OH Consultant
SWMS›SWMS

Kitchen Installation SWMS Template — Safe Work Method Statement for Kitchen Installation and Fit-Out

A Safe Work Method Statement (SWMS) for kitchen installation is a safety planning document prepared under the Work Health and Safety (WHS) Regulation 2025 to address the hazards of fitting out a residential, commercial, or institutional kitchen. Kitchen installation brings multiple trades together in a confined space — joiners fitting cabinets, plumbers connecting water and waste services, electricians wiring appliances, gasfitters connecting cooktops, and tilers finishing splashbacks. Each trade carries its own hazards, but the compressed timeline and tight working environment of a kitchen fit-out mean the hazards overlap, compound, and amplify. A plumber working under a bench while an electrician connects a rangehood above creates simultaneous exposures that no single trade's risk assessment fully captures.

$199 AUD✓ Instant Download Available

SWMS variants reference your state’s WHS legislation. Instant download after payment.

Legal Requirements

regulation

WHS Regulation 2025 Part 6.1 Division 3 — High Risk Construction Work; Part 4.4 — Falls; Part 4.7 — Electrical Safety; Part 7.1 — Hazardous Chemicals; Part 9A — Respirable Crystalline Silica

hrcw category

Risk of fall from a height of more than 2 metres (wall cabinet and rangehood installation); work on or near energised electrical installations or services (appliance connection); work involving silica-bearing materials (WHS Regulation 2025, Schedule 1)

code of practice

Code of Practice: Construction Work (2019); Code of Practice: Managing the Risk of Falls at Workplaces (2018); Code of Practice: Managing Electrical Risks in the Workplace (2022); Code of Practice: Managing the Risks of Respirable Crystalline Silica from Engineered Stone (2024); Code of Practice: Hazardous Manual Tasks (2018); Plumbing Code of Australia

section 26a binding

Binding under Section 26A when kitchen installation engages HRCW — the principal contractor must obtain, review and keep the SWMS on site

hrwl required

Licensed electrician for appliance connection to mains; licensed gasfitter for gas cooktop connection; licensed plumber for water and waste connection. Engineered stone benchtops, slabs and panels may not be manufactured, supplied, processed or installed from 1 July 2024 under the Commonwealth prohibition. NSW silica awareness training is required for workers exposed to silica-bearing materials from September 2024

Hazards

HazardConsequenceLikelihood
Falls from height during wall cabinet, rangehood and overhead pantry installationWorkers installing wall cabinets at 2.0 to 2.4 metres above floor level or rangehoods and over-cabinet microwaves routinely work from mobile scaffolds, trestle platforms or platform ladders.Possible (C)
Electrical contact during appliance connection to live or incorrectly isolated circuitsElectricians connecting ovens, cooktops, rangehoods, under-cabinet lights, dishwashers and coffee machines must isolate the circuit at the distribution board, lock out the circuit, and verify de-energisation before commencing the connection.Possible (C)
Gas leak during cooktop connection causing fire, explosion or asphyxiationGas cooktop connection involves natural gas or LPG and requires a licensed gasfitter.Unlikely (D)
Manual handling injury from lifting and positioning heavy stone benchtops and sheet materialsStone benchtops commonly weigh 60 to 150 kilograms and oversized island tops can exceed 200 kilograms.Likely (B)
Cuts and lacerations from power tools, sharp sheet metal, raw stone edges and cabinet hardwareCircular saws, angle grinders, jigsaws, and tile cutters cause lacerations on contact.Likely (B)
Exposure to respirable crystalline silica from cutting natural stone, porcelain slabs and ceramic tilesNatural stone, porcelain and ceramic benchtop and splashback materials contain respirable crystalline silica.Possible (C)
Noise exposure from power tools operating in an enclosed kitchen spaceAngle grinders, circular saws, tile cutters, and wet saws commonly generate noise of 95 to 105 dB(A) at the operator position.Likely (B)
Slips, trips and falls on wet floors, construction debris, packaging and offcutsKitchen fit-out floors are cluttered with packaging, offcuts, cables, adhesive containers, and tools.Likely (B)
Chemical exposure from adhesives, sealants, grouts and coatings in a confined spaceTile adhesives, construction adhesives, silicone sealants, polyurethane sealants, and tile grouts contain solvents, isocyanates, epoxy resins and corrosive substances.Possible (C)
Struck by falling cabinets during wall hanging when fixings fail or cabinets are under-supportedWall cabinets dislodging during installation can fall onto the installer or workers below.Possible (C)

Controls (Hierarchy of Controls)

[Elimination] Eliminate on-site machining by pre-fabricating and pre-cutting maximum components at the workshop and delivering finished assemblies ready to install
[Elimination] Eliminate engineered stone benchtop installation entirely in compliance with the Commonwealth prohibition effective 1 July 2024
[Elimination] Eliminate manual overhead lifting by using cabinet jacks and mechanical hoists for wall cabinet installation
[Substitution] Substitute solvent-based adhesives and sealants with water-based and low-VOC alternatives
[Substitution] Substitute natural stone benchtops with laminate or ceramic alternatives where the design allows and the client agrees, eliminating silica exposure
[Isolation] Establish trade sequencing so only one trade is working in the kitchen at any time wherever practicable — stagger plumbing, electrical, joinery, tiling and gas work
[Isolation] Isolate live electrical circuits at the distribution board, lock out and tag out, and verify de-energised with a rated voltage tester using the test-verify-test method before connection
[Isolation] Isolate gas supply at the meter or isolation valve before any work on gas appliances and leak-test after connection
[Engineering] Provide mobile scaffolds or platform ladders for all wall cabinet installation above 2 metres — stepladders only for tasks below 2 metres and only where scaffold is not reasonably practicable
[Engineering] Use mechanical lifting aids — suction cups, A-frame trolleys, lifting frames — for stone benchtops exceeding 40 kilograms, with team lifting for slabs over 60 kilograms
+ 13 more controls included in the full template

Recent Prosecutions

SafeWork NSW — fall from stepladder during commercial kitchen overhead cabinet installationFines of the order of $160,000 and a court-ordered safety management system implementation

A worker fell 2.4 metres from a stepladder while installing overhead cabinets in a commercial kitchen. The ladder was being used on a wet tiled floor without anti-slip feet. The contractor had not prepared a SWMS, had not provided a scaffold, and had not implemented a fall protection system appropriate to the task. SafeWork NSW prosecuted under the WHS Act primary duty of care and the HRCW SWMS requirement.

2023 — SafeWork NSW Prosecution Register

WorkSafe Victoria — engineered stone dry cutting silica exposureFines of the order of $200,000

Workers dry-cut engineered stone benchtops on a residential site without dust controls. Silica exposure was measured at approximately 12 times the workplace exposure standard. No respiratory protection was provided, no air monitoring was conducted, and no health monitoring was in place. The incident pre-dated the Commonwealth prohibition but formed part of the evidence that led to the ban. WorkSafe Victoria prosecuted the stone and tile contractor under the OHS Act and the crystalline silica provisions of the Regulation.

2024 — WorkSafe Victoria Prosecution Register

SafeWork NSW — electrician burns from unverified circuit isolationFines of the order of $110,000

An electrician received serious electrical burns while connecting an oven to a mains supply that had not been effectively isolated. The contractor had no SWMS, no isolation verification procedure, and the circuit was assumed to be off based on verbal instruction rather than tested with a rated voltage tester. SafeWork NSW prosecuted under the WHS Act and the electrical provisions of the Regulation for failure to comply with the isolation test-verify-test method.

2022 — SafeWork NSW Prosecution Register

What Your SWMS Must Include

✓A description of the kitchen installation work including the specific trades, the scope, and the expected duration
✓Identification of every hazard associated with the work, assessed using a risk matrix
✓Control measures documented in the order of the hierarchy of controls
✓How each control measure will be implemented, supervised, monitored and reviewed
✓The name and position of the person responsible for the kitchen installation
✓Evidence of consultation with the workers and any HSR
✓Training and licence requirements — electrician, gasfitter, plumber — and silica awareness
✓Emergency procedures including first aid, fire response, gas leak response and notifiable incident reporting
✓PPE requirements specified by type and Australian Standard
✓Plant and equipment including mobile scaffolds, lifting aids and cable scanners
+ 11 more requirements covered in the full template

Build Your Kitchen Installation SWMS in Minutes

This SWMS template pre-loads kitchen hazards, height controls, stone handling procedures, engineered stone prohibition guidance, and trade coordination measures so builders and kitchen contractors can customise the document for the specific project. Select the activities, review the controls, and produce a site-ready SWMS before work commences.

Start Building