building Operations And Works Of Engineering Construction (BOWEC) Regulations 1986 :
Section 50.Safety Belts. Safety belts, life lines and all devices for the attachment of life lines shall be
adequate strength and of a type approved by the Chief Inspector.

Section 51. Attachment Required.

(1) Every safety belt made available or supplied to an employee for his personal protection shall be used
by the employee in the performance of his work.
(2) At all times during use, the safety belt shall be attached to a life line which is securely attached to a
sufficient anchorage and shall not be longer than is necessary to permit the employee to perform his
work.
(3) The point of anchorage of the life line shall not be lower than the level of the working position of the
employee.
(4) There shall be provided adequate and suitable means of anchorage when the use of safety belt or life
line is necessary
• Building Operations And Works Of Engineering Construction (BOWEC) Regulations 1986 :
Section 55. Safety Nets.
(1) Every safety net shall be of a type tested and approved by a testing body approved by the
Chief Inspector.
(2) Every safety net or combination of safety nets shall be of sufficient size and strength to catch
any person for whose protection it is used and so located as to cover the area of possible fall.
(3) Every safety net shall be attached to sufficient anchorages or supports outside and beyond
the area possible fall and supported at the height sufficient to prevent sagging to any surface or
object beneath when cushioning the fall of a person.

Section 57. Inspection Of Safety Nets.

(1) Each safety net shall be inspected by a designated person before each installation.
(2) No safety net which shows signs of wear, damage or deterioration that will materially affect
the strength of any portion thereof shall be installed.
(3) After installation, a designated person shall inspect the safety net and its supports daily.
(4) The result of inspection as required under sub-regulations (1) and (3) shall be entered into a
register which shall be kept at the worksite for inspection by an Inspector.
OSHA 1994 -
• General duties of employers and self-employed persons to their employees
(section 15) - It shall be the duty of every employer and every self-employed person
to ensure, so far as is practicable, the safety, health and welfare at work of all his
employ.
• OSHA 1994 Section 19 - Penalty for an offence under section 15 : fine not
exceeding fifty thousand ringgit or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two
years or to both.
• Guidelines for the Prevention of Falls at Workplaces.
EXCAVATION
EXCAVATION
1) Excavation work is defined as the removal of earth, rock or other material in connection
with construction or demolition works using tools, machinery or explosives to form an
open face, hole or cavity.
2) Excavation work includes :
• Earthwork • Well
• Trenching • Shaft
• Cofferdam • Tunnel
• Caisson • Underground Working

* Caissons are permanent structures found in the initial design construction, whereas cofferdams are
temporary structures installed for necessary repairs or maintenance.

3) Every employer in a construction project that involved excavation works must ensure
risks are managed by establishing a safe systems of work, as required under Section
15(2)(a) of OSHA, General duties of employers and self-employed persons. The
provision and maintenance of plant and systems of work that are, so far as is
practicable, safe and without risks to health;
 Cave-ins or
excavation
collapses

Underground Excavated
Facilities Material

Major Falling
Flood/Water Objects or
Hazards Hazards Of Objects Near
Excavation Excavation

Powered
Hazardous
Mobile
Atmosphere
Equipment

Slips, Trips
and Falls
 Before You Excavate
• Registered as an excavation contractor with the workplace Safety
& Health Personnel/ Committee.
• Notified the workplace Safety & Health Committee of your
excavation and obtained a serial number for your excavation.
• Obtained clearances from underground facilities.
• Obatained approvals where required.
• Provide apropriate training for all workers involved in the
excavation work.
 Training for Workers
Employers are required to educate and train employees on:
• Risks at work they might experience
• Safe working practises were created to address those
risks.
• Devices or personal protection equipment that they need
to utilise and are provided.
 Training must be conducted
• Before employees perform their jobs at the workplace.
• Before engaging in a task that differs from what they were
initially instructed to do.
• Before moving employees to a different location of the
workplace with different equipment, procedures, or
hazards.
Establishing safe systems of work
A safe system of work is a formal procedure which systematically examines work tasks
to identify all potential hazards and then delineates safe working methods, that ensure
hazards are eliminated and risks minimised. ( A safe system of work is needed when
hazards cannot be physically eliminated and certain elements of risk remain).

The five steps to achieving a safe system of work :

I. Considering work preparation and authorisation

required at the start of any job;
II. Ensuring clear planning of job sequences;
III. Specifying safe work methods and necessary safety
measures;
IV. Including a safe means of access and escape, where
relevant; and
V. Considering tasks such as dismantling and disposal of
building materials at the end of each job.
Safe Work Method Statements (SWMS)
If the excavation work is or involves high risk construction work, a contractor must
prepare an the
1) Identify SWMS
type before
of the
2) high riskthe
Specify construction
health and work starts. The SWMS must:
3) Describe how the risks
high risk construction safety hazards and risks
will be controlled
work being done arising from that work

5) Be developed in
4) Describe how the consultation with workers
control measures will be and their representatives
implemented, monitored who are carrying out the
and reviewed high risk construction
work.
 Related Act / Regulations/ Codes of practices / Guidelines
• Guidelines on Occupational Safety and Health in Construction Industry (Excavation
Work) 2017.
• FMA1967 (Building Operations and Works of Engineering Construction) (Safety)
(BOWECS) :
Regulation 113 (2) General requirements;
Regulations to manage the risks associated with excavation work, including trenches. Contractor has legal
obligations under part XII of the FMA1967
(2) The excavation site and its vicinity shall be checked by a designated person after every rainstorm or other
hazard-increasing occurance and the protection against slides and cave-ins shall be increased, if necessary.

Regulation 116. Trench Excavation.

(1) Pilings, shoring and bracing used in a trench excavation to protect employees against falling or sliding
materials shall be of adequate strength. Where the trench to be excavated exceeds 4 metres in depth, such
protection shall be constructed in accordance with the design and drawings of a Professional Engineer.
(2) Where trenching of more than 1.5 metres in depth is done by a mechanical digger the protection required by
sub-regulation (1) shall follow the jib as closely as possible.

Regulation 117. Deep Trench.

Where the trench requires two lengths of sheet piling, one above the other, the lower piling shall be set inside the
bottom wales of the upper piling and shall be driven down and braced as the excavation continues.
THANK YOU