CONTRACT RESEARCH REPORT 418/2002

1 HSEH ealth & SafetyExecutiveErgonomics evaluation into thesafety of stepladdersLiterature and standards reviewPhase 1 Prepared byLoughborough Universityfor the Health and safety ExecutiveCONTRACT RESEARCH REPORT418/2002 HSEH ealth & SafetyExecutiveErgonomics evaluation into thesafety of stepladdersLiterature and standards reviewPhase 1 Tanya Navarro BA BSc MScLaurence CliftMScResearch Institute for Consumer ErgonomicsLoughborough UniversityHolywell Building, Holywell WayLoughboroughLeicestershire LE11 3 TUUnited KingdomThis REPORT serves to summarise the current state of publications, literature, Standards and Regulationsaffecting the safety of stepladders, particularly where intended for, or used in, the UK market.

2 It reviewsthe current state of knowledge on ladder design, user expectation, risk perception and accidentepidemiology. It further contains a review and comparison of the applicable laws and technicalstandards which cover products sold and used in the UK, where appropriate exploring the relationshipbetween these publications and those available in other countries. This work is intended to establishthe knowledge base necessary to justify, design and execute a range of dynamic testing intended toexamine in more depth the factors affecting the stability of REPORT and the work it describes were funded by the Health and safety Executive.

3 Its contents,including any opinions and/or conclusions expressed, are those of the authors and do not necessarilyreflect HSE Crown copyright 2002 Applications for reproduction should be made in writing to:Copyright Unit, Her Majesty s Stationery Office,St Clements House, 2-16 Colegate, Norwich NR3 1 BQFirst published 2002 ISBN 0 7176 2302 5 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may bereproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmittedin any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical,photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the priorwritten permission of the copyright Background and scope of the Investigation into stepladder Accidents in the 5 Other data on ladder 12 Stepladder accidents in a domestic 14 European 17 Causes of stepladder 19 Stability 22 Overall 27 29 30 Effects of stepladder rung shape, spacing and 30 Ladder 33 39 Instructions and Guidelines and standards on warnings and the safe use of 40 Why warnings 41 Development of effective 44 Labelling on 45 Comparison of European, National and International 47 A review of BS EN 131.

4 48 A review of BS 2037 : 57 Comparison of EN 131 : 1993 and BS 2037 : 65 Comparison of EN 131 with other national 66 67 Regulations Applicable to Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER 98).. 68 The Management of Health and safety at Work Regulation 69 The Workplace (Health, safety and Welfare) Regulations (WHSW) 69 A Guide to the Construction (Health, safety and Welfare) Regulations (CHSW) 70 ANNEX: AMENDING PROPOSAL OF DIRECTIVE 89/655/EEC CONCERNING THE MINIMUM safety AND HEALTH REQUIREMENTS FOR THE USE OF WORK EQUIPMENT BY WORKERS AT WORK (SECOND INDIVIDUAL DIRECTIVE WITHIN THE MEANING OF ARTICLE 16 OF DIRECTIVE 89/391/EEC) Version 71 Conclusion and 75 Conformity with European Union Requirements.

5 Product Selection criteria and purchase of 79 List of organisations and individuals 83 Standards and Regulations .. 87 89 APPENDICES Appendix: 1 Table of Standards Appendix: 2 Ladder Products : 3 Example Letter Appendix: 4 Example Letter : 5 Example Letter Hire : 6 Example Letter Consumers : 7 People, Organisations and Agencies of Figures Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure 13 & Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure Figure v viExecutive Summary This review appraises relevant published documents to determine the current understanding of the issues affecting the stability of stepladders.

6 In doing so it identifies that, whilst there have been many attempts to conduct RESEARCH into this issue, these have only ever been partly successful. Most RESEARCH appears to only address certain aspects of the safety provided, instead of approaching the problem holistically. As such, actions following any RESEARCH undertaken have been small-scale, largely unmonitored and arguably ineffective. A further appraisal of the human factors issues relating to stepladder use reveals it to be a complex area, involving not just simple mechanical actions, but also risk perception, behaviour modifications and the effectiveness of warnings and labelling.

7 Again, whilst some considerable effort has been made in examining the manifestations of these variables, there is little solid evidence for an understanding of the causes and effects that can fundamentally alter the safety of the stepladder in use. A review of the accident statistics reveals that stepladders are certainly a highly injurious product. Despite this, the manufacture and use of these products appears less well controlled than other equipment and devices such as power tools or personal protective equipment. However, it is quite clear that intervention in this area could be highly effective in both the prevention of personal suffering and also the saving of costs.

8 The last section of this REPORT deals with a comparison of the current standards and regulations controlling the manufacture and use of stepladders. It can be seen that whilst considerable effort is being made to ensure that a technically capable product is being manufactured, and professional use is well controlled, these steps do not appear to be effective in reducing the number or severity of accidents in the real world. It is patent that an element is missing in the safety equation, and the conclusion of this REPORT is that only through a better understanding of the users needs and behaviour can this can be identified.

9 Accordingly, a proposal is made to undertake extensive dynamic trials involving stepladders to evaluate the key variables controlling their stability in use. viiSee also ergonomics evaluation into the safety of stepladders - User profile and dynamictesting: Phase 2 CRR423/2002 HSE Books 2002 ISBN 0 7176 2315 7 .viii 1 BACKGROUND AND SCOPE OF THE STUDY This review aims to build upon the knowledge and test methods used in the DTI REPORT (DTI, 1996), in order to examine the behaviour and characteristics of stepladder users, as well as to assess the stability of the stepladders they commonly use.

10 If appropriate the review will, in conjunction with comprehensive dynamic testing, contribute to the proposal of draft requirements for a performance-based test to quantify and help to improve the stability of stepladders. Throughout the document, references to ladders are used only where the source data has not identified type of ladder. All other references are type-specific. Ladders have been an enduring consumer safety concern, with significant numbers of deaths, hospitalisations and serious injuries attributable to their use. In accident statistics, stepladders are commonly amongst some of the most injurious products within both the domestic and industrial environments and this leads to considerable human suffering and financial cost.