Suisse Public visitors rise to IPAF’s safety knowledge challenge

Visitors to last month’s Suisse Public expo in Bern, Switzerland, enjoyed testing their knowledge in IPAF’s “back to basics” safety trail using real-life Mobile Elevating Work Platform (MEWP) machinery to demonstrate various risk scenarios.

Temperatures during the four-day event were high, but so was interest in the services and campaigns IPAF displayed at the event, the first time the organisation has taken a stand of its own at the popular municipal health & safety expo, which takes place every two years, attracting visitors from across Europe and further afield, but particularly from Switzerland, France and Italy.

Many visitors attempted to avoid the worst heat of the day by getting an early start around the exhibition, which meant the IPAF stand was busy from early in the morning each day, and callers on stand were a mix of members and partners and others who had not come across IPAF before, making for a productive networking opportunity.  

Delegates also tried the new IPAF Virtual Reality (VR) pre-use inspection demo app and eLearning training module, while the larger-than-life Andy Access character proved as popular as always as he showcased key IPAF safety messages using video clips, posters and leaflets. The correct use and inspection of harnesses for working at height was also demonstrated on the stand.

Roger Schaffner, IPAF’s Switzerland Representative, says: “IPAF’s expanded presence at Suisse Public this year reflects the growing profile of the organisation; I think many visitors were impressed by what we have to offer and those working in the public sector across Europe were especially interested in the safety and technical guidance and training we can provide to their employees and subcontractors.”

Tim Whiteman, CEO of IPAF, adds: “The IPAF events programme gets ever busier; while Suisse Public was underway we also hosted a very successful IPAF Asia Conference in Changsha, China, and we have several other key event appearances lined up between now and the end of the year in Asia, North and South America, the Middle East and across Europe, not least our annual Europlatform conference, which this year will be held in Warsaw, Poland, on 14 September.”

IPAF also invited a group called Cycling Power to share its platform at Suisse Public. Part of the Young Enterprise Switzerland programme that helps almost 6,000 students and young people a year develop innovation and business skills, members of the group showcased a mobile phone charger they developed that runs solely on “pedal power”.