Portway are a specialist access and scaffolding contractor. Safety, technical quality and robust operating procedures are at the core of our operations.
Portway have considerable experience of erecting scaffolding and installing systems on contracts that vary in size and speed of installation. Our experienced management team includes contracts managers and supervisors working with our skilled and qualified installation teams.
Case study:
Access scaffolding and edge protection systems Amazon UK Services, East Midlands Gateway, Derby
Client specification
To provide access scaffolding and edge protection systems during fit out of a new 6 million square feet warehouse.
Solution offered
To engineer and install a range of free-standing access scaffolds, lay down platforms and edge protection handrails to varying machinery and mezzanine floor areas. This required a team of scaffolders led by our on-site supervisors to erect, dismantle, move and re-erect scaffolds keeping pace with the engineering teams carrying out the installation works.
Operation
Before commencing the project, our contracts management and engineering team worked alongside the client to identify the types of scaffolds and guardrails that would be required.
Drawings were produced for each type of operation (some being repetitive). Each day’s operations were pre-planned the day before. At the beginning of each day, scaffold teams were briefed on each operation, permit-to-work requirements and design drawings.
Scaffold team
Portway provided a mix of advanced and basic scaffolders with experience in erection for the scaffold type. Some of the scaffold team qualified in MEWP operation, which were used for access to some areas to enable erection of guardrail systems.
Plant
MEWPs with tyre covers were used to prevent the marking of the floors. Client provided forklift equipment and we provided electric pump trucks for the moving materials.
Scaffold tube lengths kept to a maximum of 4.0m to enable ease of access between machines. Some of the scaffold materials used were Furtura system, giving us the ability to erect scaffolds up to 60% faster than traditional tube.
PPE
PPE includes a safety helmet with a 4-point harness, hi-visibility clothing, cleated lace-up safety boots, safety gloves, full body safety harness with twin fall arrest lanyard for use during all scaffolding operations and 1.0m fall restraint fixed lanyards (MEWP only), IKAR inertia rescue reels (working on open areas), tool tethers.
Project team
Client: Amazon UK Services
Fit-out contractor: TGW Logistics
Scaffolding contractor: Portway Scaffolding