re-using safety bonds? am i mad or wrong?

[strandgsx]

just a little advice needed, at a gig over the weekend I supplied sound for, the lighting company hung truss etc etc and used mac 500s hung off hook clamps with safety bonds.

 

they were hanging about 15 feet up and before the audiance were allowed to enter a moving head removed itself from its clamp and got caught by its safety bond etc (as you would expect).

 

anyway, there was not much panic from the lighting techs as they proclaimed that the thread stripped on the bolt set, but preceeded to hang the head again but using the same bond.

 

I felt that I had to say something as it would be directly over the audiance and mentioned that I diddnt think it was a good idea to re-hang the unit itself without a full check and definatly to disgard the safety bond for a new one.

 

I got shot to pieces by the lx company told I knew nothing etc etc so retreated back to the noise desk and sat unconfortably for the remainder of the evening.

 

Was I wrong to air my disopproval?

 

what would you lot have done?

[cdcarter]

Since the bond took the full weight of a Mac for more than a few seconds, I would most definately replace it.

[niclights]

I don't think you were wrong.

 

Practically speaking it is unlikely the bond was damaged, or indeed that a second clamp would fail (this is the first time I have heard of a failure), but that is not the point. It would be hard to calculate whether the shock load that occured on the bond was above its tested rating. Given that the unit was above the audience and that bonds are not exactly the most expensive item in an inventory I think there should have been no question. Personally I would have been most concerned that such a failure had occured in the first place and been thankful for bonds and H&S. Their response to you makes it all the worse!

[CPlater1]

ok. a couple of points. if the rating of the bond is a lot higher than the weight of the mac, it would be ok ish to use it again. if it is only slightly over, the weight of a mac falling on it againn will break it. this would mean sumone would be injured from the drop and lash of broken bond. I personally would've replaced the bond

 

anyone feel free to disagree with me

[johnhuson]

I too would of replaced the bond, but more to the point how did two bolts (I'm assuming they were using two clamps as they should be) suddenly shear their threads. This sort of thing doesn't 'just happen' there must of been signs of damage to the bolts before use. Smacks of poor or non-existant maintenance to me.

 

I have never in my 12 year career in this industry heard of directly or seen a clamp/bolt set fail on any single clamped fixture, for it to happen on a fixture which should of been hung from two clamps is pretty incredible to me!

[Fender Bender]

How would you know if the replacement hadn't been stressed in the past? usually if safeties look OK they are OK.

more interesting is the omega clamp failing never heard of that before as it should have a 10/12mm mounting bolt.

personally I only use pairs of half couplers or g clamps on movers, that way if 1 mount fails the light is still secure.

[sam.henderson]

it would be ok ish to use it again

I'm sorry but it needs to be more than okish for it to be safe. If you are hanging heavy items (macs, truss, cabs whatever) anywhere, let alone above an audiance then you want to be sure that it is (to the best of your knowledge and ability) 100% safe. I too would have changed the bond.

 

Sam

[Jivemaster]

Bond £10 vs. Barrister £10K no contest. But of course the "other company" wouldn't want you saying so.

[steve1159]

How would you know if the replacement hadn't been stressed in the past? usually if safeties look OK they are OK.

 

I would hope that any safeties that have been stressed as indicated in the original post would have been destroyed/disposed of to avoid the possibility of them being reused because they look OK

[JohnPartridge]

If any piece of equipment has been involved in a situation where safety of the public has been at risk , it is replaced then the part is checked until me and another person is happy it is OK to use again , if not it is destroyed (to prevent some other scavenger using it)

 

That's my policy anyway.

 

£10 for a new bond , someones live - priceless

( sounds like a MasterCard advert doesn't it :( )

 

John Partridge

[Ynot]

I would hope that any safeties that have been stressed as indicated in the original post would have been destroyed/disposed of to avoid the possibility of them being reused because they look OK

Hummm....

Isn't the whole point of the industry moving from chains to steel bonds that wire bonds CAN be stress checked without rendering the safety un-useable??

So whilst I too would likely have changed the bond, I wouldn't necessarily have binned it unless there was obvious damage/stress wear.

 

TD

[niclights]

Those are good points about how one might know if a piece of safety equipment had been stressed previously, but of course in this case there was no doubt! I would like to repeat what I originally said - it's not just about the weight of the fixture - it is the actual force created by the falling of the item. This can be significantly greater, even for a short drop. That is one of the reasons bonds must be rated so much higher than the item they are designed to protect. I'm not a qualified rigger, but I am aware of how important this is.

[Ynot]

Those are good points about how one might know if a piece of safety equipment had been stressed previously,

OK - I'm going to bite the bullet here...

Exactly how do you tell whether a bond has exceeded it's design stress?

How do bonds get tested?

Is there a statutory requirement for all bonds to be stress tested on a regular basis?

 

Personally, I'd look closely at a bond, as I do periodically anyway, and inspect it for any signs of fraying or obvious stretching. If nothing of that ilk is obvious, I'd use the bond as normal.

[strandgsx]

Iam a bit worried that a few people will just re-use bonds thinking they are ok, I run a hire company (ltd company), and all our rigging and safety equipment is checked regularlary and before every time it is used.

 

If I heard of one of my team using a bond or anything like that again after it had been involved in an incident I would go spare.

 

a few quid for a new bond is nothing compared to what it would cost if someone was killed, I dont think that a visual inspection and putting a bond back to use is a safe option, as what would someone say if another mover or something were to fall and kill a child? (by child I mean young actor, the word child has the impact).

 

Im glad I said something to the company in question, I wish I said more but I was contracted in for sound and nothing else so in their eyes I was just a silly noise boy.

 

it is the first time ive ever witnessed a clamp etc fail and it was scary, also seeing it caught by a bond and swinging for a while was also kinda un nerving, there is no way of knowing if that bond was safe to use again, either someone should have used the tin snips or made a keyring.

 

thats my 2p back in.

[grumpy]

If that fixture had failed, then the lighting lads should have reacted with a question of "why" as opposed to wondering "how quickly can we get it back in the air". If I had been on a job and that had happened, and my main priority was to get the fixture back in the air, I would have been sacked on the spot by the boss.

 

If the unit has failed with those fixings, how on earth can someone be stupid/incompitent enough to then return the unit with its original fixings to the air. Those fixings (and by that I mean the clamps, not the safety bond, as that has done its job of protecting the fixture from falling) are obviously not up to the job of holding the unit-as has already been proven-so to reuse those same fixings again is surely dangerous?

 

I have never witnessed a failing fixture in 7 years, and hope that I never will, however the apparent lack of concern by the lighting company is worrying. Surely the SAFEST thing to do would have been to bring the unit to the ground and keep it there,as it is simply too unsafe to remain in the air? Obviously, that is at the expense of the show, but rather that than the unit failing during the show?

 

At the end of the day, the courts are not going to care what type of show it was or how important your client is, they are going to look at the facts...failed unit-failed unit rehung-failed unit fails AGAIN resulting in injury/death-those responsible punished for negligence.

 

My 2p, sorry but safety should always be the top priority!