health and safety
Types of hazards :
trip hazards
electrocution
working at height
lifting
falling equipment
noise levels
how can they be avoided? well theres a right and wrong way of making hazards unhazardous by one of the following:
regarding the subs under the seating unit, normally wha can be put into place is glow tape on all four corners of the sub and glowing so performers can see where is it in the dark of backstage.
cable runs: taping them down with black gaffer tape is enough to prevent anything from happening.
electrocution: open breaks in the rubber seal around the cable, isolate and not use of place lx tape round the break when power is not running through. no water allowed in the auditorium unless on the seating unit (more for rehearsal basis), metal to be earthed at any time including speakers in rigs with metal cages. Most importantly any equipment that is to be used in the theatre has to be PAT tested which is a certification to say it is safe to use.
working at height: more common sense based, footing a ladder with one person going up with three points of contact at any one time on a ladder. must have even distribution of weight on a ladder at one time, having constant communication with the people at the bottom of the rungs. when using the tallescope the outriggers must always be out and there feet to be placed on the floor at all times.
lifting: so as no one can do their back in later on in life it is always an idea to bend your knees and keep a straight back when attempting to carry an object, for heavier objects alway ask for help, never carry anymore of what you believe to be comfortable for oneself, as a precaution place your feet one slightly in front of the other when about to pick up a square object like a mackie active speaker.
COSHH: (Control of Substances Hazardous to Health) on sound in particular the use of substances is more likely as we use the following containing substances:
adheasive on micropore tape: some people are allergic to the tape so we have to do a test on all the performers which will have mics on them to avoid irritation to the skin.
nail varnish remover: to remove the glue which sticks the mic to an performers right hand cheek.
glue: this stuff sticks like hell to mics and performers skin, this stuff can be used in small amounts to make it easier to get off at the end of every performance.
battery acid: batteries leak be them old of new so if or when they do clean appropriately and use rubber gloves to dispose of correctly.
Falling objects: in sound the most that fall out of a rig would be a speaker which could impale a person underneath if unlucky to be there, to avoid the paperwork involved in an injury or fatality one way which could be effective is to strop the speaker in its cage with 1meter 1/2 tonne strops which are coloured red or if you fly a sub a black 2 meter strop around the bar and the cage for effectiveness and more security clipped together with a D shackle for extra security. also for health and safety reasons place a safety chain round the cage even though the safety chain isn't designed for an object so heavy, their more suited to 64 par cans or lights in general. if a speaker falls in the auditorium ‘HEADS” is to be shouted and then move out of the way of the falling object accordingly.
Noise levels: anything 104dB for more than 20 minutes must be equipped with earplugs to continue with the performance reducing the amount of damage of hearing loss to those later in life .
P.P.E (Personal Protective Equipment)
On the sound department in the Miskin the list is as follows
steel toe cap boots: for the movement of subs and speakers, just in case a speaker is dropped on someones foot.
earplugs: to reduce deafness in the eardrum and lowers chances of deafness in the far future
hard hats: for anyone to have static bars that do not work off of a hydraulic system and speakers have to be pulled into position.
rigging gloves: to avoid rope burn and callus on the anterior on the top part of the palm of your hand.
