Hand-arm vibration. The Control of Vibration at Work Regulations 2005 Guidance on Regulations. HSE Books

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1 Health ad Safety Had-arm vibratio The Cotrol of Vibratio at Work Regulatios 2005 Guidace o Regulatios Had-arm vibratio The Cotrol of Vibratio at Work Regulatios 2005 Health ad Safety This is a free-to-dowload, web-friedly versio of L140, (Published 2005). This versio has bee adapted for olie use from HSE s curret prited versio. You ca buy the book at ad most good bookshops. ISBN Price Guidace o Regulatios This book explais to employers, health ad safety advisors, specialists ad occupatioal health professioals what they eed to do to reduce ad cotrol the risks from had-arm vibratio (HAV) uder the Cotrol of Vibratio at Work Regulatios It is divided ito colour-coded parts to help readers go directly to the iformatio that is most relevat to them. Part 1 of the book icludes the text of the Regulatios ad explais what they mea ad what they require employers to do to cotrol the risks to health ad safety from exposure to HAV. Parts 2-5 iclude practical guidace for employers o carryig out risk assessmet, estimatig vibratio exposure, cotrollig risks, arragig health surveillace, uderstadig the duties of machiery maufacturers ad suppliers to their customers ad how to obtai competet help with assessmet ad cotrol of risks. Parts 6 ad 7 provide supplemetary techical ad medical guidace for health ad safety professioals, specialist ad occupatioal health professioals. HSE Books Page 1 of 135

2 Health ad Safety Crow copyright 2005 First published 2005 Reprited 2008 ISBN All rights reserved. No part of this publicatio may be reproduced, stored i a retrieval system, or trasmitted i ay form or by ay meas (electroic, mechaical, photocopyig, recordig or otherwise) without the prior writte permissio of the copyright ower. Applicatios for reproductio should be made i writig to: The Office of Public Sector Iformatio, Iformatio Policy Team, Kew, Richmod, Surrey TW9 4DU or licesig@opsi.gov.uk This guidace is issued by the Health ad Safety. Followig the guidace is ot compulsory ad you are free to take other actio. But if you do follow the guidace you will ormally be doig eough to comply with the law. Health ad safety ispectors seek to secure compliace with the law ad may refer to this guidace as illustratig good practice. Page 2 of 135

3 Health ad Safety Cotets Editorial ote to reprit of December Itroductio 5 Part I: Legal duties of employers to cotrol the risks to health ad safety from had-arm vibratio 7 Regulatio 1 Citatio ad commecemet 7 Regulatio 2 Iterpretatio 7 Regulatio 3 Applicatio ad trasitioal provisios 8 Regulatio 4 Exposure limit values ad actio values 12 Regulatio 5 Assessmet of the risk to health created by vibratio at the workplace 12 Regulatio 6 Elimiatio or cotrol of exposure to vibratio at the workplace 17 Regulatio 7 Health surveillace 21 Regulatio 8 Iformatio, istructio ad traiig 24 Regulatio 9 Exemptio certificates for emergecy services 26 Regulatio 10 Exemptio certificates for air trasport 26 Regulatio 11 Exemptios relatig to the Miistry of Defece 27 Regulatio 12 Extesio outside Great Britai 27 Regulatio 13 Amedmets 27 Schedule 1 Had-arm vibratio 28 Schedule 2 Whole-body vibratio 29 Part II: Assess vibratio risks ad develop a actio pla for cotrol 31 Part III: Practical cotrol of vibratio exposure ad risk 47 Part IV: Iformatio from maufacturers ad suppliers of machiery 61 Part V: Health surveillace for HAVS 68 Part VI: Techical guidace for health ad safety advisors ad specialists 73 Part VII: Guidace o health surveillace for occupatioal health professioals 83 Appedix 1 Reportable diseases 101 Appedix 2 Iitial screeig questioaire 102 Appedix 3 Aual screeig questioaire for health surveillace 104 Appedix 4 Cliical questioaire 106 Appedix 5 Traiig ad competece issues for those advisig employers 115 Appedix 6 Traiig syllabus for occupatioal health professioals 119 Appedix 7 Guidace for machiery maufacturers o a suggested approach to warig of residual risk from vibratio 127 Refereces 130 Further readig 132 Further iformatio 135 Had-arm vibratio Page 3 of 135

4 Health ad Safety Editorial ote to reprit of December 2008 This guidace has bee reprited with mior chages icludig updated refereces ad updated iformatio relatig to revised requiremets o maufacturers ad suppliers of machiery. A revised Machiery Directive 2006/42/EC comes ito force across Europe o 29 December 2009, implemeted i the UK as the Supply of Machiery (Safety) Regulatios The requiremets o vibratio are expected to result i better iformatio about vibratio beig supplied with powered had-tools. Work is uderway to revise the harmoised Stadards that provide suppliers of tools with a meas to comply with the vibratio requiremets of the Machiery Directive, but it is ulikely that the process will be complete before the ed of It is expected that the guidace here will cotiue to help dutyholders to reduce risks from vibratio to the lowest level reasoably practicable. Ay further chages to guidace that become ecessary as a result of revised harmoised Stadards will be reflected i a ew editio of this book, expected i New iformatio will be also be added to the vibratio pages of HSE s website: Had-arm vibratio Page 4 of 135

5 Health ad Safety Itroductio 1 Had-arm vibratio (HAV) is a widespread hazard for employees i may idustries ad occupatios. HAV exposure at work ca arise from the use of hadheld power tools (such as griders or hammer drills), had-guided machiery (such as lawmowers ad plate compactors) ad had-fed machies (such as pedestal griders). Prologed ad regular exposure to this vibratio ca affect the operator s health. But the risks from vibratio ca be cotrolled ad employees ca be protected from ill health caused by vibratio. To protect employees, ad to comply with the Vibratio Regulatios, employers eed to assess the risks from vibratio ad pla how to cotrol them. 2 This book cotais i-depth guidace o the Cotrol of Vibratio at Work Regulatios 2005 (the Vibratio Regulatios) as they relate to had-arm vibratio. It replaces HSG88, the previous Health ad Safety (HSE) guidace book o had-arm vibratio, first published i 1994 (ISBN ). It does ot cotai guidace o those parts of the Regulatios which apply oly to whole-body vibratio as this is provided i a separate book (L141 ISBN ). 1 The parts of the Regulatios which apply specifically to whole-body vibratio are idetified by grey shadig. 3 Geeral health ad safety regulatios, supported by HSE guidace, have required employers to cotrol the risks from vibratio ad protect their employees sice the early 1990s, however, the Vibratio Regulatios ow place specific duties o employers. They are based o a Europea Uio Directive* requirig similar basic laws throughout the Uio o reducig the risks of vibratio-related diseases. If employers comply with the Vibratio Regulatios ad follow HSE s guidace, it will be possible to stop employees developig advaced stages of these diseases. The requiremets are straightforward ad will ot be difficult for employers to carry out. 4 The legal duties described i this book are i additio to the geeral obligatios to safeguard workers health (icludig the effects of vibratio) which employers have had sice 1975 uder the Health ad Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (the HSW Act). These geeral obligatios also apply to the safeguardig of the health of people who are ot employees, such as studets, volutary workers, visitors ad members of the public. Employees also have duties uder the HSW Act to take care for their ow health ad safety ad that of others whom their work may affect; ad to co-operate with employers so that they may comply with health ad safety law. 5 This book is divided ito colour-coded parts to help readers go directly to the iformatio that is most relevat to them. Other useful iformatio is i a series of appedices. Part 1 Legal duties of employers to cotrol the risks to health ad safety from had-arm vibratio 6 Part 1 of the book icludes the text of the Vibratio Regulatios ad explais what they mea ad what they require you to do. It sets out your legal obligatios as a employer to cotrol risks to health ad safety from exposure to had-arm vibratio (HAV), icludig prevetig HAV-related diseases such as damage to the * Coucil Directive 2002/44 /EC of 6 July 2002 o the miimum health ad safety requiremets regardig the risks arisig from physical agets (vibratio). Had-arm vibratio Page 5 of 135

6 Health ad Safety tissues of the hads ad arms, which cause the coditios kow as had-arm vibratio sydrome (HAVS) ad vibratio-related carpal tuel sydrome. This part will also be of iterest to health ad safety professioals. Parts 2-5 Practical guidace for employers 7 Parts 2-5 iclude practical iformatio for employers o carryig out risk assessmet, estimatig vibratio exposure, cotrollig risks, arragig health surveillace, uderstadig the duties of machiery maufacturers ad suppliers to their customers, ad how to obtai competet help with your assessmet ad cotrol of risks. Part 6 Techical guidace for health ad safety advisors ad specialists Part 7 Guidace for occupatioal health professioals o health surveillace 8 Parts 6 ad 7 of the book provide supplemetary techical ad medical guidace for health ad safety professioals, specialists ad occupatioal health professioals. Most employers will probably ot eed to read these parts, although some iformatio may be relevat if they are plaig to do some of the work themselves, for example the base level aual health surveillace. Readers of Parts 6 ad 7 will also fid it helpful to familiarise themselves with Parts 1 to 5 so that they have a good uderstadig of what the employer has to do ad what help they eed. 9 HSE has also produced a free leaflet ad quick-referece pocket card about the ew requiremets. For employers, leaflet INDG175(rev2) Cotrol the risks from had-arm vibratio 2 icludes a brief itroductio to the Vibratio Regulatios ad provides the essetial iformatio that you will eed to be able to comply with them. The pocket card INDG296(rev1) Had-arm vibratio: Advice for employees 3 cotais straightforward advice for employees. Both ca be obtaied from HSE Books (see Further iformatio at the back of the book for details) or dowloaded from HSE s vibratio website at Had-arm vibratio Page 6 of 135

7 Health ad Safety PART 1 LEGAL DUTIES OF EMPLOYERS TO CONTROL THE RISKS TO HEALTH AND SAFETY FROM HAND-ARM VIBRATION Regulatio 1 Regulatio 1 Citatio ad commecemet These Regulatios may be cited as the Cotrol of Vibratio at Work Regulatios 2005 ad shall come ito force o 6th July Regulatio Regulatio 2 Iterpretatio (1) I these Regulatios - daily exposure meas the quatity of mechaical vibratio to which a worker is exposed durig a workig day, ormalised to a 8-hour referece period, which takes accout of the magitude ad duratio of the vibratio; emergecy services iclude - (a) (b) police, fire, rescue ad ambulace services; Her Majesty s Coastguard; eforcig authority meas the or local authority, determied i accordace with the provisios of the Health ad Safety (Eforcig Authority) Regulatios 1998; (a) exposure actio value meas the level of daily exposure set out i regulatio 4 for ay worker which, if reached or exceeded, requires specified actio to be take to reduce risk; exposure limit value meas the level of daily exposure set out i regulatio 4 for ay worker which must ot be exceeded, save as set out i regulatio 6(5); the meas the Health ad Safety ; had-arm vibratio meas mechaical vibratio which is trasmitted ito the hads ad arms durig a work activity; health surveillace meas assessmet of the state of health of a employee, as related to exposure to vibratio; mechaical vibratio meas vibratio occurrig i a piece of machiery or equipmet or i a vehicle as a result of its operatio; risk assessmet meas the assessmet of risk required by regulatio 5; whole-body vibratio meas mechaical vibratio which is trasmitted ito the body, whe seated or stadig, through the supportig surface, durig a work activity or as described i regulatio 5(3)(f); ad 2 (a) SI 1998/494, as ameded by SI 1999/2024, SI 1999/3232, SI 2002/2675 ad SI 2004/3168. Had-arm vibratio Page 7 of 135

8 Health ad Safety Regulatio 2 workig day meas a daily workig period, irrespective of the time of day whe it begis or eds, ad of whether it begis or eds o the same caledar day. (2) I these Regulatios, a referece to a employee beig exposed to vibratio is a referece to the exposure of that employee to mechaical vibratio arisig out of or i coectio with his work. Regulatio Regulatio 3 Applicatio ad trasitioal provisios (1) These Regulatios shall have effect with a view to protectig persos agaist risk to their health ad safety arisig from exposure to vibratio at work. (2) Subject to paragraph (3), regulatio 6(4) shall ot apply util 6th July 2010 where work equipmet is used which (a) (b) was first provided to employees prior to 6th July 2007 by ay employer; ad does ot permit compliace with the exposure limit values, but i usig such equipmet the employer shall take ito accout the latest techical advaces ad the orgaisatioal measures take i accordace with regulatio 6(2). (3) For the agriculture ad forestry sectors, regulatio 6(4) shall ot apply to whole-body vibratio util 6th July 2014 i respect of work equipmet which (a) (b) was first provided to employees prior to 6th July 2007 by ay employer; ad does ot permit compliace with the exposure limit value for whole-body vibratio but i usig such equipmet the employer shall take ito accout the latest techical advaces ad the orgaisatioal measures take i accordace with regulatio 6(2). (4) Where a duty is placed by these Regulatios o a employer i respect of his employees, he shall, so far as is reasoably practicable, be uder a like duty i respect of ay other perso, whether at work or ot, who may be affected by the work carried out by the employer except that the duties of the employer (a) (b) uder regulatio 7 (health surveillace) shall ot exted to persos who are ot his employees; ad uder regulatio 8 (iformatio, istructio ad traiig) shall ot exted to persos who are ot his employees, uless those persos are o the premises where the work is beig carried out. (5) These Regulatios shall apply to a self-employed perso as they apply to a employer ad a employee ad as if that self-employed perso were both a employer ad a employee, except that regulatio 7 shall ot apply to a selfemployed perso. 3 (6) These Regulatios shall ot apply to the master or crew of a ship or to the employer of such persos i respect of the ormal shipboard activities of a ship s crew which are carried out solely by the crew uder the directio of the master, ad for the purposes of this paragraph ship icludes every descriptio of vessel used i avigatio, other tha a ship formig part of Her Majesty s Navy. Had-arm vibratio Page 8 of 135

9 Health ad Safety Guidace Purpose 10 The Vibratio Regulatios are desiged to protect agaist risks to both health ad safety from had-arm vibratio, ie the risk of HAVS ad carpal tuel sydrome i those exposed, ad situatios where vibratio may affect the ability to safely hadle cotrols or read idicators, or where it may iterfere with the stability or security of structures. Trasitioal period 11 Regulatio 3(2) defers the applicatio of the exposure limit value (ELV) (see regulatios 4(1) ad 6(4)) util 6 July 2010 while it is ot reasoably practicable to comply with it, if you are usig equipmet which was already i use before 6 July The trasitioal period applies oly to the exposure limit value. The other requiremets of the Regulatios came ito force from 6 July 2005 ad must be complied with from that date. 13 The purpose of the trasitioal period is: (a) (b) to allow a reasoable period of time for you to itroduce ew workig methods, desigs of equipmet etc, which elimiate or reduce vibratio exposure; to allow time for equipmet with reduced vibratio emissio to be developed ad itroduced. 14 Exposures above the exposure limit value arisig from use of ay equipmet supplied to workers before 6 July 2007 (ie your ow existig equipmet, or secod-had equipmet, or equipmet from hire compaies) may cotiue right up to 6 July 2010, but oly if it is ot reasoably practicable to purchase or hire ewer, lower-vibratio tools or to itroduce alterative workig methods which would reduce exposures below the exposure limit value. You will eed to keep the availability of lower-vibratio equipmet or work methods uder regular review. If it becomes reasoably practicable for you to itroduce lower-vibratio equipmet or work methods before 6 July 2010, the you must do so. 15 It is importat to remember that the trasitioal period is ot a licece to do othig at all. Eve if you caot reduce exposures below the exposure limit value you must reduce them to as low a level as is reasoably practicable (see regulatio 6(2)) ad pla your loger-term strategy for gettig exposures below the limit value by July Ay equipmet first brought ito use after July 2007, whether bought or hired, will eed to be used i a way that will keep vibratio exposure below the exposure limit value. So you will eed to choose ad maage the use of such equipmet carefully to esure the exposure limit value is ot exceeded The followig two examples may help you decide if use of the trasitioal period would be appropriate to your work activities. Had-arm vibratio Page 9 of 135

10 Health ad Safety Guidace Example 1 I 2005, a compay used a cocrete breaker ad a disc cutter purchased i 2000 for work which exposed oe of its employees to aroud 7-8 m/s 2 A(8) each day (ie above the ew exposure limit value of 5 m/s 2 A(8)). The compay cosidered what could be doe to reduce exposure below the exposure limit value ad decided that o suitable tools with lower vibratio were, at that time, available or was there ay suitable alterative method for gettig the work doe without usig the tools. However, it cocluded that the time spet by the employee usig the breaker could be reduced by itroducig job rotatio ad makig use of a excavator-mouted breaker for some of the work. This actio reduced the daily exposure to aroud 6 m/s 2 A(8). This exposure remaied above the exposure limit value but give that there was othig else reasoably practicable to do to reduce it further, the compay decided to cotiue to use the tools i this way at least util 2010 because of the trasitioal period. However, i 2008, the compay idetified a ew lower-vibratio breaker that had just come oto the market which would help reduce the daily exposure of the worker to 3 m/s 2 A(8). The ew breaker proved i trials to be suitable ad effective for the work the compay does. The old model had bee used for eight years ad had a potetial life of a further 12 years but the cost of replacig it early was ot regarded as grossly disproportioate. I these circumstaces the compay could o loger justify cotiued use of the old breaker uder the trasitioal period arragemets. It purchased the lowervibratio breaker ad was able to comply with the exposure limit value from this date (2008). Example 2 A quarryig compay used state-of-the-art rock drills which exposed employees to aroud 9 m/s 2 A(8) (ie above the ew exposure limit value of 5 m/s 2 A(8)). The itroductio of job rotatio allowed it to reduce exposure time resultig i daily exposures of 6 m/s 2 A(8). Although this exposure exceeded the exposure limit value, the compay was ot able to fid a alterative method to do the work ad is able to cotiue to use the equipmet util the trasitioal period eds i The trasitioal period allows some time to develop a alterative way of workig. People who are ot your employees 17 Sometimes your activities may cause employees of other employers, or oemployees, to be exposed to vibratio, for example where sub-cotractors use vibratig equipmet for work you specify ad cotrol, or where voluteers are egaged alogside workers. Regulatio 3(4) applies to all the employers ivolved ad each will have a resposibility: (a) (b) to their ow employees; ad so far as is reasoably practicable, to ayoe else who is exposed to vibratio i work activities uder their cotrol This resposibility applies to all the duties uder these Regulatios except health surveillace (regulatio 7) for ayoe other tha their ow employees, while iformatio, istructio ad traiig (regulatio 8) eed oly be give to the employees of others i relatio to the specific job they are udertakig for you. Had-arm vibratio Page 10 of 135

11 Health ad Safety Guidace 19 Employers will eed to exchage iformatio ad collaborate whe workig o joit projects to esure they fulfil their duties without cofusio or uecessary duplicatio. O multi-cotractor sites they will usually eed to agree o who is to co-ordiate actio to comply with health ad safety requiremets; this will ormally be the perso i overall cotrol of the work. Where cotractors ad subcotractors are ivolved it is usually best for resposibilities to be set out i the cotractual arragemets. For costructio projects, the pricipal cotractor uder the Costructio (Desig ad Maagemet) Regulatios should esure co-operatio betwee all cotractors through the use of pre-teder health ad safety plas, method statemets etc. The self-employed 20 Regulatio 3(5) defies both employer ad employee to iclude self-employed people. So if you are self-employed you will eed to take actio as set out i the Vibratio Regulatios to protect yourself from vibratio risks. Although selfemployed people are ot required to provide themselves with health surveillace i accordace with regulatio 7, it is evertheless recommeded that they follow the guidace i Part 5 Health surveillace for HAVS ad, where appropriate, cosult a occupatioal health service provider. This will esure that HAVS symptoms are idetified ad will allow risk cotrols to be reviewed ad revised as ecessary. Traiees 21 The Health ad Safety (Traiig for Employmet) Regulatios require traiees o relevat work traiig schemes i the workplace (but ot those o courses at educatioal establishmets such as uiversities or schools) to be treated as the employee of the perso whose udertakig is providig the traiig. Your duties towards traiees will iclude all the requiremets of these Regulatios icludig assessmet ad cotrol of risks, provisio of health surveillace, provisio of iformatio ad traiig ad cosideratio of whether ay traiees might be at particular risk. Applicatio to ships, other vessels ad aircraft 22 The Cotrol of Vibratio at Work Regulatios 2005 apply to work takig place i ships, boats, ad other vessels operated by Her Majesty s Navy ad to work o ay vessel carried out alogside shore workers whe it is moored or i dock. Regulatio 3(6) states that these Regulatios do ot apply to the master ad crew of a ship. This refers to work doe by the crew uder the cotrol of the ship s master whe the ship is uder way or work doe by them i harbour whe o shore-based workers are ivolved. The Maritime ad Coastguard Agecy has itroduced the Merchat Shippig ad Fishig Vessels (Cotrol of Vibratio at Work) Regulatios 2007 (SI 2007/3077) which apply to vessels i UK waters ad to UK-registered vessels i iteratioal waters The Vibratio Regulatios apply to aircraft i flight over British soil. However, the Regulatios are ot iteded to iterfere with the flight safety of aircraft. Ay proposals to alter a aircraft to comply with the Regulatios should be agreed with the Civil Aviatio Authority (CAA). Had-arm vibratio Page 11 of 135

12 Health ad Safety Regulatio Regulatio 4 Exposure limit values ad actio values (1) For had-arm vibratio (a) (b) the daily exposure limit value is 5 m/s 2 A(8); the daily exposure actio value is 2.5 m/s 2 A(8), ad daily exposure shall be ascertaied o the basis set out i Schedule 1 Part I. (2) For whole-body vibratio (a) (b) the daily exposure limit value is 1.15 m/s 2 A(8); the daily exposure actio value is 0.5 m/s 2 A(8), 4 ad daily exposure shall be ascertaied o the basis set out i Schedule 2 Part I. Guidace 4 24 The daily exposure limit value (ELV) is the maximum amout of vibratio a employee may be exposed to o ay sigle day (see regulatio 6(4)). The daily exposure actio value (EAV) is the level of daily exposure to vibratio above which you are required to take certai actios to reduce exposure (see regulatios 6(2), 7(1)(b) ad 8(1)(b)). 25 Guidace o how to determie employees daily exposure for compariso with the exposure values is give i Part 2. Regulatio Regulatio 5 Assessmet of the risk to health created by vibratio at the workplace (1) A employer who carries out work which is liable to expose ay of his employees to risk from vibratio shall make a suitable ad sufficiet assessmet of the risk created by that work to the health ad safety of those employees ad the risk assessmet shall idetify the measures that eed to be take to meet the requiremets of these Regulatios. (2) I coductig the risk assessmet, the employer shall assess daily exposure to vibratio by meas of (a) (b) (c) observatio of specific workig practices; referece to relevat iformatio o the probable magitude of the vibratio correspodig to the equipmet used i the particular workig coditios; ad if ecessary, measuremet of the magitude of vibratio to which his employees are liable to be exposed, ad the employer shall assess whether ay employees are likely to be exposed to vibratio at or above a exposure actio value or above a exposure limit value. (3) The risk assessmet shall iclude cosideratio of 5 (a) (b) (c) the magitude, type ad duratio of exposure, icludig ay exposure to itermittet vibratio or repeated shocks; the effects of exposure to vibratio o employees whose health is at particular risk from such exposure; ay effects of vibratio o the workplace ad work equipmet, icludig the proper hadlig of cotrols, the readig of idicators, the stability of Had-arm vibratio Page 12 of 135

13 Health ad Safety Regulatio (d) (e) (f) (g) (h) structures ad the security of joits; ay iformatio provided by the maufacturers of work equipmet; the availability of replacemet equipmet desiged to reduce exposure to vibratio; ay extesio of exposure at the workplace to whole-body vibratio beyod ormal workig hours, icludig exposure i rest facilities supervised by the employer; specific workig coditios such as low temperatures; ad appropriate iformatio obtaied from health surveillace icludig, where possible, published iformatio. (4) The risk assessmet shall be reviewed regularly, ad forthwith if (a) (b) there is reaso to suspect that the risk assessmet is o loger valid; or there has bee a sigificat chage i the work to which the assessmet relates, ad where, as a result of the review, chages to the risk assessmet are required, those chages shall be made. (5) The employer shall record 5 (a) (b) the sigificat fidigs of the risk assessmet as soo as is practicable after the risk assessmet is made or chaged; ad the measures which he has take ad which he iteds to take to meet the requiremets of regulatios 6 ad 8. Guidace Risk assessmet 26 The purpose of the assessmet is to eable you to make a valid decisio about the measures ecessary to prevet or adequately cotrol the exposure of your employees to HAV. It eables you to demostrate readily to others who may have a iterest, eg employees, safety represetatives ad eforcemet authorities that you have from the earliest opportuity cosidered: (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) all the factors related to the risk; the practicability of prevetig exposure; the steps which eed to be take to achieve ad maitai adequate cotrol of exposure where prevetio is ot reasoably practicable; the eed for health surveillace; how ad whe to put the steps you have decided o ito actio. 5 Guidace 27 See Part 2 for more detailed guidace o risk assessmet. Paragraphs explai what the various terms mea i regulatio 5 (italicised ad i iverted commas) ad their effects o the risk assessmet. A suitable ad sufficiet assessmet 28 A assessmet will be suitable ad sufficiet if it idetifies: 5(1) (a) (b) (c) (d) where there may be a risk from HAV; a soudly based estimate of your employees exposures ad a compariso with the exposure actio value ad exposure limit value; the available risk cotrols; the idetificatio of those idividuals who may be more at risk; Had-arm vibratio Page 13 of 135

14 Health ad Safety Guidace (e) (f) the steps you pla to take to cotrol ad moitor those risks; a record of the assessmet. 29 Your exposure estimate will oly be soudly based if it uses data which ca be judged to be reasoably represetative of your work process or, where you have made measuremets, they have bee doe competetly. I most cases where the assessmet evidece suggests that exposure is ulikely to exceed the exposure actio value it is sufficiet to record that fact, though you are still required to reduce risk to as low a level as reasoably practicable. Some employees, eg those with existig health problems, may be at risk from exposures below the exposure actio value ad eed to be protected by additioal cotrol measures. If exposure is likely to be above the exposure actio value, a more systematic assessmet may be required. Alteratively, you may decide to use the broad bechmarks of exposure provided i HSE guidace ad say this i your risk assessmet (see Part 2 for further advice). The measures that eed to be take to meet the requiremets of these Regulatios 5(1) Guidace 30 Whe you have idetified the work processes which expose your employees to vibratio you should decide what ca be doe to elimiate or reduce the risks, ad whe to take actio. If the exposure actio value is likely to be exceeded you must establish a programme of formal risk-cotrol measures (regulatio 6(2)) icludig a timetable for actio. Further guidace o what to do is give i Parts 2 ad 3. Observatio of specific workig practices 31 To assess the daily exposure to vibratio of a worker (or a group of workers doig similar work) it is ecessary to kow: (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) which tasks expose employees to vibratio; which employees are exposed; what equipmet they use; what they use it for; ad the total time they are i cotact with the equipmet while it is operatig. 5(2)(a) Guidace 32 These details ca be obtaied by observig the employee. The perso eed ot be observed for a complete day, but for a period or periods log eough to provide a represetative sample of a typical or average day s exposure to vibratio. Observatio of the work will geerally produce a much more accurate idicatio of equipmet usage time tha askig the employee to make a estimate. Work patters also eed careful cosideratio. For example some workers may oly use vibratig tools for certai periods i a day or week. Typical usage patters should be established as these will be a importat factor i calculatig a perso s likely vibratio exposure. Parts 2 ad 6 give more details of how to carry out observatio of workig practices. Relevat iformatio o the probable magitude of the vibratio 33 To be relevat, the vibratio iformatio you use to do your vibratio assessmet eeds to match as closely as possible the likely vibratio performace of the equipmet you pla to use i the way you pla to use it. There are several possible sources of suitable iformatio o vibratio levels. These iclude: 5(2)(b) (a) (b) (c) vibratio emissio values declared i the equipmet hadbook; additioal iformatio from the equipmet supplier; iteret databases; Had-arm vibratio Page 14 of 135

15 Health ad Safety Guidace (d) (e) (f) (g) (h) research orgaisatios; vibratio cosultacies; HSE s website; trade associatios; measuremets made i your ow workplace. 5(2)(b) Guidace 34 However, it is importat to check that the vibratio data is reasoably represetative of your equipmet as used i your work activities. Guidace o how to check the suitability of vibratio emissio data is i Parts 2 ad 4. If ecessary, measuremet of the magitude of vibratio 35 This makes clear that measuremet may sometimes be required, but that it may ot be ecessary if suitable vibratio data are available. If your estimate leaves you ucertai about whether vibratio exposures are likely to be above or below the exposure actio value, you could simply assume that the exposure actio value is exceeded ad proceed with your programme of cotrol measures ad health surveillace (see regulatios 6, 7 ad 8). If you decide to arrage for measuremets to be take, it may be possible to collaborate with others, eg your trade associatio, to share the costs of obtaiig relevat vibratio exposure data. 36 You may also eed to arrage for measuremets to be doe whe you require cofirmatio that your cotrol actios have reduced exposure, particularly if you eed to show that you have brought them below the exposure limit value. However, as log as you ca clearly demostrate that you have itroduced effective cotrols so far as is reasoably practicable which, based o suitable available vibratio data, ca reasoably be expected to keep exposures below the exposure limit value, it may ot be ecessary to measure. 5(2)(c) Guidace 5(3)(a) Guidace 37 Measuremet of vibratio requires specific competecy, icludig traiig i how to use specialised measurig equipmet, ad a good uderstadig of these Regulatios ad the factors which ca lead to iaccurate ad misleadig measuremet. You could arrage for you or oe of your staff to udergo traiig i HAV measuremet ad assessmet, or you could employ a cotractor with suitable qualificatios ad/or experiece ad a uderstadig of these Regulatios (see How to obtai competet advice ad assistace i Part 3 paragraphs ) to do the measuremet. Magitude, type ad duratio of exposure 38 The factors which gover a perso s daily vibratio exposure are the magitude (level) of vibratio ad the legth of time the perso is exposed to it. The greater the magitude ad/or the loger the duratio of exposure, the greater the perso s vibratio exposure will be. Other characteristics of the vibratio, such as the frequecy, may also affect the risk. These are depedet o how the equipmet operates, eg hammer actio tools ad rotary actio tools have very differet vibratio characteristics. The patter of work may also be relevat, eg itermittet exposures may idicate a lower risk tha a log, uiterrupted exposure. Employees whose health is at particular risk 39 Uder regulatio 6(6) the measures to be take must be adapted to take ito accout employees who are particularly sesitive to vibratio. These iclude: 5(3)(b) (a) (b) employees with existig HAVS or other diseases of the hads, arms, wrists or shoulders; employees with diseases affectig blood circulatio, eg diabetes, or erve Had-arm vibratio Page 15 of 135

16 Health ad Safety Guidace 5(3)(b) Guidace 5(3)(c) Guidace 5(3)(d) Guidace 5(3)(e) Guidace 5(3)(g) Guidace 5(3)(h) disorders affectig the hads or arms, eg carpal tuel sydrome. 40 More comprehesive iformatio about the factors affectig sesitivity is i Part 7 which cotais guidace for occupatioal health professioals. Ay effects of vibratio o the workplace ad work equipmet 41 Vibratio from work equipmet ca cause damage to other workplace equipmet or structures which may create safety risks, eg the risk of materials or equipmet fallig from overhead platforms or joits movig apart. Vibratio may also affect people s ability to read istrumets or idicators or to hadle cotrols. You should idetify ay such risks ad take actio to cotrol them. Iformatio provided by the maufacturers of work equipmet 42 You should ask the suppliers of equipmet kow to vibrate i use for iformatio o the vibratio emissio of their product ad how ay residual risks should be maaged. Maufacturers of machiery are required by the Supply of Machiery (Safety) Regulatios 1992 (as ameded) 6 to desig ad costruct their products to miimise vibratio risks ad to provide their customers with iformatio o vibratio emissios from their equipmet, o safe use of the equipmet ad to war of residual risks. Part 4 provides more detail o the legal duties of equipmet maufacturers, importers ad suppliers ad o the iterpretatio of the iformatio provided. The availability of replacemet equipmet desiged to reduce exposure to vibratio 43 For may types of equipmet there will be models available with reduced vibratio emissio, eg chaisaws with ati-vibratio suspeded hadles. Whe buyig, hirig or replacig equipmet you should take these factors ito accout so far as is reasoably practicable. However, it is also importat to select equipmet that is suitable for the work you are goig to do ad this may ot be the oe with the lowest vibratio emissio. Your equipmet supplier(s) should be able to advise you. You should regularly review the tools i use to check if there are ay suitable ew reduced-vibratio tools which would reduce the vibratio exposure for a particular operatio/task. It will help your log-term maagemet of work equipmet if you itroduce a clearly defied purchasig policy for selectio of suitable lower-vibratio equipmet. Specific workig coditios such as low temperatures 44 Workig i cold ad/or wet coditios will ted to trigger attacks of vibratio white figer i people who have the disease (see paragraphs ). You should make sure that employees work i these coditios oly whe uavoidable ad that they are provided with suitable protective clothig which will allow them to keep warm ad dry. Appropriate iformatio obtaied from health surveillace 45 If you already have a health surveillace programme for HAVS the results (aoymised ad grouped to protect medical-i-cofidece iformatio about idividual workers) should idicate whether ew cases of vibratio-related disease have appeared or whether existig cases have worseed. This should help you to decide whether the risk is beig cotrolled effectively or whether you eed to do more to cotrol it. Published research which icludes the effects o the health of workers who have used vibratig equipmet similar to that used by your employees may also help you to assess the risk. Had-arm vibratio Page 16 of 135

17 Health ad Safety Guidace The risk assessmet shall be reviewed regularly 46 The risk assessmet should be reviewed whe you idetify ay chages i availability or suitability of equipmet or i work processes likely to offer reduced vibratio exposure, or if you have ay doubt about the effectiveess of the cotrols implemeted. I ay case, you should review your risk assessmet at least every three years, but you may wish to review it sooer if: 5(4) (a) (b) (c) the level of risk is high; there is doubt that your cotrol measures remai effective; there is the likelihood of better work methods or equipmet becomig available. Guidace Record... the sigificat fidigs of the risk assessmet 47 Your record of the risk assessmet ca be kept i ay coveiet form. The record must cotai iformatio o the sigificat fidigs of the assessmet ad the measures take (or plaed). The record should iclude: 5(5) (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f) (g) the tasks assessed; the risk of HAVS for your employees; the likelihood of the exposure actio ad limit values beig exceeded; the measures you have put i place to cotrol ad maage the risk; a programme of measures with timescales, for ay future cotrols you pla to itroduce; the appropriate iformatio, istructio ad traiig to be provided to employees; the scheme of health surveillace i use or plaed. Regulatio Regulatio 6 Elimiatio or cotrol of exposure to vibratio at the workplace (1) The employer shall esure that risk from the exposure of his employees to vibratio is either elimiated at source or, where this is ot reasoably practicable, reduced to as low a level as is reasoably practicable. (2) Where it is ot reasoably practicable to elimiate risk at source pursuat to paragraph (1) ad a exposure actio value is likely to be reached or exceeded, the employer shall reduce exposure to as low a level as is reasoably practicable by establishig ad implemetig a programme of orgaisatioal ad techical measures which is appropriate to the activity. (3) The measures take by the employer i compliace with paragraphs (1) ad (2) shall be based o the geeral priciples of prevetio set out i Schedule 1 to the Maagemet of Health ad Safety at Work Regulatios 1999 (a) ad shall iclude cosideratio of (a) (b) (c) other workig methods which elimiate or reduce exposure to vibratio; choice of work equipmet of appropriate ergoomic desig which, takig accout of the work to be doe, produces the least possible vibratio; the provisio of auxiliary equipmet which reduces the risk of ijuries caused by vibratio; 6 (a) SI 1999/3242, as ameded by SI 2003/2457. Had-arm vibratio Page 17 of 135

18 Health ad Safety Regulatio (d) (e) (f) (g) (h) (i) appropriate maiteace programmes for work equipmet, the workplace ad workplace systems; the desig ad layout of workplaces, work statios ad rest facilities; suitable ad sufficiet iformatio ad traiig for employees, such that work equipmet may be used correctly ad safely, i order to miimise their exposure to vibratio; limitatio of the duratio ad magitude of exposure to vibratio; appropriate work schedules with adequate rest periods; ad the provisio of clothig to protect employees from cold ad damp. (4) Subject to regulatio 3(2) ad (3) ad paragraph (5), the employer shall (a) esure that his employees are ot exposed to vibratio above a exposure limit value; or (b) if a exposure limit value is exceeded, he shall forthwith (i) (ii) (iii) reduce exposure to vibratio to below the limit value; idetify the reaso for that limit beig exceeded; ad modify the measures take i accordace with paragraphs (1) ad (2) to prevet it beig exceeded agai. (5) Paragraph (4) shall ot apply where the exposure of a employee to vibratio is usually below the exposure actio value but varies markedly from time to time ad may occasioally exceed the exposure limit value, provided that (a) (b) (c) (d) ay exposure to vibratio averaged over oe week is less tha the exposure limit value; there is evidece to show that the risk from the actual patter of exposure is less tha the correspodig risk from costat exposure at the exposure limit value; risk is reduced to as low a level as is reasoably practicable, takig ito accout the special circumstaces; ad the employees cocered are subject to icreased health surveillace, where such surveillace is appropriate withi the meaig of regulatio 7(2), ad exposure withi the meaig of this paragraph shall be ascertaied o the basis set out i Schedule 1 Part II for had-arm vibratio ad Schedule 2 Part II for whole-body vibratio. 6 Guidace (6) The employer shall adapt ay measure take i compliace with the requiremets of this regulatio to take accout of ay employee or group of employees whose health is likely to be particularly at risk from vibratio. Cotrol of exposure 48 This regulatio meas you have to take actio to elimiate the risks from vibratio exposure completely wherever it is reasoably practicable to do so (regulatio 6(1)). Paragraphs explai what some of the terms i regulatio 6 mea. You will eed to cosider whether there are alterative processes, better equipmet ad/or better workig methods which would largely elimiate these risks If it is ot reasoably practicable to elimiate the risks completely, you should reduce them to as low a level as is reasoably practicable (regulatio 6(1)). It is importat to ote that exposures below the exposure actio value are ot risk free, so actio should ot stop at this level of exposure if further reductios ca be achieved at a reasoable cost. You should: Had-arm vibratio Page 18 of 135

19 Health ad Safety Guidace 6 (a) (b) itroduce a formal programme of cotrol measures wheever a employee s daily exposure to vibratio is likely to exceed the exposure actio value (regulatio 6(2)) (see paragraphs ad Parts 2 ad 3); ot expose ayoe above the exposure limit value (regulatio 6(4)) (see paragraphs 64-65). Guidace Establishig ad implemetig a programme of orgaisatioal ad techical measures 50 The actio pla produced durig your vibratio risk assessmet should describe a programme of cotrol measures ad your plas to put it ito actio with realistic timescales. Such a programme is required whe your vibratio assessmet shows that ay of your employees are likely to be exposed above the exposure actio value. 51 The programme of cotrol measures should be devised to reduce the risks from vibratio exposure to as low a level as is reasoably practicable. The actios you take will deped o the particular work activities ad processes ad the possibilities for cotrol. Detailed guidace o selectig ad itroducig suitable cotrols is i Part 3. 6(2) Guidace 52 Some cotrols may take time to put i place, particularly where equipmet must be replaced or ew idustrial processes developed. The programme should also state clearly which maagers, supervisors ad employees have resposibility for deliverig the various parts of the programme ad by whe. It should also iclude provisios for testig the effectiveess of cotrol measures. The geeral priciples of prevetio 53 Schedule 1 of the Maagemet of Health ad Safety at Work Regulatios lists the geeral priciples of prevetio: (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f) (g) (h) (i) avoidig risks; evaluatig the risks which caot be avoided; combatig the risks at source; adaptig the work to the idividual, especially regardig the desig of workplaces, the choice of work equipmet ad the choice of workig ad productio methods, with a view, i particular, to alleviatig mootoous work ad work at a predetermied work-rate ad to reducig their effect o health; adaptig to techical progress; replacig the dagerous by the o-dagerous or the less dagerous; developig a coheret overall prevetio policy which covers techology, orgaisatio of work, workig coditios, social relatioships ad the ifluece of factors relatig to the workig eviromet; givig collective protective measures priority over idividual protective measures; ad givig appropriate istructios to employees. 6(3) Guidace 6(3)(a) 54 The list of possible cotrol measures i regulatio 6(3) is specific to vibratio but follows similar priciples. Other workig methods which elimiate or reduce exposure 55 Other methods of work which ca elimiate or reduce exposure to vibratio iclude automatio or mechaisatio of work previously doe with had-operated or had-fed machies. For example, a had-operated peumatic road breaker might be replaced i some work activities by a hydraulic pick mouted o a Had-arm vibratio Page 19 of 135

20 Health ad Safety Guidace 6(3)(a) Guidace 6(3)(b) Guidace 6(3)(c) Guidace 6(3)(d) Guidace 6(3)(e) Guidace 6(3)(f) excavator arm, or a stad-mouted tamper whe compactig sad-filled moulds, rather tha a had-held tamper. Choice of work equipmet of appropriate ergoomic desig 56 The choice of work equipmet ca be a importat meas of reducig exposure to vibratio. Some ewer desigs of power tool ca emit sigificatly lower levels of vibratio tha traditioal types as well as beig easy to use, eg lighter weight ad ergoomically desiged to avoid strai o the user s hads ad arms. However, the equipmet selected must be suitable for the job ad the efficiecy of the tool should be take ito accout whe evaluatig the likely reductio i exposure from chagig a tool. The provisio of auxiliary equipmet 57 Auxiliary equipmet which ca affect the risk of vibratio ijuries icludes cosumables for power tools such as balaced gridig wheels, drills ad chisels. The maufacturer ca usually advise o selectio of the correct equipmet for the job. Ay equipmet which modifies a machie, such as a ati-vibratio hadle produced by a third party, should ot be used uless its use is edorsed by the machie maufacturer. Appropriate maiteace programmes 58 Maiteace of machiery, udertake i accordace with the maufacturer s recommedatios, should prevet uecessarily high vibratio emissios resultig from wor parts, loose compoets etc. Operators should be istructed to report ay uusually high vibratio levels ad to sharpe or replace cosumables (gridig wheels, drills, chisels etc) whe ecessary. The desig ad layout of workplaces 59 The desig ad layout of the workplace ca affect the risks associated with vibratio exposure. If your employees have to grip the tool tightly, apply large feed forces or support the weight of a heavy machie, they are likely to icrease the vibratio eergy absorbed by the hads. Ergoomic priciples i the desig of the tools ad their istallatio i the workplace (eg eablig eutral postures for tool operators or usig balacers to support the weight of heavy griders) ca improve workig coditios ad productivity as well as reducig vibratio risks. Suitable ad sufficiet iformatio ad traiig for employees 60 See regulatio 8 for guidace o iformatio ad traiig for employees. Limitatio of the duratio ad magitude of exposure 61 Whe all reasoably practicable steps have bee take to reduce the vibratio magitude, the fial resort for compliace with the exposure limit value is to limit the duratio of exposure. The exposure poits systems described i Part 2 (paragraphs ), ca be a useful maagemet tool for this purpose. Also see Part 3 for more details. Guidace 6(3)(h) Appropriate work schedules with adequate rest periods 62 The scietific basis for recommedig appropriate work schedules ad breaks from vibratio is icomplete. However, it is good practice to schedule short periods of exposure with frequet breaks rather tha have log uiterrupted vibratio exposures. Had-arm vibratio Page 20 of 135

21 Health ad Safety Guidace 6(3)(i) Guidace Protect employees from cold ad damp 63 Esure your employees are able to keep warm ad dry as this will help to maitai good blood circulatio ad reduce the likelihood of vascular symptoms (figer blachig). Esure... employees are ot exposed... above the exposure limit value 64 You must ot permit a employee to be exposed above the exposure limit value. Your programme of measures must be desiged to prevet this level of exposure. If you fid that the exposure limit value is beig exceeded, you must immediately take actio to reduce exposure ad idetify the reaso for the overexposure. 6(4) Guidace 65 You should ot cosider reductio below the exposure limit value to be a target you must reduce exposure as low as you reasoably ca, ad below the exposure actio value if this is reasoably practicable (risks are still sigificat for exposures betwee the two values ad some people will still be at risk if exposed at the actio value). This may mea reducig the time for which the employee uses the equipmet each day, eg spreadig that particular task over several days or sharig it betwee two or more employees. See paragraphs for iformatio o the trasitioal period for the exposure limit value. Exposure averaged over oe week 66 Weekly averagig of daily exposure allows for occasioal daily exposures above the exposure limit value. However, there are striget coditios for its use. Regulatios 6(1) ad 6(2) still apply ad it will ofte be reasoably practicable to spread the exposure over more tha oe day to keep each day s exposure below the exposure limit value. Also, to qualify for weekly averagig, exposures must be usually (ie o most days) below the exposure actio value. Where weekly averagig is used, you should also icrease the health surveillace of employees. Weekly averagig is most likely to apply i cases of emergecy work, eg ivolvig the rescue services or itesive urget work usig chaisaws to clear falle trees followig a storm etc. 6(5) Guidace 6(6) 67 The weekly averagig scheme would permit a maximum exposure o ay oe day of 11 m/s 2 A(8) whe exposure o the remaiig days of the week is zero, or 10 m/s 2 A(8) whe exposure o each of the other four days of the week is just below 2.5 m/s 2 A(8) the exposure actio value. Employees... likely to be particularly at risk from vibratio 68 Paragraph 39 describes the employees i this category. You will eed to make special efforts to restrict exposure for such idividuals, ad a icreased level of health surveillace may also be appropriate. Regulatio Regulatio 7 Health surveillace (1) If 7 (a) (b) the risk assessmet idicates that there is a risk to the health of his employees who are, or are liable to be, exposed to vibratio; or employees are likely to be exposed to vibratio at or above a exposure actio value, Had-arm vibratio Page 21 of 135