Truss & Lighting Grid Rigging SWMS

Truss and lighting grid rigging for live events, concerts, theatre productions and corporate stages involves assembling box truss sections at ground level, attaching chain hoists, flying the structure overhead, and connecting energised luminaires and motors — frequently with crew, performers and audience working beneath the suspended load. The work simultaneously triggers working at height, suspended loads over people, energised electrical connection, manual handling of heavy aluminium sections, and time-pressured de-rig under fatigue. Under WHS Regulation 2025, this constitutes High Risk Construction Work and a Safe Work Method Statement must be prepared, consulted on with workers, and kept available at the venue before rigging commences. The Entertainment Industry Code of Practice and AS 3569:2010 (Steel wire ropes) impose specific duties around load calculation, secondary safeties, and competent rigger supervision. This SWMS documents the engineering controls, exclusion zones, and electrical isolation procedures required to discharge the PCBU's primary duty of care under s19 of the WHS Act.

Hazards identified

7 hazards covered, sorted by priority.

Control measures

Hierarchy-of-controls order: elimination → substitution → isolation → engineering → administrative → PPE.

1. 1Elimination — Eliminate work over people by completing all rig, focus and cable dressing before audience or non-essential crew enter the venue under hard barrier exclusion zones
2. 2Elimination — Remove energised electrical risk by locking off and tagging dimmer racks and three-phase feeds at the distribution board before any luminaire connection or repatching commences
3. 3Substitution — Substitute ladder access with elevated work platforms, scissor lifts or genie towers rated for the load and operator weight in lieu of A-frame ladder rigging
4. 4Substitution — Replace single-point suspension with redundant two-point bridle rigging and independent secondary safety bonds rated to 6:1 on all flown fixtures per LEEA guidance
5. 5Engineering — Verify all chain hoists, shackles, slings and trusses against a load plot calculation signed by a competent rigger, with WLL stamps inspected and current test certificates filed
6. 6Engineering — Install RCD protection on all temporary power distribution and earth-bond the truss structure to the venue MEN system before energising any fixture
7. 7Administrative — Establish a hard-barriered drop zone beneath the rigging area, post spotters, restrict access to ticketed competent riggers, and conduct a documented pre-lift toolbox talk
8. 8Administrative — Implement a written de-rig sequence with mandatory rest breaks, supervisor sign-off at each phase, and a two-person rule for all hoist operation and load release
9. 9PPE — Mandate AS/NZS 1801 hard hats with chin straps, AS/NZS 2210 safety footwear, cut-resistant rigging gloves, and high-visibility vests for all personnel within the rigging zone
10. 10PPE — Issue AS/NZS 1891 compliant full-body harnesses with twin shock-absorbing lanyards for any rigger accessing the grid, with documented anchor point inspection before each shift

Applicable Codes of Practice

High-Risk Construction Work triggered

Worked example

At a 4,000-capacity regional entertainment centre, a touring lighting crew arrives at 06:00 for a one-day load-in of a 12m by 8m box truss grid with 24 moving heads and four chain motors. The Head Rigger opens this SWMS at the pre-start brief in the loading dock, walking eight crew members through the hazard register on a tablet. Each crew member signs onto the document acknowledging the exclusion zone boundaries marked on the venue ground plan. The SWMS load plot calculation is cross-referenced against the venue's structural engineer's letter confirming the 2.5 tonne per pickup point rating. During hoist attachment, a crew member notices a chain bag with visible wear on a master link — the SWMS escalation procedure is followed, the hoist is red-tagged and swapped from spares, and the change is recorded on the back page. Before the truss is flown, the deputy confirms the drop zone is hard-barriered and the in-house electrician has locked off the dimmer rack feeding the fixtures. The grid is trimmed to height, secondary safeties are fitted, and only then are circuits energised for focus. At end-of-show de-rig, the supervisor reopens the SWMS to verify the reverse-sequence and enforce the mandatory 15-minute rest break before motor operation resumes.

Related legislation

• WHS Act 2011 (model)
• WHS Regulation 2025
• AS/NZS 3000 — Electrical installations