Once again delivery has become a big topic and during the month I have fielded calls from SA, Victoria and NSW in relation to delivery of our products.

The photos show the very ugly practice of delivering with a crane – under powerlines.  Yes the powerlines are not heavy voltage but that does not matter.  I rang the driver, not to give him a hard time but to ask if there was anything we were missing.  Had he talked to the relevant authorities or what led him to breach WHS during the delivery.

At first the driver was pretty peeved, but I assured him I was sincerely seeking an answer as to why he took the action he did and whether in fact he realised what he was doing wrong.

The answer was the same faced by fabricators on a daily basis.  What else could he do?  The builder pressured him to deliver to site and there was no room to place the timber anywhere else.

That’s all good and well but it does not pass safety regulations.  ForestWorks is currently looking at delivery standards for the development of a new training package to ensure our standards are lifted and we work to best practice.

We will keep you updated on the progress of this, however, in the meantime I strongly urge fabricators to put in place safe delivery practices.  FTMA Australia will be working with our experts at TTIA in developing the right tools for members.

Please remember because the builder made me do it, is no excuse!