Construction is one of Britain’s most hazardous industries, with back pain cited as the single biggest cause of ill health. Musculo-skeletal disorders affecting the back are a major injury cost to employers according to the Health & Safety Executive (HSE). The HSE recommends improvements to health and safety standards during construction work. These include site visits to ensure the safe use of manual lifting techniques.
What are CDM regulations?
The CDM Regulations, devised by the Health and Safety Executive, are designed to reduce serious or fatal accidents and ill health in the construction industry. This is through improving management and co-ordination of health, safety and welfare throughout all stages of a construction project.
"...there is no excuse for either ignorance or complacency. We have no hesitation in taking enforcement action against those who fail to take the necessary action to control risks on site.” HSE
When do CDM regulations apply? The CDM Regulations place responsibility on all individuals who can contribute to the health and safety of a construction project.
In commercial, domestic and industrial projects particular attention must be paid to:
- Site clearance
- New build, alteration, conversion and fitting out
- Renovation and repair
- Maintenance
- Demolition
Block weights The Construction Industry Advisory Committee (CONIAC) advises that the handling of heavy building blocks can result in a wide range of injuries. This damage can be gradual and progressive over a substantial period of time.
The risk of injury is largely determined by the weight of the block – the heavier the block, the higher the risk of injury.
Following research of working with heavy blocks, CONIAC has concluded that there is a high risk of injury in the single-handed, repetitive manual handling of blocks heavier than 20kg.
If single person handling is needed, either blocks of “...20kg or lighter should be specified and used, or other precautions should be taken to reduce the risk of injury by, for example, the provision of mechanical handling.” CONIAC
The Thermalite® solution The Thermalite® micro-cellular structure results in an unrivalled product range which is both strong and exceptionally light to handle. Indeed, standard size blocks are available in weights less than 20kg, in accordance with guidelines.
Handholds The HSE also recommends that blocks with handholds should be selected wherever possible. Thermalite® is the first block manufacturer in the UK to offer handholds, which have been introduced in our Trenchblock® range. This further aids the process of lifting and laying foundations, making building with Thermalite not only faster, but safer too.
Workability
Thermalite® blocks are not only easy to handle, they are extremely workable and can be easily cut, sawn and chased with hand tools. The light weight of Thermalite products, combined with their easy workability, ensures significant productivity gains.
Variation in block weights
Individual block weights cited on this website are based on a theoretical equilibrium value used for testing and calculation purposes. Moisture content prior to use will be higher than the quoted value and is variable subject to date of manufacture prior to delivery, weather and storage conditions.
The delivered weight format of the Thermalite® product range generally falls well below handling guideline limits. However, if there are specific manual handling concerns, particularly with larger block sizes, Hanson recommends site sampling and weighing to determine safe handling practices.
| Thermalite® block @ 730kg/m³ (7.3 N/mm²) |
| Thickness (mm) |
Weight (kg) |
| 100 |
7.1 |
| 140 |
10.0 |
| 190 |
13.5 |
| 215 |
15.3 |
Notes:
- 7.3 N/mm² blocks are available in the Hi-Strength 7 and Hi-Strength Paint Grade Smooth product ranges.
- Block weights are calculated using specified dry density, with a moisture content of 3% by weight added to provide the equilibrium value.