WINNER - Category 3 Best Workplace Health & Safety Practices in a Small Business

WP Projects, Cattai NSW

WP Projects is an award-winning Sydney based commercial construction company that specialise in project/construction management, fit outs, refurbishment and maintenance. WP Projects have a solid foundation of expertise and knowledge in passive solar design, environmental sustainability and the green star accredited building process. The business has been operating for over 30 years.

Initiative

WP Projects realised that the physically demanding nature of work in the construction industry leads to employees being exposed to various forms of injury. They set out to minimise or eliminate the likelihood of this occurring.

Their first step was to examine the common causes and types of workplace injuries that occur and as a result identified the problem areas of: Manual handling, working at heights, falls from the same level and electrocution.

WP Projects then worked with employees to minimise the risks and together developed and implement a range of solutions including:

• trolley for sheets – was developed to minimise the amount of manual handling and eliminates the need to bend lift or cut below mid thigh height
• new trolleys for metal products – minimises manual handling and allows for a neater workplace eliminating trip hazards
• custom made scaffold – this was engineered to eliminate the need to climb up and down by 80% which greatly reduces the chance of falls from height
• insulation rig – minimises the number of hours working at heights, manual handling of insulation and reduces the chance of musculoskeletal disorders
• pre fabricated frames and bulkheads – reduces the amount of time employees work at heights
• chairs – reduces the chance of bending over or kneeling for long periods of time
• tile installer – allows the tiles to be installed from the ground which eliminated a chance of falling from height using cordless tools where practicable reducing trips over cabling and electrocution.