Working safely

Christophe Chausse, Oil and Gas Global Director for Capital Safety, explains why and how employers should focus on the security of their employees.

Capital Safety Group benefits from over 60 years of experience and innovation expertise to guarantee even more security and comfort to protect workers from falls when working at height or in confined space. As a worldwide leader, Capital Safety Group not only offers a wide range of products and systems but also solutions and services.

Capital Safety develops and tests products according to customers needs, directly with the users:
•  Involving from design stage to field test the daily-users/employees
•  Customising series for specific customers
•  Most recent successes: derrick and riding up harness, retrieval harnesses, heavy duty and rough environment sealed block
•  New sloped-line escape systems – vertical and slope decender 120m
•  Man rated tuggers (winch lines) and/or new tension/load limiters that can be used to safely raise workers to difficult access areas on the derrick
•  Rig floor/deck horizontal lifeline systems to be used during rig up and down while guardrails are removed
•  ATEX – intrinsically safe fall protection range
•  i-Safe – tracking, inventorying, inspecting with a PDA and RFID tags

Our recent successes in custom products are the result of this long experience and relation with the users. We have recently cured two major issues on a rig and at a refinery:

Case 1:
Climbing a ladder, riding up working from a derrick board; these activities required different harnesses for the same workers having various tasks to accomplish. Capital Safety Group has developed a versatile harness, which can be used in almost all configurations. Thanks to our strong partnership and end user focus; we have been able to draw all the specifications (for the various applications of this harness and different country norms) design and test the prototype together with the users.

Case 2:
Scaffolding on a petrochemical plant is mandatory for any maintenance and inspection at height. In most cases the task itself takes a shorter amount of time than installing this scaffolding. Also in some cases scaffolding is not designed to carry a fall (anchorage >22KN). Capital Safety Group has designed a portable ladder system with a top board, on wheels, adjustable in height up to 12m, rated to carry a fall of two workers, and it is easy to push and pull even by hand. This brings safe and fast response to all minor interventions.

In 12 years, the oil and gas industry has come a long way in protecting workers from falls. The next hurdles to overcome are confined space and training. The thing to remember is that falls, like car accidents, don’t discriminate. They can occur at the most familiar locations at any time because workers and drivers alike let their guard down.

For more information please contact Capital Safety Group on: oilandgas@capitalsafety.com, via telephone on: +33 4 97100010 or via fax on: +33 4 93 08 79 70. Or visit the website at www.capitalsafety.com.