Safely servicing heavy-duty construction equipment

Komatsu Australia’s facilities cover the whole of Queensland, from Brisbane in the south to Cairns in the north, and west to Mt Isa, including heavy-duty mining equipment such as loaders, excavators and bulldozers. As a major manufacturer and supplier of mining and construction equipment, the company fosters an ongoing program of continuous improvement in safety performance.

The expansion of its Queensland mining, construction and utility operations further highlighted the need to be able to safely service and maintain the equipment. Serious injuries can be sustained by falls of only a metre and many pieces of equipment require the maintenance worker to be several metres off the ground. Diesel fitters had nothing to secure themselves to when climbing over the equipment in order to service it and this potentially represented a real concern for the company.

Brett Gesch, Komatsu’s North Queensland Regional OHSE Manager, is well aware of the paramount importance of ensuring the staff’s safety at all times. He asserts that it is impossible to place a high enough importance on the safety of Komatsu’s employees and subcontractors, stating: “A single fall can lead to serious injury or death, and cost tens of thousands of dollars in compensation payments. Prevention is definitely better than a cure when it comes to our workers’ safety.”

Gesch contacted Phil Harris, Safety Specialist at BOC, and in turn they brought in Greg Peterson, Capital Safety’s Systems Manager. Together, they undertook a full review of operations at the Mackay site, taking into account the types and sizes of machinery regularly requiring building or repair.

The team selected the DBI-Sala free-standing horizontal rail system as the best overall option, and an initial order was placed, customised specifically for Komatsu to suit their needs in terms of size, location and portability.

The system allows Komatsu’s diesel fitters to move freely about the equipment, while they remain safely secured to the overhead adjustable rail. The use of a self-retracting lifeline on a rail trolley allows them to complete the required work all over the equipment unencumbered.

An additional advantage for Komatsu is that the self-retracting lifeline eliminates any freefall distance to less than half a metre, so the fitter can feel totally secure while carrying out his work. The system is fully fall arrest rated and can be used in conjunction with the existing fall arrest equipment that is used at the branch. Each unit is supplied with a single-track rail and two individual man-rated rail trolleys for anchorage of the personal fall arrest system (PFAS). In addition, the DBI-Sala system allows maximum adjustment of the horizontal rail to more than 11 m, depending on the model, with a safe working length of more than 9.5 m and a width of more than 3.5 m.

Gesch adds that another factor behind the installation decision was its simplicity and portability: “The system was very straightforward to commission. It is easily moved by hand around the site and can be placed by the diesel fitter to provide protection very precisely. We are able to schedule a detailed maintenance program with the same free-standing horizontal rail system for several pieces of equipment.”

After initially commissioning one piece of equipment, Komatsu then placed an order for a further two units across their branches.

Anthony Crowley, Komatsu Australia’s General Manager Human Resources, agrees that when it comes to safety, the system provides real peace of mind for staff: “We cannot rest until we have eradicated all incidents that cause or have the potential to cause harm to individuals and potential loss to the organisation.”

Peterson is very pleased with the results at Komatsu so far, having personally overseen the commissioning and ordering of the equipment, commenting: “We were able to pinpoint precisely the quantity and size requirements for each site. The system’s combined simplicity of a horizontal rail and trolley system with a portable support structure provides reliable fall protection where it’s needed, when it’s needed. It’s safety from the ground up.”