Stopping workplace falls

An easy to use safety device could prevent many workplace deaths from falls according to its inventor, West Australian Leigh Dowie.

“Falling from height remains the number one cause of death in the construction industry. In Australia alone, an average of 30 people lose their lives each year from falls,” says Fresh Innovator Leigh Dowie.

“My invention, the T-line Safety System is easier to use and gives greater working flexibility than other devices on the market,” he says.

Although there are a number of safety devices currently available for the prevention of falls, the T-Line Safety System offers the user a much greater degree of movement. The user can safely move horizontally and vertically. Current systems generally only facilitate movement in one direction not both.

A young civil engineer himself, Leigh has often witnessed first hand the types of situations that could have tragic results during construction. Workers often ignore fall prevention systems because they are too cumbersome to operate properly. Or they use a fall prevention system that does not adequately cater for their needs in a particular situation giving the user a false sense of security. This is becoming increasingly recognised within the industry as being particularly dangerous.

“I couldn’t help but think that there must be a simple solution to these problems and so I set about designing a fall prevention system that was easy to use, without compromising safety,” says Leigh.

“The name T-Line represents the shape of the device when it is in use. It has two supports with a ‘loop’ of safety line that extends between each support and down to the user. The user can therefore move about on the platform, between these two supports, whilst constantly being prevented from falling,” says Leigh. “To climb down to a different level, they simply pull a release line.”

The device is simple to set up and use, requiring only one person to erect it in most circumstances and is also easy to remove as it is self-retracting. It can also be easily carried by one person.

Leigh’s work has already won him a place at Fresh Innovators – a national initiative to bring the work of 16 early career innovators to public attention. Following training in Sydney in May, the sixteen are talking to the media, schools and business about their ideas. One of the 16 will win a study tour to the UK courtesy of the British Council Australia.

The invention is currently being reviewed by several international safety companies for possible manufacture. So far the reaction to the invention has been very positive from both within the fall prevention industry and Worksafe WA, part of the Department of Employment and Consumer Protection.

“The concept has definite merit and we are extremely interested in investigating it further,” says Rick Millar, the Technical and Production Manager from Capital Safety Group Australia Pty Ltd. Capital Safety is a world leader dedicated entirely to fall protection and industrial rescue systems. They are the Australian arm of DBI /SALA & Protecta.

Leigh completed his Civil and Construction Engineering at Curtin University of Technology. He is now a Structural Engineer with Multiplex Construction.

Photos: High resolution photos and background information available online at www.freshinnovators.org

For interview or more information: Leigh Dowie M: 0412 925 386 After hours: 0411 250 833
Capital Safety Group Australia (www.dbisala.com) Rick Millar ph. (02) 9748 2512

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Leigh Dowie	A 3D model of the T-Line Safety System