The Health and Safety Authority (HSA) has issued a safety alert following a fatal accident involving construction work on a farm.

The appeal centers around concrete slats that are a common sight on many farms across the country.

According to the HSA, the following guidelines should be adhered to and guidance on the design-led capability of slats can be obtained from your slat supplier or a competent structural engineer.

According to the HSA, where construction work is being considered on a farm, the farmer must ensure that the work is designed to be suitable for the intended purpose.

Furthermore, the work being carried out should be built in a safe manner and can be used and maintained in a safe manner after being constructed.

Any project that is scheduled to last more than 30 days and involves more than one contractor or involves a particular risk, means that it is the legal duty of the farmer – or the client who the job is being carried out for – under the health and safety regulation to appoint – before design work commences – a competent project supervisor for the design process.

During the design stage, the farmer/client in conjunction with the designer and slat supplier should consider the need for vehicular traffic to cross slats. However, if possible this should be avoided.

During the construction stage, the contractor must ensure that the existing agricultural slats are not exposed to excessive loads and that they are manufactured to the correct standards.