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Cleaning RAMS Builder

Cleaning risk assessment and method statement

Prepare RAMS for builders cleans, chemical cleans, pressure washing, floor scrubbing and routine manual cleaning. Add the premises, cut the suggestions that do not apply and review the PDF draft.

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Prepare the Cleaning RAMS

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Cleaning RAMS

What will you be doing?

More details

Pick everything this RAMS covers. The questions that follow are chosen from what you tick here.

What a Cleaning RAMS covers

Cleaning work in buildings and on hard surfaces: clearing and cleaning after construction, using cleaning chemicals, ordinary pressure washing, running a small corded floor scrubber and routine manual cleaning.

  • Builders clean
  • Chemical clean
  • Ordinary pressure clean
  • Small corded floor scrubber
  • Routine manual clean

Suggested steps and hazards for Cleaning

What it offers for builders clean before you have answered anything.

  1. Check the area before clearing

    • Limit the area to authorised, trained people.
    • Stop and report anything unexpected before disturbing it.

    Hazard

    An unknown deposit is disturbed or an uncontrolled work area is entered.

    Who might be harmed and how

    Cleaners and people nearby

    Controls in place

    • Keep others out of the work area.
    • Do not sweep or wash to discover what a deposit is.

    The area and its contents must be understood before clearing starts.

    COSHH essentials: CN5: Small scale clearing of rubble, dust and debris
  2. Keep clearing controlled

    • Clean as you go so debris does not build up.
    • Inspect the route and finish before handing the area back.

    Hazard

    Accumulated debris creates trips and leaves dust or waste for other people.

    Who might be harmed and how

    Cleaners, visitors and other trades

    Controls in place

    • Keep waste in the agreed containers.
    • Keep wet or unfinished areas closed until safe.

    Controlled clearing leaves the route and finished area safe for others.

    COSHH essentials: CN5: Small scale clearing of rubble, dust and debris
  3. Pick up sharps without reaching in

    • Look over rubble and waste before touching it.
    • Use a tool and a rigid container for broken glass, blades or needles; stop for anything suspect.

    Hazard

    A sharp item punctures a hand or contaminates the cleaner.

    Who might be harmed and how

    Cleaners and anyone sorting the waste

    Controls in place

    • Keep hands out of bags, boxes and hidden debris.
    • Keep sharp waste separate and tell the person in charge.

    Builders’ waste can hide sharp items that ordinary gloves will not make safe.

    GOV.UK: Dispose of business or commercial waste

What the builder asks about Cleaning

Your answers decide which steps, hazards and controls it suggests.

The job

  • What is left to remove?
  • What are you removing, and from which surface?
  • What surface and deposit are you washing?
  • Which machine, pad and detergent suit the floor?
  • What needs cleaning?

Where

  • Is the floor newly installed or treated?
  • What must stay dry or out of the way?
  • Will anyone work alone or out of hours?
  • Is the building older than the year 2000? Older buildings can have asbestos in them.

How it’s done

  • What will you stand on to reach the work?
  • Which product and application will you use?
  • Which machine and power source will you use?
  • Which manual method will you use?
  • How will you pick it up?

What your Cleaning RAMS includes

Method statement

The sequence of the work, step by step. The suggestions are a starting point; you write the method for the job as it will be done.

Risk assessment

Each hazard, who could be harmed, the controls in place and any further action. There is no risk score: you judge each row against the real site, and adding a hazard does not put its controls in place.

PDF draft for review

The document as you left it, for someone competent to check. A download is not approval and not permission to start work.