A scaffolder has invented a simple safety device he claims could prevent up to 40 deaths a year caused by falls from height on building sites.

Barry Snell, owner of Cowfold-based Orion Scaffolding, was prompted to act after one of his workers suffered a serious fall in January 2004.

A handrail had been removed and put back in position without being secured properly causing his employee, who is still recovering, to fall 25ft.

Barry knew that without intervention a similar accident could easily happen again and went to the drawing board to come up with a solution.

He came up with a simple plastic pin device - called SurePin - which stops people easily releasing and removing bits of scaffolding.

The pin fits easily into tubular scaffolding joints, is highly visible when in place, and must be destroyed before the joint can be released.

It has a brightly coloured flag which falls away when the pin is tampered with, alerting employers to the fact that it is missing.

Barry, 46, said: "It is tamper-resistant and tamper-evident. The fact that it is there puts people off moving bits of scaffolding and it's obvious if it has been removed.

"Health and safety requires scaffolding to be inspected every seven days and this pin is a very visible way of checking that everything is as it should be."

Each year approximately 40 people are killed and 3,000 people seriously injured in the construction industry as a result of falling from height.

Insurance pay-outs in the construction sector annually hit £200 million with some companies forced to pay 300 per cent premiums on their insurance liabilities.

Barry said: "The sums of money involved are enormous.

"In our case, when all the legal costs are included, we are looking at a £500,000 pay-out - and he survived.

"I am sure he would not have had that accident if our pin had been in place. It is too easy to remove bits of scaffolding for convenience sake this pin is a deterrent."

Barry, who lives in Shoreham, has set up a separate company called BM Solutions with business partner Martin Caudell to take the product to market.

He is targeting scaffolding companies and building contractors.

Wednesday, April 12, 2006