A south-west Sydney worksite has been shut down after it was revealed that tradesmen on the site removed parts of scaffolding and altered the structure, leaving the scaffolding at risk of collapse.
The action by SafeWork came just a few days after it announced a focus on scaffolding as part of Safe Work Month and a six-month blitz which targeted sub-standard scaffolding structures.
According to The Daily Telegraph, “A residential construction site on Hinkler Ave in Caringbah was closed last Friday after SafeWork investigators discovered a number of missing scaffold components including essential ties, bracing and planks.”
The building company for the site, Hofly Construction was given a total of 11 notices by SafeWork, including a risk for falls from heights, from the “incomplete scaffold,” which was “missing multiple components”.
A spokeswoman for Hofly explained that the company “acted quickly to respond to these issues” and is co-operating with the safety regulator.
“No building work is permitted in this area until the company is completely satisfied that it is 100 per cent safe,” she said.
The attention from SafeWork was initiated at the site after Scaffold Logistics, who set up the scaffolding originally, was concerned over the state of the scaffolding and contacted the regulator.
Scaffold Logistics WHS Manager, Jordy Adshead said the structure contained “around 100-tonne of the scaffold”.
Mr Adshead, whose company is stressing the importance of compliance, said it was a “massive risk to the industry that any other trade can just remove scaffold components”.