Maintenance practice must not gather dust

Manchester, UK - Dust extraction equipment is a key component of surface preparation and finishing machinery, which ensures a safe and healthy working environment for employees in the industry.

With this is mind, surface preparation company Wheelabrator Group is urging companies in the industry to maintain service procedures in order to reduce or eliminate operator exposure to dust and comply with Local Exhaust Ventilation (LEV) legislation.

In the UK, the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) regulations require companies to ensure that LEV systems are maintained in efficient working order and good repair. This includes vehicle exhaust, welding fumes and dust extraction.

Employers operating local exhaust ventilation systems are required by law to ensure they are thoroughly examined and tested at least every 14 months. They must keep the equipment in good working order, in an efficient state and in a clean condition.

However, as LEV is not defined in Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH), confusion may arise over what items of machinery are covered by the regulations.

“The breakdown of any material into a dust has the potential to be harmful to worker health, but in our industry this danger is ever present as the process forms a natural part of our day-to-day activities," said Peter Longstaff, national sales manager, Wheelabrator Plus UK.

“In practice, if a system controls, captures, or contains emissions close to source by means of an air stream and conveys the pollutant to a point where it can be safely collected or discharged, then that system should be regarded as LEV,“ he added.

Specialist knowledge of the legislation is of particular benefit in cases where there is the potential for confusion, for example when trying to determine which checks and maintenance procedures should be applied to machinery parts that serve a dual purpose.

Longstaff concluded: “Maintenance is more than just keeping a machine running. Maintaining the correct performance helps to reduce waste and cut costs, while saving time and energy. Improving the finish on products can promote customer satisfaction and safe, clean equipment must be better for operators.”