Managing Partner
New York has enacted various safety rules that are intended to avoid construction equipment failure. When observed properly, these regulations can prevent major accidents. But the failure to do so can lead to catastrophic and often fatal injuries.
If you suffered an accident on Long Island or New York City, it’s time to explore your legal options with Dell & Dean PLLC. Here, we take a look at some steps that contractors and employers can take to comply with the law and prevent construction equipment accidents.
Schedule Inspections and Preventive Maintenance
Various rules, including the NYC Building Code and OSHA regulations, require proper inspections and preventive maintenance. Violating these can cause equipment failures and injuries. Inspections should include:
- Daily, pre-use inspections: Prior to using construction equipment each day, operators should conduct a safety inspection to look for noticeable errors like cracks, worn or broken parts, and leaks.
- Periodic and routine inspections: The timing of these is largely based on how often the equipment is used, so it could be weekly, monthly, or otherwise. These should be more detailed inspections than the daily ones.
- Annual inspections: These are certified checks that are required for certain pieces of high-risk equipment, like cranes. Qualified inspectors check for problems that can cause heavy equipment injuries to workers in NYC.
The goal of preventive maintenance is to address issues before they turn into construction accidents. The contractor or employer should make sure:
- Worn or broken parts are replaced right away
- Moving parts are properly lubricated at all times
- Equipment is calibrated and adjusted regularly
- To follow all manufacturer service schedules
In Long Island and New York City, construction equipment has to meet manufacturer safety standards or stricter state or local codes if applicable. Failure to observe these can lead to fines and work shutdowns.
Conduct Worksite Training
Perhaps the best way to prevent accidents on construction sites is to ensure all workers are correctly trained in how to use equipment. Since human error (including missed inspections and maintenance) is largely to blame for these accidents, training must always be paramount.
Various building codes and regulations in New York City and Long Island are responsible for ensuring proper worksite training. Workers may be required to have up to 40 or more hours of training, with higher standards for supervisors. Training is intended to help equipment operators:
- Safely use equipment, and know when to not use it
- Avoid common safety hazards
- Recognize problems with the equipment
- Reinforce inspection and maintenance protocols
- Improve response times and procedures in an emergency
These are all necessary to avoiding construction equipment failure, and they are the responsibility of construction site contractors and employers.
Enforce Safety Gear Rules
Defective construction site safety gear in NYC is a major cause of serious accidents. When all else fails, safety gear is the last line of defense between the worker and a major injury. NYC, as well as state and federal rules, impose certain safety gear requirements, including:
- Selection of safety gear: Each piece of construction equipment requires a certain type of safety gear, also known as personal protective equipment. Choosing the correct gear that meets approved safety standards is one of the first steps to keeping a worker safe from equipment failure.
- Regular inspections of safety gear: Just as equipment needs to be regularly inspected, the safety gear that protects workers should be. The frequency of inspections will vary based on how often the safety gear is used.
- Proper storage of safety gear: If gear is not stored properly, it can be exposed to harmful elements such as heat, cold, and moisture. Over time, the gear can weaken and degrade to the point it no longer meets safety standards.
- Replacement of worn or defective safety gear: Once safety gear becomes worn down or otherwise defective, it needs to be thrown out and replaced. Continued use of defective construction site safety gear in NYC work sites can cause an injury.
Monitor Environmental Conditions
Long Island and New York City experience harsh weather and other conditions. Even construction equipment that is designed to work in these environments can be susceptible to damage from changing temperatures, precipitation, humidity changes, and more.
These are some examples of how environmental conditions can affect construction equipment:
- Cold temperatures causing loss of battery power
- Hot temperatures affecting the flow of oil in machinery
- Excessive rain causing soil instability for heavy equipment
- Dust, sand, and debris clogging filters and air intakes
- High winds that can knock over cranes
- Freeze-thaw cycles causing cracks in structural components
Contractors, employers, site supervisors, and others play an important role in monitoring the weather and environment to ensure that work can proceed safely. These are some basic steps for mitigating the effects of these conditions:
- Use real-time weather gauges, including on-site thermometers and apps, to stay up to date on changing weather
- Establish safety thresholds (such as minimum temperatures on the construction site) and enforce work shutdown requirements
- Conduct weather-related inspections, particularly after a deep freeze or other extreme weather event
- Train workers in how to recognize environmental damage done to equipment
- Properly store equipment in an enclosed space when weather and conditions require it
- Use weather-appropriate lubricants and fluids
Check Fluid Levels Regularly
Site supervisors and others responsible for workplace safety on Long Island construction sites must ensure that workers regularly check fluid levels on construction equipment. These fluids are essential to the safe and proper functioning of equipment, and they include:
- Hydraulic fluids
- Transmission fluids
- Brake fluids
- Gear oils
- Coolants
- Fuel levels
These are some tips for maintaining appropriate fluid levels:
- Always use the correct fluids, in accordance with the manufacturer’s specifications
- Never mix cheaper fluids with the correct ones
- Keep fluids clean, using funnels and proper storage containers, to avoid contamination
- Replace fluids according to manufacturer guidelines
- Include fluid maintenance as part of the preventive maintenance schedules and environmental inspections
- Watch for leaks and other problems, and train workers accordingly
Monitor Machinery Wear and Tear
Construction equipment has a life cycle, but monitoring equipment for wear and tear can extend this cycle while keeping the equipment safe. Common types of wear and tear that are observed on construction equipment in Long Island and NYC include:
- Degraded metal components
- Corrosion
- Loose bolts
- Worn-out tracks
- Friction damage
- Load-bearing stress
Each of these types of wear and tear present serious dangers to those in the vicinity of the equipment. But there are ways to monitor these risks and avoid construction equipment failure. Examples of appropriate steps include:
- Regular, annual, and special inspections (after certain events which may impose unusual wear and tear on machinery)
- Preventive maintenance to replace defective parts and components
- Training workers to recognize signs of wear and tear
- Keeping equipment clean and only operating it according to workplace safety standards
- Keeping maintenance records to track repairs, fluid changes, and parts replacements
Contact a New York & Long Island Construction Accident Attorney
If you were injured in a construction accident in Long Island or New York City, you should contact an experienced construction accident attorney. Dell & Dean, PLLC is ready to seek the compensation that you deserve. Contact us today to schedule a free initial consultation.
