On a cloudy Thursday in September, the tower industry descended on Nottingham, UK for a full day of learning, sharing and networking. PASMA Conference 2022 was about to begin!
It was our first in-person event in three years and we were determined to make up for lost time. Promised our most exciting agenda yet, delegates booked their free tickets and came along to hear the latest news, guidance and insights related to the safe use of mobile access towers, tower scaffolds and low level work platforms.
Our host for the day was Richard Fairfield (E. T. Hire), who had been appointed PASMA Chairman at our Annual Members’ Meeting earlier that morning. He welcomed 155 delegates – representing PASMA members, principal contractors and councils, and from industries including facilities management, events, rail, roofing, and glass and glazing – with these words:
It's fantastic to be back together again to discuss our common goal of making work at height safer for those using towers.
Now, it had been our Chairman’s Dinner & Drinks Reception the previous evening, so there may have been one or two sore heads in the room – and definitely some sore feet from the dancefloor! But you’d never know it, as everyone had perked themselves up with coffee and pastries and were super keen to get started.
Jason Carlton (PASMA) kicked off proceedings by introducing us to TowerSure, a new system from PASMA that guides you through tower inspections, helping you ensure all safety checks are completed and all legal responsibilities are met along the way. It replaces hard copy inspection records and makes the whole process more reliable and insightful for operatives, managers and clients.
Ian Fyall (Simian Skill) shared his experience of promoting PASMA and tower safety in the Middle East. Ian has been closely involved in this journey due to his role as Chair of PASMA’s Safety at Height Advisory Panel – Middle East.
Before lunch, delegates split into three groups and rotated round three different sessions. The pink group started off in an insightful workshop led by Gillian Rutter from the charity No Falls Foundation that got us all thinking about how we stop falls from height.
In a sobering moment, it turned out that every single person in the audience had been affected by a fall from height or a near miss.
Meanwhile, the orange group started off in the low level showroom. There, Karen O’Neill (PASMA) showed them a range of products from PASMA-approved manufacturers, explained their safety features and highlighted the training that helps operatives use them correctly.
And finally, the purple group were off on a tour of the outdoor tower showcase led by Chris Smith (PASMA). Would the rain hold off? Yes it would! Until dismantling was underway later on, that is (apologies to our hard-working operatives, but luckily it wasn’t too heavy).
Outside, delegates discovered that PASMA manufacturers had taken over the car park and it was now full of mobile access towers, cantilever towers, stepped towers, linked towers and towers with bridges. There’s no hiding that PASMA is in town!
Thank you to Alto Access, Euro Towers, Pop Up Products, UTS and WernerCo for supporting the tower showcase and low level showroom and for giving delegates the opportunity to understand the range of tower configurations and their applications. The showcase also made a great place to upskill PASMA training instructors earlier in the week, and the IOSH Railway Group dropped by for a private tour too.
After a lively lunch hour where catch-ups were had and new connections made, Lesley Nidd (Network Rail) told us about a fall from a mobile access tower at Paddington Station and the missed opportunities to prevent this accident.
Helen Barnes (Network Rail) and Rob Usher (Taziker) picked up the story from there. In September 2021, history almost repeated itself when a team from Taziker were spotted working unsafely in the exact same location. We heard how Network Rail and Taziker responded, the lessons they learned and how it prompted an innovative collaboration with PASMA to improve tower safety for all rail workers.
You can now watch the videos that were produced as part of this project.
These sessions concluded with remarks from Mike Contopoulos (Network Rail) and Peter Bennett OBE (PASMA), who reflected on the value of collaboration and shared learning.
We've got as an industry a real duty to learn from these accidents and to really try to prevent them. You have a duty to reinforce that safety message and to reinforce that safety culture.
One of the biggest tower news stories from the pandemic years was when standards BS EN 1004 and BS 1139-6 were updated. Don Aers (PASMA) talked us through the changes and what they mean for everyone involved in tower supply and use. As always, Don had the audience laughing and his Q&A went into extra time.
For our final session of the day, James MacPherson (Risk Fluent) sat down with Blake May (Arriva), Sam Beesley (AT Jones) and Peter Bennett OBE (PASMA) for a chat about TowerSure, which is helping businesses build confidence in their towers. This session was recorded for James’s podcast, Rebranding Safety, so be sure to subscribe!
While all this was going on, PASMA members had access to another stage, hosted by George Lopez (PASMA), where speakers shared insights and advice to help them boost their businesses. Topics included drones, public procurement, safety culture, tower safety in Southeast Asia, ISO 9001 and the work PASMA is doing to raise standards in the hirer/dealer sector.
Members heard from:
We were also pleased to be joined by David Owumi (Unseen) who, in a special CPD session for PASMA instructors, taught them to spot the signs of modern slavery during training courses.
Throughout the event, members stopped by the PASMA information desk to catch up with Christine, Justin, Susie, Sarah, Rhona and the rest of our staff. PASMA Conference is a real team effort, and almost all of us were in attendance to meet and support our members, and keep everything running smoothly behind the scenes.
After a great day of insightful information and guidance PASMA Conference 2022 came to an end, with delegates gathering for the closing remarks from Richard Fairfield. He thanked PASMA members for all they do to support tower safety.
We've got as an industry a real duty to learn from these accidents and to really try to prevent them, you know you have a duty to reinforce that safety message and to reinforce that safety culture.
Speaking to all delegates now, he acknowledged the importance of harnessing their energy and enthusiasm for tower safety:
If you're here today, you're probably in a job where you have some influence over tower safety. Please, please, please do what you can to keep this at the top of the agenda. Remind everyone about the importance of safe equipment, suitable training and proper planning.
In his final remarks, Richard left us with these three takeaways:
PASMA Conference 2022 took place at the Delta by Marriott Nottingham Belfry on 29 September. If you were unable to attend or would like to relive the experience, videos of all main stage sessions are now available to watch on demand.
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