Safety, Health and Welfare At Work (Construction) Regulations, 1995.
Statutory Instruments
Source: Statutory Instruments

num: 1
paragraphs: (1) These Regulations may be cited as the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction) Regulations, 1995.
(2) These Regulations shall come into operation on the 6th day of June, 1995.
2 Interpretation.
num: 2
paragraphs: (1) In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires—
"the Act" means the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act, 1989 (No. 7 of 1989);
"the Authority" means the National Authority for Occupational Safety and Health;
"client" means any person, engaged in trade, business or other undertaking, who commissions or procures the carrying out of a project for the purpose of such trade, business or undertaking;
1O.J. L245/6, of 26.8.92
"construction site" means any site at which construction work in relation to a project is carried out;
"construction stage" means the period of time starting when preparation of the construction site begins, including the design of temporary works to facilitate the construction of the project, and ending when construction work on the project is completed;
"construction work" means the carrying out of any building, civil engineering or engineering construction work and includes any of the following—
( a ) the construction, alteration, conversion, fitting out, commissioning, renovation, repair, upkeep, redecoration or other maintenance (including cleaning which involves the use of water or an abrasive at high pressure or the use of substances or preparations classified as corrosive or toxic for the purposes of Regulation 8 of the European Communities (Classification, Packaging, Labelling and Notification of Dangerous Substances) Regulations, 1994 and Regulation 5 of the European Communities (Classification, Packaging and Labelling of Dangerous Preparations) Regulations, 1992), de-commissioning, demolition or dismantling of a structure,
( b ) the preparation for an intended structure, including site clearance, exploration, investigation (but not site survey) and excavation, and laying or installing the foundations of an intended structure,
( c ) the assembly of prefabricated elements to form a structure, or the disassembly of prefabricated elements which, immediately before such disassembly, formed a structure,
( d ) the removal of a structure or part of a structure or of any product or waste resulting from demolition or dismantling of a structure or disassembly of prefabricated elements which, immediately before such disassembly, formed a structure,
( e ) the installation, commissioning, maintenance, repair or removal of mechanical, electrical, gas, compressed air, hydraulic, telecommunication systems, computer systems, or similar services which are normally fixed within or to a structure,
but does not include drilling and extraction in the extractive industries.
"contractor" means a contractor or an employer whose employees undertake or carry out construction work, or any person who carries out construction work for a fixed or other sum and who supplies the materials and labour (whether his own labour or that of another) to carry out such work or supplies the labour only;
"design" means the preparation of drawings, particulars, specifications, calculations, bills of quantities in so far as they contain specifications or other expressions of purpose, according to which a project, or any part or component of a project, is to be executed;
"design stage" means the period of time during which the design of a project is prepared but does not include the design of temporary works by the contractor to facilitate construction of the project;
"hoist" means a lifting machine, whether worked by mechanical power or not, with a carriage, platform or cage, the movement of which is restricted by a guide or guides, but does not include a lifting appliance used for the movement of trucks or wagons on a line of rails;
"ladder" does not include a folding step-ladder;
"lifting appliance" means any stationary or mobile appliance used for raising or lowering persons or loads, including:—
( a ) a crane, crab, winch, pulley block, gin wheel, hoist, mobile elevating work platform, sheer legs, excavator, dragline, piling frame, aerial cableway, aerial ropeway or overhead runways,
( b ) a vehicle which can be used to transport goods and which is fitted with forks or any other attachment for stacking, loading or unloading goods;
"lifting gear" means any gear or cable by means of which a load can be attached to a lifting appliance but which does not form an integral part of the appliance or load, and includes a chain sling, rope sling or similar gear and a ring, link, hook, plate, clamp, shackle, swivel or eye-bolt;
"locomotive" means any self-propelled wheeled vehicle used on a line of rails for the movement of trucks or wagons;
"man-lock" means any air lock or decompression chamber used for the compression or decompression of persons, but does not include an air lock which is only so used in emergency or a medical lock used solely for treatment purposes;
"mobile crane" means a crane capable of travelling under its own power, but does not include such a crane which travels on a line of rails;
"the Principal Regulations" means the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (General Application) Regulations, 1993 ( S.I. No. 44 of 1993 );
"project" means any development which includes or is intended to include construction work;
"project supervisor" means a competent person appointed under Regulation 3(1) and responsible for carrying out the appropriate duties specified in these Regulations;
"raising or lowering or as a means of suspension" in Regulation 105, 106, 107, 110 or 111 means raising or lowering or as a means of suspension either of a load on a lifting appliance or lifting gear or a scaffold but does not include the use of a rope or chain solely as a means of lashing or securing together two or more rigid members of a scaffold to form a frame or as a means of making a lapped joint or the use of a rope or chain solely for the movement of a load in a horizontal direction;
"safe working load" means either the relevant safe working load required to be specified in the latest certificate of test obtained for the purposes of Regulation 97, 105, 106, 118 or 123 or, where no such certificate is required, the relevant safe working load required to be marked or exhibited on the lifting appliance, lifting gear, chain, rope or other article of plant or equipment by Regulation 98 or 105;
"scaffold" means any temporary structure whether fixed, suspended or mobile, (and its supporting components) which is used for supporting workers and materials or to gain access to any such structure and includes any working platform, working stage, gangway, run, ladder or step-ladder (other than independent ladder or step-ladder which does not form part of such a structure) together with any guard-rail, toe-board or other safeguards and all fixings, but does not include a lifting appliance or a structure only used to support such an appliance or to support other plant or equipment;
"sloping roof" has the meaning assigned to it by Regulation 76 of these Regulations;
"slung scaffold" means a scaffold suspended by means of lifting gear, ropes or chains or rigid members and not provided with means of raising or lowering by a lifting appliance or similar device;
"structure" means—
( a ) any building, railway line or siding, tramway line, dock, harbour, inland navigation, tunnel, bridge, viaduct, waterworks, reservoir, pipe-line (whatever it contains or is intended to contain) underground or overground cables, aqueduct, sewer, sewage works, gasholder, road, airfield, sea defence works, river works, drainage works, earthworks, lagoon, dam, wall, caisson, mast, tower, pylon, underground tank, earth retaining structure, or structure designed to preserve or alter any natural feature, and any other structure similar to the foregoing,
( b ) any formwork, falsework, scaffold or other structure designed or used to provide support or means of access during construction work,
( c ) any fixed plant in respect of work which is installation, commissioning, de-commissioning or dismantling and where any such work involves a risk of falling more than 2.00 metres.
"suspended scaffold" means a scaffold (not being a slung scaffold) suspended by means of ropes or chains and capable of being raised or lowered but does not include a boatswain's chair or similar appliance;
"trestle scaffold" includes a scaffold in which the supports for the platforms are any of the following which are self-supporting, namely split heads, folding step-ladders, tripods or movable contrivances similar to any of the foregoing;
"plant or equipment" means any gear, machine, rig, apparatus or appliance, or any part of any plant or equipment; "working platform" includes a working stage.