Tool of the week the Hard Hat.

The first compulsory use of hard hats for contractors in a commercial setting was in 1933, for workers on the Golden Gate Bridge the policy instigated to protect the labourers from falling objects, in this instance falling rivets.

Not quite the setting that paving contractors find themselves in however when contracting on commercial or building sites they are a legal requirement.

Made to EN397 the European standard for industrial safety helmets. Hard hats consist of a hard outer shell made from a tough recyclable plastic high-density polyethylene (HDPE) with an inner suspension allowing a small space between the shell and head. This is designed to protect the head from injury from both impact with and by falling objects. The space serves as a shock absorber and the inner suspension ensures that when an object strikes the shell, the impact isn’t transmitted directly to the head.

The suspension is adjustable via a ratchet system allowing for adjustment for different head sizes including a sweat band making for comfortable use over protracted periods of time.

Any damage should result in the hard hat being discarded and replaced. Hard hats don’t last a lifetime and should be replaced in accordance with the manufacturers suggested instructions.

Hard hats come in a variety of colours including White, Yellow, Blue, Red, Green and Orange. Block Paving Maintenance uses this to denote the teams wearers belong to as well as our hierarchy. Block Paving Maintenance wears hard hats as standard when working on commercial paving sites as well as when required as part of their risk assessment when working on all commercial sites.