If you are one of the Facilities and Maintenance Teams in Marine and Ports, working at height is part of the job - and so is the legal duty that comes with it. Here is what Facilities and Maintenance Teams in Irish Marine and Ports need to know, and how a Working at Heights Course keeps you covered.
The responsibilities of Facilities and Maintenance Teams
You face the widest variety of height tasks of any role, so broad training plus task-by-task assessment is essential. In day-to-day Marine and Ports work that means you should:
- Keep inspection records for ladders and platforms
- Select the right access equipment for the job
- Assess each varied height task before starting
- Never improvise access
The Marine and Ports hazards Facilities and Maintenance Teams must control
In Marine and Ports, the falls that Facilities and Maintenance Teams most often have to prevent involve falls into water as well as to deck, access to cranes and gantries and work at height on vessels and quay structures. Port height work adds drowning risk to fall risk, so rescue planning must cover both.
The Working at Heights Course makes compliance simple
Here is the good news: getting compliant is fast and inexpensive. Our Working at Heights Course is delivered fully online, takes about 45 minutes, and issues a downloadable certificate the same day. It is CPD certified, RoSPA approved and QQI aligned, and it is written specifically for Facilities and Maintenance Teams in Marine and Ports.
The Working at Heights Training covers the avoid-prevent-minimise hierarchy, ladder and stepladder safety, MEWPs and scaffolds, harnesses and anchor points, and how to carry out a proper risk assessment. Every learner finishes with a recognised Working at Heights Certificate that stands up to HSA inspection and supports your insurance position.
Training that goes beyond the tick-box
The cheapest control is always to avoid the work at height in the first place. For Facilities and Maintenance Teams in Marine and Ports, that can mean long-handled tools, lowering the task to ground level, or designing the job so no one needs to climb. Where that is impossible, collective protection such as guardrails and platforms beats personal protection every time.
Falls from height remain one of the leading causes of serious and fatal workplace injury in Ireland, year after year. The pattern is depressingly consistent for Facilities and Maintenance Teams in Marine and Ports: a short task, a familiar setting, a ladder or platform that seemed fine, and a single moment of overreach. Proper training breaks that pattern by making the safe choice the automatic one.
Frequently asked questions
Do Facilities and Maintenance Teams in Marine and Ports need their own height training?
Yes. Whatever your role, if you plan, supervise or carry out work at height you need a Working at Heights Certificate.
What course suits Facilities and Maintenance Teams best?
The Working at Heights Course covers the duties of Facilities and Maintenance Teams and all other roles in one accredited, online programme.
How long does it take?
About 45 minutes online, with a same-day certificate, so Facilities and Maintenance Teams in Marine and Ports stay compliant without losing a work day.
More on staying safe at height
Young and new workers are over-represented in fall statistics, and facilities and maintenance teams in marine and ports is no exception. Setting good habits from the very first day - never climbing on furniture, never overreaching, always inspecting equipment - is far easier than unlearning bad ones later. Early certification with a Working at Heights Course pays back for an entire career.
Get certified today
Do not wait for an HSA inspection or a near miss to act. Facilities and Maintenance Teams in Marine and Ports can complete the Working at Heights Course online in 45 minutes and download a certificate the same day. For 10 or more learners, see our team training rates, or contact our team for a tailored quote.
Start the online Working at Heights Training now and put a recognised certificate in every worker's file before the next job at height begins.
