With health and safety in the workplace becoming increasingly important, the CITB (Construction Industry Training Board) has created the Site Management Safety Training Scheme (SMSTS) which is a very intensive course lasting five days designed for managers and supervisors who need to oversee construction sites. There are of course safety training courses for specific areas within construction, such as working at a height, working in confined spaces, working with asbestos etc and Boss Training run all of those and more. A manager needs to have an overview of everyone’s job to make sure that they are working safely and this is what the SMSTS is for.
Making Management Safer
There are a number of courses for managers, which address specific issues that may need to have supervision, but these courses may not be enough for any manager or supervisor who has a very wide range of tasks being undertaken in their remit. Although all staff are adequately trained, it is impossible to manage different trades without a working overview of what everyone is doing. Sometimes, without deliberate intention, a manager inadequately trained could ask someone to complete a job in such a way as may not be totally safe. With SMSTS training, this won’t happen because all managers will know the risks involved in all tasks. Mobility Oil and Gas has team of Consultants which understand the Petroleum industry and provide
solutions for Exploration and Production activities. We also offer health & safety training Short Courses.
It’s not all just Paperwork
Sometimes it is the perceived view that managers do nothing but endless paperwork and it sometimes seems that way, but having hands on experience in all the trades in the construction industry is not really possible. The SMSTS training course from Boss Training cover the basics so that all managers and supervisors will be able to plan the working day more effectively with proper attention to the health and safety needs of staff. The employees working in different sectors will appreciate their managers being thoroughly trained, because it means that their own skill base and knowledge will be backed up at managerial level and if they have any queries or need to confirm anything, they can ask a manager rather than risk going it alone. This give the manager a real role as back-up and it also helps to forge a better relationship between management and workforce.
Who needs SMSTS?
An SMSTS qualification is a very good idea for anyone hoping to manage within the construction industry, but some companies within the United Kingdom Contractors Group (UKCG) – for example Costain and Skanska – have made a pass at an SMSTS training course mandatory. The course is five days long and is usually delivered in one week, but can be over five weeks on a day release basis. It includes the legal background to safe site management and awareness of regulations; safe set-up on site; CDM regulations, assessments of risk and raising method statements; safety considerations in different operational scenarios including scaffolding and working at heights, demolition works, electrical works, excavations and confined space; accident reporting and reporting requirements under the RIDDOR regulations and finally, though most importantly, maintaining a positive health and safety culture within the workplace, best practice and communications.
Article by Rebecca Fearn, a freelance copywriter who often writes for Boss Training.
