A Gate Safety Summit ran in London at the Institute of Directors, 15 years ago this week. Its aim; to tackle the issue of automated gate and barrier safety after the deaths of two children in separate accidents. Representatives from a cross section of companies and trade and safety bodies came together, who all had a role to play in calling for the introduction of tighter guidelines and legislation pertaining to automated gate safety. As for what has changed, Gate Safe, the charity behind the inaugural summit, points to:
- Awareness of the importance of automated gate safety among installers and other associated professionals has shifted from minimal to becoming mainstream;
- The fitting of photocells on barriers was previously unheard of; today, photocells are an accepted part of the safety protocol;
- British Standards were very much viewed as the definitive framework to ensure a safe and compliant automated gate or barrier, now the Gate Safe recommendation for a risk assessment approach – which considers the specific key factors for a gate – is acknowledged, rather than a complete reliance on the standards;
- Safety edges, once not always fitted to a gate or barrier and regularly not fitted on both sides of the gate, now feature more heavily on the majority of new installations;
- In the wake of falling gate accidents, Gate Safe’s continued recommendation for either a third hinge and / or a fall arrest system – a gate tether – to mitigate the risk of a falling gate, continues to gather support;
- In the unfortunate event of an automated gate or barrier incident, Gate Safe is now regularly sought out by the health and safety watchdog the HSE and Trading Standards as an expert witness, providing independent technical input to help understand what went wrong, why and what steps should have been taken to prevent the accident occurring;
- From none, now approaching 4000 installers are on the Gate Safe register, representing 1500 organisations who have taken the IOSH approved Gate Safe training course (their details can be found on the new Gate Safe website);
- The training originally launched as face-to-face only, now includes an online offering, resulting in training running every week;
- Gate Safe remains the go-to source for independent surveys on a automated gate or barrier installation; and
- Gate owners can now access a Gate Safe ‘MoT’ as a visual reference for gate users, that a gate has been installed and maintained in line with best industry practice.
What they say
Gate Safe founder Richard Jackson, pictured, said:“Whilst it is incredibly fulfilling to look back to see the progress that has been made, this is not a time for complacency as there is still much more that can be done to improve safety of automated gates. As long as the profession remains unregulated, there will always be those “accidental installers” operating in the field, who remain ignorant, or perhaps just oblivious, to the steps that need to be taken to deliver a safe and compliant installation. Similarly, the sale of automated gate kits to the general public enables a complete amateur to transform a manual gate into a dangerous machine. Gate Safe remains committed to its original founding objectives – to put a stop to any further accidents occurring because of an unsafe gate or barrier – and we will continue to lobby the relevant bodies to instigate further change.”
