Date: 06/08/2009

News summary:

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Date: 29/05/2009

News summary: Brisbane-based, HighQ, has achieved substantial press coverage in Australia for its innovative work with Austrade, that country's overseas trade promotion agency, whereby it has taken IRATA's high-grade training and operational procedures into the heart of Tokyo with a large Japanese window cleaning company now following the IRATA Guidelines.

Date: 29/05/2009

News summary: The HSE reports 34 fatalities in the six months to September 2008 for the sector including construction. IRATA has never recorded a death whilst working on ropes in the 19 years of compiling its annual independently-audited Work and Safety Analysis. The other figures in the HSE report generally show decreases; IRATA currently records an incident rate of barely three per 100000 hours worked; our members work in excess of 2.5 million hours per year!

Date: 06/01/2009

News summary: The highly regarded and much used IRATA Guidelines will soon be replaced by a new IRATA Code of Practice. The new document will reflect the global market place in which IRATA International trains and works and will specify the procedures required by the workplace and delivered by member companies of the Association wherever in the world they are based. As the Guidelines stimulated excellence and reliability, and raised work standards in countries not so used to regulation, so the new Code of Practice will continue to ensure safe working via industrial rope access delivered the IRATA way. The new document will be published at the end of this year.

Date: 24/12/2008

News summary: The Singapore Flyer, that city's answer to the London Eye, ground to a halt on 23rd December with passengers still on board. We are pleased to report that IRATA member company, Dive Marine, effected a safe and responsible rescue of all passengers whose ages ranged from a 59 year old woman to a 10 year old boy.

The company concerned, Dive Marine, has worked on the wheel before and were therefore able to put into an action a rescue plan that was already set out and worked on. This excellent rescue shows again not only the excellent adaptability of rope access but an ability to work quickly and responsibly. Needless to say the event filled the front page of the Straits Times newspaper in the city and will have added to our reputation in Singapore that has recently been boosted by excellent work with the Ministry of Manpower and a valuable attendance at the recent OSEA Exhibition in the country that was attended by the Vice Chairman and CEO of the Association.

IRATA already works on the London Eye as well as the Singapore Flyer and expects to be called upon to manage the structural maintenance, cleaning and evacuation procedures of the various versions of these tourist attractions being built around the world.

Date: 22/08/2008

News summary: Karl Raby and Rod Dymott will join local member companies at this major show in Singapore and various meetings arranged in conjunction with the show.

Date: 01/08/2008

News summary: NOGEPA, the Dutch Oil and Gas Association has announced that it recommends IRATA companies, and the Guidelines they work to, when commissioning rope access work.

Date: 11/07/2008

News summary: A new Code of Practice, which will replace the long-standing and much admired Guidelines, is in its final stages of preparation and will be published at the end of 2008

Date: 12/06/2008

News summary: IRATA has increased its number of member companies by 300% in the last four years and continues to grow in the UK and around the world