Neals Notes June 2001
Trike gets new hazard classification.
The HSE is alerting all users of Trichloroethylene- trike to most of us- to the fact that its hazard classification is being changed and urges all users to plan ahead to meet the tighter requirements in prevention and control measures. The current human health hazard classification for trike under the EU Dangerous Substances Directive places trike in the lowest category of carcinogen but following recent discussions it has been agreed to upgrade this to a Category 2 carcinogen. This reclassification will bring trike within the tighter controls for worker protection through COSHH regulations and the environment through the Solvent Emissions Directive. Suppliers should also start planning. Please remember that trike is not going to be banned for degreasing and the use of open-topped tanks has not been banned. But there will be pressure to use closed-top tanks eventually.
Child Safety Week may have passed but not the need to Safeguard Children.
Child Safety Week has passed, it was held June 18th to 24th, and the HSE is now cajoling all organisations to look at their operations from a child's point of view with special emphasis for those running construction sites, agriculture and railway premises. Jane Willis of the HSE says "Children may be at particular risk, either as customers as innocent bystanders or after gaining unauthorised access. Every accident or fatality to a child is a tragedy, especially as most are preventable" In fact each year a child dies and 100 major injuries are reported by the construction industry alone. Five children are killed and 45 suffer major injuries in the agriculture sector and last year 10 children died and 13 were seriously injured on the railways.
Ill or Disabled because of a disease or deafness caused by Work?
The Benefits Agency has produced a 12 page A5 booklet (SD6) which is a basic guide to Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefits. It details the benefits available, a reduced earnings allowance and income support. And it covers in detail disease caused by working with asbestos, asthma, chronic bronchitis/ emphysema, deafness, pneumoconiosis, tenosynovitis and vibration white finger. Contact a local Social Security Office or try the Benefit Enquiry line on 0800 88 22 00.
Inventors Fair at Earls Court.
I visited the Inventor's fair at Earls Court and found one or two most interesting ideas for all involved in Health and Safety. The first is called the Handguard and is a mechanic's glove which protects the back of the hand and leaves the palm and fingers free for complex work. The idea came to him when he cut his hand badly repairing a local church's mini bus. Contact James Virgo of Castings Inventions and Artwork on 0207 701 5973.
Another item to catch the eye is the Powex which handles chip pan fires with ease.
This extinguisher operates through a patented spring system which injects the extinguishing foam directly into the heart of the fire. The fluid settles on the flames and seals them from the oxygen they need to burn This fluid also cools the oil down so that it will not re-ignite. The Powex powder can be cleaned away with water. the third product to catch my eye was the Glotorch, a simple flashlight which glows in the dark. It does not use the power of its battery but simply needs ten minutes of light to glow for eight hours. Contact Jameson Technologies on 01432 820999. And finally I found the Boardmate Board support which acts as an extra hand when fixing plasterboard and similar flat materials for partitions and ceilings. Boards can be up to 3.6m long and 1.2 m wide and weigh up to 61 kg. Contact here is Boardmate UK Limited on 01279 629109
HSE will be checking itself.
The HSE has published a document setting out the principles which its statisticians will use to assess progress against the government's national targets for reducing work-related ill health, injuries and working days lost in the ten years to 2010. It can be found on the HSE website www.hse.gov.uk/hsestats/statnote/pdf. A report will be prepared each Autumn to compare the latest data with that of the base year 1999-2000. And as the methods to be used will meet National Statistics standards, the methods will be subject to independent quality review. Enquries to 08701 545500.
New CD All You need to Know About Manual Handling.
The first CD in the Safety Point series of Health and Safety related topics is entitled All You Need to Know About Manual Handling. It described the roles and key points for employers and formal duty holders, manufacturers and suppliers and any person in the work area performing or directing a manual handling task or managing a work task that could prove injurious to work operatives, designers of components that need to be moved, planning supervisors, principal contractors and companies that engage in sub contract work as well as designers of construction projects. It includes a warehouse, industrial or delivery driver manual handling and ergonomics checklist which should be updated by the employer, managers and/or safety reps at least every two weeks or as site or work operations change. This document is intended to help operatives develop an "eye" for ergonomic problems and thus prevent workplace injuries.
This company has also recently developed E-training for Safety which can be accessed via the Internet or supplied on a CD Rom. It is most suitable for training new employees which can be a major and expensive task
Professional Health and Safety Consultants Tel/ 0208 653 6666 Fax 0208 653 9449
Corporate Killing Proposals.
The proposed new offences are Corporate Killing which makes the company accountable in criminal law where conduct falls far below what can be reasonably expected with a proposed maximum penalty of an unlimited fine and an order to correct the original cause of the accident. And director may be liable to being disqualified, Reckless Killing is where a person is aware of a risk that their conduct will cause death or serious injury and it is unreasonable to take that risk. Maximum penalty is life imprisonment. Killing by Gross Carelessness can lead to 10 years' imprisonment and Killing when the intention was to cause only minor injury but death was caused by an unforseeable event involves a maximum penalty of 5 to 10 year's imprisonment.
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