Industry ill-prepared for vibration regulations

Most of British industry has failed to take adequate steps to prepare for upcoming health and safety regulations relating to use of vibrating machinery or equipment

Most of British industry has failed to take adequate steps to prepare for upcoming health and safety regulations relating to use of vibrating machinery or equipment, warns Reactec, the UK's leading vibration reduction consultancy.

The Health and Safety Executive introduced two new regulations on 6th July 2005.

These focus on the health risks associated with Hand Arm Vibration (HAV) and Whole-Body Vibration (WBV) and Shock.

The HAV regulations predominantly protect employees who work with handheld power tools and the WBV regulations are designed to protect employees who during the course of their work sit or stand in a machine that vibrates.

Employers will be responsible for ensuring exposure to vibrations is kept within safe limits.

This will involve completing a risk assessment of their equipment and working practices to make sure employees are not in danger.

This includes both issues of direct vibration damage and shock, and indirect effects on employee safety such as those caused by instruments vibrating.

This must take into account external influences such as temperature and other aggravating factors in addition to duration of exposure to all forms of vibration in the course of their employment.

"Various levels and weightings will be given to different vibrations, which will make it difficult for companies to comply with the regulations, without experience of vibration measurement and analysis," said Mark-Paul Buckingham, managing director, Reactec.

He added: "The regulations also require the employer to be up to date with technical progress in the field and alternate measures to control exposure and minimise risk.

In addition, companies will be required to train their staff about the dangers of vibration exposure and the measures they can take to minimise its impact.

In our opinion there are very few companies in the UK who have prepared adequately for the impact of these regulations.

Potential risks need to be assessed and any necessary steps taken to comply with the new laws.

Companies that fall foul of the regulations could face hefty fines and possible compensation claims from employees adversely affected by vibration".

Contacting specialists such as Reactec is a good first step to finding out about the regulations and the systems and technologies available that will help companies to meet them.

For further information on the vibration reduction technology and solutions provided by Reactec please visit the website or telephone for a discussion.

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