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However every now and then there are some stories that may be of enough interest to let you now about them, just in less detail than we usually do.
The next few items are the latest information from the HSE from areas that may affect the tool trade.
Construction
It does seem that the health and safety message is getting through, the HSE published statistics last month that suggest the construction industry is a safer place to work than it was four or five years ago.
The Health and Safety Statistics 2004/05 report shows the rate of reported fatal and major injuries in construction between 1999/2000 and 2004/05 has reduced by around 24%.
When comparing rates of over-3-day injury, there has been a reduction of around 15% across all industries between 1999/2000 and 2004/05. In construction the rate has dropped by 35%.
Chief Inspector of Construction, Stephen Williams said: “My congratulations go out to the industry on the progress it has made so far. I am pleased to see the encouraging signs that it has taken ownership of its health and safety performance and worked hard to achieve the lowest incidence rate ever for fatal and over 3 day injuries. It is on target to exceed the ‘all industry’ Revitalising targets set in 2000, but it is yet to meet its own challenging targets set at the 2001 Construction Summit.”
He reiterated that there are still improvements to be made, and that some areas are still a cause of concern, specifically falls from heights.
For Data and commentary on the statistics: www.hse.gov.uk/statistics.
Health and Safety statistics 2004/2005: www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/overall/hssh0405.pdf .
Whole Body Vibration
We have given quite a lot of coverage to vibration in Toolbusinesss+Hire, but because we mostly cover smaller equipment we haven’t reported much on whole body vibration, which has been part of the same HSE campaign.
But any readers with an interest in ride-on equipment, or any thing else that can cause whole body vibration may be interested to see that the Health and Safety Executive published further guidance on Whole Body Vibration (WBV)At the end of November. The guide, “Whole Body Vibration: The Control of Vibration at Work Regulations 2005” gives advice to employers of what can be done to reduce and control the risks of WBV under the Control of Vibration Work Act 2005 which came into being earlier this year.
The new guidance will be helpful to those who operate off-road machinery and construction vehicles as well as industries where drivers can be exposed to shocks and jolts while travelling over rough ground like, mining and quarrying.
The book is a detailed, plain language guide of the regulations as they apply to whole-body vibration together with chapters, giving practical advice on a number of issues like: how to do risk assessments, estimating vibration exposure and arranging health surveillance.
Mike Shepherd, head of HSE’s Noise and Vibration Programme said, “HSE has been working closely with industry over the past 4 years to carry out research, which will help identify what the levels of whole-body vibration are in agriculture, mining and construction. The research is to identify the most effective ways of reducing excessive vibration exposures.”
For more details: www.hse.gov.uk/vibration.
Breath In
It is always worth keeping an eye on anything the HSE is putting on the agenda, because it will have an effect on what tools and equipment customers will be buying in future, and for manufacturers and users it is a chance to have a say on what reasonable regulations would be..
The Health and Safety Commission published a consultative document seeking comments on a proposal for a new Workplace Exposure Limit (WEL) for respirable crystalline silica earlier this month. Every year nearly 2 million employees are exposed to Crystalline Silica.
Crystalline silica is a naturally occurring mineral found in almost all types of rock, sands, clays etc, and in building materials made from these materials such as bricks, tiles and concrete. HSE estimates that at least 100,000 workers are exposed to dust containing respirable crystalline silica on a regular basis in a diverse range of industries including mining, quarrying, brick/tile and ceramic manufacture, construction, foundries and stone-masonry.
Consultation Document: www.hse.gov.uk/consult/live.htm.
Asbestos
The Health and Safety Commission has also published a consultative document seeking comments on proposed amendments to its asbestos regulations and an Approved Code of Practice (ACoP).
Giles Denham, Policy Programme Director at the Health and Safety Executive, said: “Although asbestos is no longer imported or used, there is still cause for concern. It is estimated that about half a million non-domestic premises contain some form of asbestos. HSE continues to improve standards of protection for around 9,000 asbestos removal workers in the licensed sector and the 1.3 million repair and maintenance workers who may be exposed. The proposed regulatory package provides a stronger and better targeted regulatory framework.”
The proposed changes will implement revisions to the EU Asbestos Worker Protection Directive 83/477/EEC in Great Britain. The draft regulations include a single, tighter control limit for work with all types of asbestos; specific training requirements for those working with asbestos; and a clear hierarchy of controls that should be used to reduce exposure, based on the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (Amendment) Regulations 2004 (COSHH).
HSC is taking this opportunity to simplify and rationalise the legislative regime by combining the three sets of current asbestos regulations - on controls, licensing and prohibitions - into one. It is also proposing to align the criteria for notifying the enforcing authority of work with asbestos with the requirement to have an HSE asbestos licence.
Consultation Document and the draft Regulations: www.hse.gov.uk/consult/live.htm.
The complete research report www.hse.gov.uk/research/hsl/workenvn.htm
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