Rope Course Construction

Ropes Course Useful Information

The information on this page serves two purposes.
Firstly it is intended to be used a reference point for those new to the Adventure Constructions.
Secondly it is here to help T&P with complying with BS EN 15567. This standard requires us to provide our Adventure Construction customers with operating procedures/inspection manuals for their equipment. To save us from producing reams of paper, customers can print directly from this page. When we upgrade information this can be selectively printed - which helps save time, money and paper - not to mention our overheads/office time - keeping us competitive and efficient!

Please use the links below to view our Adventure Construction information.

Generic Adventure Construction Risk Assessments
Daily - Monthly Inspection Procedures
Adventure Construction Operating Procedure - Jacob's Ladder
On-line Information - Useful Websites
Photo examples of items in need of attention!

WARNING: We do our best to ensure that the information on this page is up to date and accurate.

However DO NOT take anything as completely definitive - we ask other Adventure Construction professionals and technical advisors to check that what we are saying is correct, and seek advice/information from many other sources.

But just like anything else it's not perfect - so we regard this page as a working document - meaning it's regularly reviewed and updated it as we learn more - or are given new advice.

Inevitably someone you know will tell you we're talking rubbish, or we haven't covered this or that. If this is the case please do contact us- or ask them to - the more feedback we get the better this information page will be - meaning it will be better for everybody!

Generic Adventure Construction Risk Assessments

Risk Assessments - or the words 'risk assessment' - have become standard fare for all of us over the last 10 - 15 years. There are many types of risk assessment ranging from looking both ways when crossing a road to a full and formal risk assessment will involve the identifying the hazard, risk, likelihood, consequence and control.

The tables below are specific and generic to Adventure Constructions. They are based on a hazard - risk - control model.

HAZARD	RISK	CONTROL
Unqualified Staff	Equipment (PPE) not fitted correctly – Adventure Construction not used correctly	Staff should be suitably qualified and experienced before they are allowed to operate Adventure Constructions
Too many participants on the course	Participants not supervised correctly	A limit should be set on the number of participants allowed per session plus a ration of numbers to instructors
Extreme weather conditions	Electrocution, unsafe passage on elements, erratic pendulums, ropes blown beyond reach	Adventure Constructions should not be used during electrical storms or wind conditions of more that Force 5
PPE failure	Falls resulting in injury	All PPE should be inspected prior to its used – and subject to a weekly ‘logged’ inspection
Incorrect PPE	Falls resulting in injury	Only PPE recommended by the Adventure Construction installation company or technical advisors should be used - as a minimum all PPE should be CE approved used
Dropped objects	Head/Body injuries	Participants to remove all objects from their pockets

Daily - Monthly Inspection Procedures

Your Adventure Construction is formally handed over initially when it is built and then annually after external inspection. At this point it will be in condition to be used for a year. It is then the job of the centre to inspect it prior to each usage, monthly - and make a record of these inspections - and organise the annual external inspection.

At the handover someone from the Management Team as well as the person in charge and inspecting instructor/facilitators should be present. The constructor/external inspector should run through all aspects of daily/monthly inspections.

Once this has been done the daily inspections are basically looking for signs of change.

The monthly inspections are looking and feeling for signs of change, wear, movement and deterioration and checking with the aid of simple hand tools the tightness of connections.

Important aspects of inspection are

Carried out by the same people - not person - meaning that they will develop a 'feel' for the construction and will quickly notice changes.
The results are recorded - leaving an information trail
If in any doubt immediately call the construction company

The tables below is an example of what needs to be inspected and what to look for. (NB these tables are written for RCC Adventure Constructions)

Pre Usage Check
Item to Check	Remarks
Trees	Has the tree changes in appearance since last inspection - angle, splitting, signs of vandalism, fungus, branches
Poles	Has the pole changes in appearance since last inspection - angle, splitting, signs of vandalism, fungus, woodpecker/insect holes
Guy Wires	Are the wires still taught, connected properly, signs of vandalism
Rigging Screws	Still connected properly, locking nuts still in place, signs of vandalism
Shackles	Is split pins still in place, is nut still in place, signs of vandalism
Quick Links - Maillions	Still attached properly, still done up
Swages/Wire Rope Grips	Signs of slippage, still done up, signs of vandalism
Ground Anchors	Signs of anchor bar movement, signs of vandalism
Activity area ground	Signs of subsidence
Ropes	Signs of excessive wear, slippage, becoming loose, vandalism
Wires	Signs of excessive wear, slippage, becoming loose, vandalism
Ladders	Still attached properly, still in good order
Steelwork	Still in same position, still attached, any signs of twisting or deformation
Nuts, Bolts, Fixings	Still in place, still in same position, still looking done up

Monthly Check	Perform pre usage check, then:

Trees	Access tree - inspect in detail
Poles	Access poles - inspect in detail
Guy Wires	Check tautness, access one wire (rotate monthly) to inspect for signs of deterioration, signs of needling
Rigging Screws	Check nuts are tight with spanner/Tommy bar
Shackles	Check Nuts are tight with spanner
Quick Links - Maillions	Check closures are tight with spanner
Swages/Wire Rope Grips	Check wire rope grips are tight with spanners
Ground Anchors	Examine in detail look for signs of rust, metal fatigue
Activity area ground	Examine in detail - pay particular attention to area surrounding poles ( if poles are ground placement type)
Ropes	Examine in detail
Wires	Check tautness, excessive rust, signs of deterioration, signs of needling
Ladders	Check all fixings with spanners to ensure tight
Steelwork	Examine in detail - look for signs of movement, signs of metal fatigue, signs of excessive rust
Nuts, Bolts, Fixings	Examine in detail, check tight with spanners

Adventure Construction Operating Procedure:

Operating Procedures are simply a written statement as to how things in a business/centre/session will be run. They can be as simple as 'Employ suitably qualified staff' to complicated large volumes detailing every aspect of every operation in precise detail. Both methods will hopefully achieve the same result - the professionally safe delivery of a product/activity.
Most of us want to keep things as simple as possible - the following is a very basic model of how to begin

Decide exactly what activities you are going to run
Perform a risk assessment for all aspects of all activities
Decide what you need to do, from your risk assessment, to minimise the possibility of people getting hurt.
Write down what you are going to do and how you are going to do it - these notes will form the foundation of your operating procedures
Look at all the 'associated' requirements to run your activates - recruitment, training and reviewing
Get a professional person/organisation to validate that what you are doing adheres to 'current best practice' (AALS or BAHA).

Probably the most useful thing that you can do before you embark on anything is to go to the Adventurous Activity Licensing Service (AALS) website (link at bottom of page) and do some extensive reading.

We are members of the British Activity Holiday Association (BAHA). They have a number of senior members of the outdoor community working on standards and have excellent links with AALS and AAIAC. Rope Course Construction only uses BAHA Operating Procedures for Adventure Constructions as we regard them as the best and most up to date available.

These standards will be available on this website soon.

On-line Information - Useful Websites

Please use the links below to access huge amounts of useful information!

AAIAC’s new guidelines which relate to European Ropes Course Directive, the Working at Height Regulations and good working practices can be found at –

http://www.ccpr.org.uk

Adventurous Activity Licensing Scheme - 029 2075 5715

Probably the best place to start any search for information regarding Adventure Activities. Although they do not, at present, cover Adventure Constructions it is very easy to read what they do cover and transfer the information to Adventure Constructions.

Health and Safety Executive - 0845 345 0055

This file is an excellent place to start for those who do not have experience of risk assessments.

Institute of Occupational Safety and Health - 0116 257 3165

Excellent starter course in risk assessment.

Photo examples of items in need of attention!

Corroded Maillion