When this template fits
This RAMS is for UK contractors and hvac teams carrying out ductwork & ahu installation — typically because a principal contractor or client has asked for a risk assessment and method statement before work can start. It covers the recognised building services & m&e hazards for this task, with the controls a reviewer expects to see.
What this RAMS includes
- ✓ 9 task-specific hazards scored on a 5×5 matrix (initial → residual)
- ✓ Specific control measures for each hazard, in hierarchy-of-control order
- ✓ A 10-step method statement (sequence of works)
- ✓ PPE, plant/equipment, permits and competence requirements
- ✓ Emergency arrangements and operative briefing / sign-off section
Scope of works
Install ductwork and air handling units at height including lifting of plant.
Sequence of works
- 1Pre-task briefing and permit review: Hold a toolbox talk covering the method statement, risk assessment, and any site-specific permits (work at height, hot works if applicable). Confirm all operatives are trained and competent. Identify exclusion zones on the floor plan.
- 2Services survey and isolation: Obtain ceiling void as-built drawings. Perform CAT & Genny scan across all proposed hanger and penetration locations. Arrange electrical isolations with the principal contractor and lock-off relevant circuits. Mark confirmed cable routes.
- 3Access equipment set-up: Inspect MEWP and any podium steps or scaffold before use. Verify ground conditions and floor loading. Establish exclusion zones below working areas. Confirm MEWP operators hold valid IPAF cards for the machine category in use.
- 4Install primary ductwork supports and hangers: Using MEWP or podium steps, drill and fix threaded rod hangers and support brackets to structure at designed spacing. Verify fixing integrity and alignment with coordination drawings before loading.
- 5Ground-level pre-assembly of ductwork: Assemble and connect duct sections, flanges, and accessories at ground level as far as practicable to reduce time at height. Apply acoustic and thermal insulation to sections where accessible at ground level.
- 6Mechanical lift and installation of AHU: Execute lift plan. Check slings, shackles, and lifting points. Clear lift zone exclusion, signal operator, and guide AHU into position using guide ropes. Do not place hands between load and structure. Connect to pre-installed support frame and confirm secure before releasing slings.
- 7Installation and jointing of ductwork runs: Lift pre-assembled duct sections using MEWP or gin wheel. Connect to AHU and hangers, apply sealant to joints per specification. Inspect each section for alignment before proceeding to the next.
- 8Insulation and access panel fitting: Apply duct insulation and vapour barrier at height where not completed at ground level. Install inspection and access panels at required intervals. Maintain tidy working platform — remove waste to ground level regularly.
- 9Inspection and testing: Carry out visual inspection of all joints, supports, and fixings. Conduct pressure and leakage testing per BESA specification. Record results and rectify defects before handover.
- 10Post-installation housekeeping and demobilisation: Remove all waste, off-cuts, and packaging to designated skips. Inspect and store access equipment. Reinstate any temporary barriers or penetrations. Complete all site registers, lift records, and inspection documentation.
Hazards, risk rating & controls
Risk = likelihood × severity (1–25). Initial is before controls; residual is with controls applied.
Fall from height
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Prioritise scaffold, podium steps, or MEWP over ladders to provide a stable working platform with edge protection.
- › Wear a full body harness with appropriate lanyard attached to a suitable anchor point when using a MEWP or where there is residual fall risk.
- › Pre-fabricate ductwork sections and AHU sub-assemblies at ground level where possible to minimise time spent working at height.
- › Issue a work at height permit. Inspect all access equipment before each shift and record findings. Only trained, competent operatives to use MEWPs.
Falling objects striking persons below
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Establish and barrier off an exclusion zone directly below overhead installation works. Use physical barriers and signage. Station a banksman where required.
- › All hand tools used at height to be attached to the operative or work platform via tool lanyards. Use tool bags and material nets on platforms.
- › All persons entering or working beneath or near overhead installation activities must wear a hard hat (safety helmet to EN 397).
Lifting and mechanical handling of plant
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Prepare a formal lift plan for all non-routine and complex lifts. Identify lifting points, rated slings, radius, headroom, and structural capacity of supports. Plan approved by a competent person.
- › Ensure all lifting equipment (hoists, slings, shackles, chain blocks) holds a current thorough examination certificate (LOLER 6-monthly or 12-monthly as applicable). Check SWL markings before use.
- › Clear and barrier the lift zone. Only the appointed signaller communicates with the crane/hoist operator using agreed signals. No persons beneath the suspended load.
Manual handling injury
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Use sack trucks, pallet trucks, or mini-hoists to move bulk bags and materials to the work area rather than manual carrying.
- › Ensure all operatives have received manual handling training; mandate two-person lifts for loads between 20–40 kg and for awkward or confined lifts.
- › Specify mechanical handling aids (trolleys, pallet trucks, gin wheels, chain blocks) for items exceeding 25 kg per person. Procure pre-cut duct to reduce individual section weight.
Contact with unprotected electrical services
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Obtain as-built drawings and carry out a cable-avoidance tool (CAT) scan of the working area before drilling or cutting. Arrange isolation and lock-off of circuits in the work zone where practicable.
- › Use a calibrated CAT & Genny to identify buried services before fixing ductwork hangers. Mark identified cables and adjust fixing positions.
- › Wear Class 0 insulating gloves when working near cables that cannot be confirmed as isolated. Use insulated-handle tools.
Inhalation of metalworking dust and swarf
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Maximise off-site duct fabrication to reduce the quantity of cutting performed in the occupied commercial building.
- › Use a duct cutter or plasma cutter with integral LEV extraction. Position portable extraction unit at the cutting source. Ensure adequate background ventilation in the work area.
- › Wear an FFP3-rated half-mask respirator when cutting galvanised steel or where LEV cannot adequately control fumes. RPE fit-tested to the wearer.
MEWP overturning or collision
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Check floor loading capacity against MEWP manufacturer's specifications before positioning. Identify voids, drainage channels, and soft spots. Use outrigger pads where required.
- › Only IPAF-trained and site-authorised operators to use MEWPs. Confirm operators hold the correct IPAF category (1a/3a scissor; 1b/3b boom) for the machine type in use.
- › Establish a traffic management plan for MEWP movement routes. Assign a spotter when travelling with elevated platform in congested areas.
Slips and trips on cluttered working floor
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Designate a clear walkway through the work area. Remove off-cuts and packaging to waste skips at least every two hours. Do not stack materials in pedestrian routes.
- › Route extension leads and hoses overhead or through cable ramps at floor level. Avoid trailing cables across walkways.
- › Operatives to wear safety boots with steel toecap and midsole and slip-resistant sole rated SRC.
Noise exposure from power tools
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Prefer mechanical guillotine or rotary duct cutters over angle grinders. Select low-vibration, low-noise drills and SDS chucks with vibration damping.
- › Identify high-noise tasks. Rotate operatives to limit individual daily exposure. Restrict noisy operations to agreed time windows to protect other trades.
- › Provide and enforce use of EN 352 hearing protection (minimum SNR 27 dB ear defenders or moulded plugs) in designated noisy zones and during high-noise tasks.
PPE
- ✓ Safety footwear (EN ISO 20345)
- ✓ Hi-vis clothing
- ✓ Safety gloves (task-appropriate)
- ✓ Hard hat (EN 397) where overhead risk or site rules require
- ✓ Safety harness and lanyard where fall arrest is the selected control
- ✓ Insulated gloves where live work is unavoidable
- ✓ RPE (FFP3 or as risk-assessed) with face-fit
- ✓ Hearing protection (to the assessed SNR)
Competence
- ✓ F-Gas certification (company and personnel — e.g. REFCOM, F Gas Register or Bureau Veritas) for any refrigerant handling — a separate statutory requirement, not covered by this RAMS
- ✓ Site induction completed; CSCS or equivalent where the site requires it
Schemes (CSCS, PASMA, IPAF…) evidence competence; they are not statutory requirements in themselves.
Plant & equipment
- › Isolation valves / pipe-freezing kit
- › Gas tightness test gauge (gas work)
- › Press tool or soldering/brazing set
- › MEWP or tower for high-level plant
- › LEV / extraction for brazing fume
Permits & legislation
What principal contractors usually check
- ✓ Named competence where required (Gas Safe / F-Gas / Part P)
- ✓ Service isolation and test-before-touch (gas tightness, electrical lock-off)
- ✓ Hot-works permit and fire watch for brazing/soldering near combustibles
- ✓ The document is site-specific — real address, access arrangements and dates, not a generic template
- ✓ Hazards match the actual task and the controls are specific (not “take care” and “use PPE”)
- ✓ Named supervisor and competent person, with operative sign-off space
- ✓ Emergency and rescue arrangements that work for this site
The report builder runs these as pre-submission checks before you download — or run an existing document through the free RAMS pre-submission checker.
Frequently asked questions
Who should write a ductwork & ahu installation RAMS?
Someone competent to plan the work — usually the contractor doing the job or their supervisor. A template like this gives you the recognised hazards and controls for ductwork & ahu installation, but the person signing it off must review it as the competent person and confirm it matches the actual site and method.
How long is the RAMS valid for?
Until something changes — there's no fixed expiry in law. Review it if the method, site conditions, equipment or people change, after any incident or near miss, and at sensible intervals on longer jobs. Date the review and re-brief the team.
What regulations apply to ductwork & ahu installation?
Work at Height Regulations 2005, LOLER 1998 — Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations, Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 are the main ones, alongside Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH), Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, reg 3 — risk assessment, Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005. The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and CDM 2015 apply to all construction work.
Does a method statement need to be site-specific?
Yes — this is the most common reason documents get sent back. Principal contractors reject generic copy-paste RAMS. Your document should name the site, access arrangements, dates, supervisor and any site-specific hazards. The RamsDocs builder fills these in for you and flags what's missing before you download.
Is this template free?
Yes — everything on RamsDocs is free during early access, including building a site-specific version of this RAMS and downloading the PDF. No card required.