Method statements/RAMS

[Mr. Squirrel]

Hey ya'll, looking for a wee bit of advice. I have my generic risk assessment and site specific risk assessments, but a client is asking for my RAMS before a job can go ahead. 

So a method statement basically aye? How do you folks go about this? I presume it's lots of waffle to say 'gonna climb up a tree safely, cut bits off without killing anyone, tidy up with out polluting the place and go home in one piece'...? ?

[agrimog]

bit difficult, but the need to explain to the client that a RA, and MS, cannot be done unti you are actually on site and can assess the actual live conditions, and because of the type of work, the RA will remain fluid throughout the job as conditions change, what might be a safe operation just now, might not be so in 20 mins if the wind changes, or removing certain limbs changes the danger zone........its very difficult to  get people to understand how the nature of this type of work doesnt lend itself to actually writing a procedure down on paper and sticking to it

[Mr. Squirrel]

3 hours ago, agrimog said:

bit difficult, but the need to explain to the client that a RA, and MS, cannot be done unti you are actually on site and can assess the actual live conditions, and because of the type of work, the RA will remain fluid throughout the job as conditions change, what might be a safe operation just now, might not be so in 20 mins if the wind changes, or removing certain limbs changes the danger zone........its very difficult to  get people to understand how the nature of this type of work doesnt lend itself to actually writing a procedure down on paper and sticking to it

Cheers mog, all very true. And why I've never done a method statement in my life. You can come up with the best plan in the world looking at a tree from the ground, only to realise when you get up there that things are not as they seemed... And vice versa, you could write down that it's a cut and drop job then realise the angles are just right to speedline over a house or some madness. 

So I guess I need advice on method statements then really... What do people do for them? 

[Dan Maynard]

There are nearly no rules, in the RAMS I have seen in engineering as long as you put it in a nice table and follow some sort of logical structure it will be fine. When you know the job it's easy to get absorbed by the detail but they really need to know much more of an overview than that - climb or mewp, fell from the ground or section fell, handheld or rig or crane. I would put a section for tree risk assessment when you get there and then consider other possible hazards like powerlines nearby, traffic, footpaths, that kind of thing. Main equipment will be chainsaws and chipper I guess.

I've never seen one really detail the tasks, for example when I go in to a factory to fix a machine I don't know what's wrong with it until I take bits off so the RAMS will just say working with hand tools to dismantle and repair. It's pointless trying to put too much detail, as you say. 95% of it is having a piece of paper for them to file to keep the clipboard holders happy.

[Matthew Storrs]

On a slight side note- any one use an app for RAMS. Currently have to use a table on the compooter. But something that could easily be done on an app and pinged off to client would be easier- like the invoice apps etc...

[Stephen Blair]

just write a story of how you plan to do the job, if there is a point where the job could change that you can foresee due to your experience then write that.

  People who don’t understand the job want to see something very organised and almost a template. A customer who has experience of a job going wrong will see through that, tell a story that proves it’s not your first rodeo!  

[Mr. Squirrel]

On 05/02/2020 at 21:26, Stephen Blair said:

just write a story of how you plan to do the job, if there is a point where the job could change that you can foresee due to your experience then write that.

  People who don’t understand the job want to see something very organised and almost a template. A customer who has experience of a job going wrong will see through that, tell a story that proves it’s not your first rodeo!  

Good advice! Cheers Stephen. I hate to be wide but if anyone had an example they'd be willing to send, or knows of one online it'd be great to see how others do it. I'm not wanting to copy it necessarily, but just for a visual idea of how to present it.

I've been looking at some examples and they seem very similar to my generic risk assessment. I guess the differences lie in the method statement describing how you go about a task, and as Dan said the decision making hierarchy, rather than the risks associated with it. But it's still doing my head in...

Cheers

 

[AA Teccie (Paul)]

2 hours ago, Mr. Squirrel said:

Good advice! Cheers Stephen. I hate to be wide but if anyone had an example they'd be willing to send, or knows of one online it'd be great to see how others do it. I'm not wanting to copy it necessarily, but just for a visual idea of how to present it.

I've been looking at some examples and they seem very similar to my generic risk assessment. I guess the differences lie in the method statement describing how you go about a task, and as Dan said the decision making hierarchy, rather than the risks associated with it. But it's still doing my head in...

Cheers

 

Template Consise Method Statement v1.docx A couple of template examples below dependent upon i) the complexity of the job, and ii) how detailed a document the client wishes to see

Method_Statement_Template (2017).doc

[Mr. Squirrel]

9 hours ago, AA Teccie (Paul) said:

Template Consise Method Statement v1.docx A couple of template examples below dependent upon i) the complexity of the job, and ii) how detailed a document the client wishes to see

Method_Statement_Template (2017).doc 122 kB · 20 downloads

That's amazing, thanks Paul! Absolutely perfect. I'd give the second one online but it seemed a bit overboard for the size of my business and my typical jobs, first one is more like what I'm wanting to produce.