Speedy takes steps to eradicate falls from height

Created by British company Checkmate Lifting and Safety, the product, which won a Queens Award for Innovation earlier this year, acts as a brake in the event of a worker falling from height. The block is attached by a wire from the worker to the building he or she is working on, and, in the event of a fall, the wire locks to decelerate the user, reducing the impact of falls from height. Importantly, unlike most blocks of this kind, Checkmate's Xcalibre are cased in polymer, making them lighter and easier to use. Checkmate will provide Speedy with 1,000 additional, with and a buy-back scheme for half of Speedy's existing blocks. By the end of this year, the entire Speedy fleet will have been standardised. "The Xcalibre is a fine example of British innovation," says Tony Longmire, training director at Speedy. "We put health and safety at the heart of everything we do, and we're confident that this piece of equipment will prevent many falls from height in the workplace."