PASMA formalises HAE partnership

Mobile access tower association PASMA and Hire Association Europe (HAE) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding.

It formalises and extends their existing working relationship with the aim of developing HAE’s SafeHire standard of assessment and audit to satisfy PASMA’s strict criteria for its hirer/dealer members.

Developed by HAE for the hire and rental industry with the assistance of the British Standards Institution (BSI) - and other organisations including PASMA and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) - the private SafeHire standard sets benchmarks for product quality and service delivery, and includes mobile access towers. The standard also includes the option of CHAS Accreditation.

The signing followed the HAE & Event Hire Association (EHA) Hire Convention, where PASMA technical director, Don Aers, delivered a presentation on ‘Working at Height: Best practice, trends and developments”.

As a result of the memorandum, PASMA will provide HAE and its auditors with a control document specifying the criteria to be met in order to comply with the requirements of its Hirer/Dealer membership category. Ultimately, PASMA will recognise compliance with the extended SafeHire standard by HAE members as ‘de facto’ conformance with these requirements.

The memorandum also calls for closer cooperation through the sharing and exchanging of information.

Comments PASMA’s managing director, Peter Bennett: “This is a natural and logical extension of a long standing relationship with HAE. Promoting excellence is a common theme of both organisations and one of the reasons why PASMA sponsors the SafeHire category at the annual Hire Awards of Excellence. We were also delighted to present a paper on height safety, and tower safety in particular, at HAE’s recent Hire Convention in Loughborough.”