Scaffolding

The call to action of the article below is reasonable. It encourages those without licenses not to modify scaffolding.

However the coincidence of events (falls for example) and some feature of the events (moderations by non-licensed people) is only actually a way to tell a story. It does not prove the connection. We don’t know that the licensed people would have done anything different.

Are they any mishaps to report on scaffolding that was entirely under the supervision of licensed people? I expect that there are many such incidents.

http://www.aihs.org.au/news-and-publications/news/unauthorised-workers-modifying-scaffolding-can-cause-safety-risks

“Safety” fines

I thought these two things formed an interesting contrast:

Lighting levels inside public transport vehicles

The Disability Standards for Accessible Public Transport 2002 requires lighting of 150 lux at the entrance and point of paying a fare. This applies to buses, coaches, ferries, trains, trams and ight rail.

 It is not further specified how this lighting would be measured, e.g. at floor level versus elevated, horizontal, vertical or some other plane, etc. I expect the intent of the entrance provision would imply a floor level measurement in the horizontal plane. The “paying the fare” position might imply a height where the person is looking at their money, ticket, etc. So perhaps that would be elevated from the floor.

But regardless of where it is measured, the intensity of 150 lux seems very high to me. I doubt it would exist in reality. I wonder if it does?

AS1428 Standards: do accessible environments reduce mobility skills?

Is there a self perpetuating interplay between capability and environment? I’ve been reflecting recently about how the environment to suit people of limited mobility could end up causing limited mobility. Are we creating a problem to some degree by solving a problem? Consider a friend or relative who enters an environment devoid of challenges, aged care for example. They live in a place where nothing is wobbly, nothing is uneven, nothing is soft, it’s all smooth, no steps, “Dalek friendly”. Have you noticed that their mobility skills quickly diminish to match the environment? If so, how can this negative effect of a well-meaning interventions be addressed or balanced?

David Lee Roth talking about Safety in Design

This is the van Halen brown M&M’s story. It wasn’t about rock star quirks. It was about safety in design. And getting the planning right. Listen up safety people, David will tell you how its done.

ARPANSA provide an opinion on the Telstra human-avoiding Wifi advertisement

ARPANSA, Australia Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency provided a response to my question about whether wifi goes around people as suggested by an advertisement.

It is false according to ARPANSA.

The agency adds that there is “no evidence” that it affects health – which is a related but different topic.

Telstra advertisement suggests Wifi goes around people – true or false?

The Telstra advertisement for Wifi suggests that the Wifi, a form of radiation, goes around people. This seems to be an extraordinary prospect. From a safety point of view, is it true or false?

Books beat the internet

Books beat the internet. Roger Hall was a long time contributor to the ergonomics field. He gathered a library of books. I am the lucky recipient of some. Jenny Long has been kind enough to distribute the library to grateful new readers. Books beat the internet. Is someone going to pass on a bit of the internet to someone else! Can someone sit and think, I wonder what was the previous person doing with this piece of the internet they’ve handed on! Books beat the internet. No contest. Thank you Roger wherever you may be.

Three Little Pigs: The house of polystyrene

Aluminum cladding was a rubbish building product incomparable with traditional materials. A foolish flimsy dangerously flammable material.

As if cladding panels made of aluminum and plastic weren’t bad enough, now builders are enclosing humans in houses with walls of polystyrene (rendered over).

Thinking about the Three Little Pigs, many people live safely right now in houses 100 years old or more clad in weatherboard “sticks” and more securely in houses of bricks (not too many use straw).

Is there really any possibility that a polystyrene house makes sense for longevity and fire safety? Here’s what happens to some polystyrene blocks in a fire. Imagine how much polystyrene is in the wall of a house?

Lighting blew up a bore pump motor and capacitor

I put a bore pump in myself a few years ago. It was a pleasing accomplishment as I had not done so before. The pump is submerged 50m. The motor was found fused earlier this year after a lighting storm. Below is the blown capacitor in the starter. It must have failed to stop the current hitting the motor.