The hidden cost of stairs: the most effective solutions.

Let’s face it: you probably don’t think much about the cost of a staircase on your construction site. But did you know that ladders are a major source of expensive construction injuries?

Every time you use a ladder you or one of your workers, you risk spending thousands of dollars related to construction injuries, and not just from falls or falling objects. Ladders can cause other occupational hazards, such as ergonomic and overexertion injuries due to strenuous movements and transportation between workplaces. All of this can come at a significant price at the end of the year.

What is the hidden cost of ladders?

Construction injuries can result in downtime, overtime, increased insurance premiums, or fines for safety violations for your business. For an injured worker, it may mean expenses for medical treatment, time away from work, rehabilitation, and the possibility of having to find a different role or a job that pays less – or it may prevent them from working at all in the future.

A study in the United States showed that even 3.5 years after a ladder injury, workers earned an average of 7% less per year than before the injury. In the worst cases, accidents with ladders or their misuse can lead to the death of workers.

While a ladder may initially seem like a relatively cheap investment for your work, when injuries are factored in, the benefits quickly diminish.

The cost of construction accidents takes into account many factors. One A study by the University of Navarra broke down the cost by autonomous community in Spain. It was concluded that the average price is €30,000. One security organization estimated that the indirect cost of that injury to your company could be four times higher. Once you start adding all that up, you may be wondering: Are the stairs really worth using? What costs can they entail?

Falls from ladders also result in serious injuries.

From 1990 to 2008, there were about 150,000 ladder accidents in Spain, of which 105 were fatal. The American research journal Journal of Safety Research has published a study on accidents with ladders prepared by the Engineering and Responsible Management Group of the University of Burgos (UBU).

The research reveals that out of every 100 accidents suffered by Spanish workers in large companies, 47% correspond to falls, a percentage that rises to 57% in the case of micro-enterprises.

Likewise, out of every 100 workers injured with ladders, 52 were going up or down the ladder.

58% of the accidents recorded were due to the misuse of the ladder. The study defines as special risk factors work with ladders in the last hours of the working day or overtime.

The activity with the highest number of accidents with ladders is construction, although the expert has stressed that serious mishaps also occur in agriculture (with tree pruning, for example) and in the home. “We observed that the trend is that accidents in homes were serious,” said Camino.

Prevention measures

To reduce accidents in companies, the researcher states that no worker should use a ladder as a means of work, it should only be used as a means of access. And beforehand, carry out a risk assessment that considers that the risk of suffering a mishap is low.

“It has been observed that in Spain it is too common to work with ladders without having carried out the mandatory risk assessment,” he maintains.

Our recommendation

At Liftisa we always recommend, before starting a project, to evaluate each of the jobs that must be carried out at height.

We will take into account the environment, the soil, the weather conditions, the access, among others, and with this we will be able to decide which machine offers the possibility of working with greater safety, effectiveness and efficiency.

We are experts in low-height work solutions. Call us for any queries, we will be happy to advise you.

www.liftisa.com

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