Do you run a pruning business?
In search of a health and safety risk assessment tailored to your activity?
Do you need a pre-filled assessment to save you hours of work?
Want to be in compliance with safety regulations?
 
Our Health and Safety Risk Assessment is designed to meet your needs with:
→ A professional risk assessment totally specific to tree surgeons.
→ A professional risk assessment dedicated to pruning.
→ Risk prevention proposals for tree surgeons.
→ The integration of risks linked to the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic.
 
All this in an easily editable Excel format, allowing you to make personalized updates on your own.
 
FEATURES OF THE HEALTH AND SAFETY RISK ASSESSMENT 
 
This 5-page Excel file includes:
A Cover Page
A Company Information page
A presentation of the Risk Assessment Methodology used.
An occupational risks assessment tailored to your sector of activity.
A risk prevention schedule with all the different safety measures.

It contains 24 occupational risk situations classified into 4 work units:
Tree pruning
Road travel
Customer contact
Working environment
 
☑ Complies with the employer's obligation to assess risks
(Regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulation 1999)
☑ Adheres to the General Principles of Prevention
(Schedule 1 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulation 1999)
☑ Takes into account good practice and pitfalls in risk assessment
(Report RR151 from the Health and Safety Executive)
 
EXCERPTS FROM THE HEALTH AND SAFETY RISK ASSESSMENT 
 
Risks associated with falls from height: Working at height is an integral part of the tree surgeon's job. To prune tree crowns, tree surgeons can use gondolas, or they can work directly on the tree using climbing equipment. Several different climbing systems can be used. For example, pruning claws, which allow you to climb along the trunk, or false forks, which allow you to create an anchoring point from the ground before climbing. The risk of falling from a height is present if tree surgeons do not wear Personal Protective Equipment, or if such equipment is defective (lifespan) or unsuitable. As a reminder: safety harness EN 361, safety lanyard EN 354/355 with shock absorber EN 354/355, fall arrest device slide type EN 353-1, ropes type EN 1891 (semi-static) or EN 892 (dynamic), and karabiners type EN 362 only. Possible damage caused by falls from height includes impact with the ground, an object below or a person below. This can result in contusions, fractures, internal and/or external haemorrhaging, cranial trauma that can plunge the person into a coma, irreversible damage (e.g. spinal cord lesions leading to tetraplegia or paraplegia), or even death in the most serious situations.
 
Risks associated with chain cutting machines: To prune trees, tree surgeons use chain-driven cutting machines, in particular chainsaws. On these machines, the chain teeth move at speeds of up to around 30 m/s. At such speeds, the damage that can be caused by the teeth of the blade if they come into contact with the body is extremely serious, especially since the pruning climber is in a highly vulnerable position when working at height. To prevent these risks, it is vital to use PPE specifically adapted to chain cutting machines, with a protection class (0, 1, 2, or 3) corresponding to the speed of rotation of your machine's chain: protective jacket EN 381-11, work pants EN 381-5, trouser gaiters EN 381-5, safety shoes EN 17249, protective gloves EN 17249. It's also a good idea to fit your hard hat with a mesh visor (EN 166). Chain-saw machines generally cause deep cuts, accompanied by severe haemorrhaging when a vein or aorta is severed. At the same time, nerves, tendons and muscles can be permanently damaged. In the most serious accidents, limbs may be severed or the person may die, either on impact or as a result of excessive bleeding.
 
The hazards of electrification and electrocution linked to live equipment: Climbing tree surgeons may have to work on trees near power distribution networks. Working near power lines is particularly risky, because of the possibility of direct contact with a live conductor, but not only that. Indeed, above a certain voltage, electric shock can occur without even touching the conductor. In dry weather, an arc can travel 10cm further for every additional 100,000 volts. The risks are present when you don't respect the ban on entering the vicinity of a live line. As a reminder, if the voltage of a line is less than 50,000 volts (50kV), this zone is 3m around the line. If its voltage exceeds 50kV, this zone extends to 5m around the line. In addition, the ends of branches must be more than 2m from the live line. Finally, tree surgeons must never work above a live line. Above 10mA, the electric current will cause tetany of the muscles. If the person has grasped the conductor with their hands, they will no longer be able to release it. From this point onwards, the person is electrified, with various forms of damage possible (heart palpitation, burns, muscle numbness or pain, convulsions, coma), or even electrocuted (death by cardiac arrest, or lack of oxygen to the body due to inability to breathe).
 
 
A GUARANTEE OF THE QUALITY OF OUR HEALTH AND SAFETY RISK ASSESSMENT 
_ We're registered as Professional Risk Prevention Consultants.
_ Our team comprises graduate safety engineers.
_ Our documents are routinely checked by safety inspectors.
_ We frequently update our Occupational Risk Assessments.
 
RESOURCES 
_ "Tree Work: Working at height" by Health and Safety Executive.