Foundry

Respirable crystalline silica dust – the next asbestos

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Respirable crystalline silica is created by a range of manufacturing processes. It is a particular problem in foundry practices, where green sand is used in metal moulds.

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iSmith

Envirocare welcomes bespoke technology – the iSmith

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Envirocare’s Occupational Hygiene Team is improving efficiency and working practices by embracing its new project management tool – the iSmith.

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Chris Creasey

Chris Creasey awarded prestigious qualification from the British Occupational Hygiene Society (BOHS)

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Envirocare’s Occupational Hygienist, Chris Creasey has been awarded his professional qualification by the British Occupational Hygiene Society (BOHS).

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EMF

What are Electromagnetic Fields? (EMF)

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Electric and magnetic fields occur naturally in nerves and muscles of our bodies, and in the Earth’s magnetic field. In the workplace we are concerned about Electromagnetic Fields (EMF) produced by currents and fields in electric power systems.

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Protect Hear Visit Bradford

ProtectHear visit Envirocare Bradford Office

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Safe practices regarding noise management are an imperative for today’s workforce; the number of workers with work-related hearing problems is estimated to be at 14000, using three years of data from the Labour Force Survey.

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COSHH Guidance

COSHH Essentials: General Guidance G409 ‘Exposure Measurement: Air Sampling’

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The Health and Safety Executive issued an updated guidance document which provides practical advice on when you must measure exposure to airborne substances, how to measure exposure, the substances, demonstrating control, and what should be included in the content of a consultants’ report.

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Hexavalent Chromium

Hexavalent Chromium/Chromium (VI) and REACH

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Hexavalent chromium is included in the REACH directive as it is a known human carcinogen. It is a SVHC (Substance of Very High Concern), and the waste produced from industrial processes involving it poses a serious threat to human health.

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Covid 19 and Legionella

COVID-19 and Increased Risk of Legionella

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During the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, many buildings have been left with reduced occupancy or have been closed. With reduced usage and interruption of cleaning regimes, water system stagnation is likely to occur. Stagnation offers an ideal breeding ground for legionella bacteria, increasing the likelihood of people contracting Legionnaire’s disease.  What is Legionnaires disease? Legionella is […]

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Safety = Success

Benefits of Improving Employee Safety

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Employee safety should never be overlooked or be considered any less important than profit or reputation. In fact, employee safety can help develop a higher profit and an improved reputation. By creating a safe environment for employees to work in, companies are also protecting themselves. Safety Leads to Productivity Employees that feel safe and comfortable […]

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Mild Steel Welding Fume

Enforcement Expectations for Mild Steel Welding Fume Grow Higher

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The HSE Update In February 2019, the HSE released their latest bulletin, STSU1, which details the change in enforcement expectations for all welding fume including mild steel welding fume. The bulletin comes on the back of International Agency for Research on Cancer’s (IARC) reclassification of all welding fume including mild steel as Group 1 carcinogenic […]

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Noise Assessments

Noise Assessments | How Often Should A Noise Survey Be Carried Out?

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We’ve already established a company’s obligation in terms of Noise Regulations but a question we get asked over and over again is “How often should noise assessments and noise surveys be carried out?” Unfortunately, there is no clear cut answer listed in regulation. In the Control of Noise at Work Regulations, they state that a noise risk assessment […]

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COSHH Air Sampling

Workplace Exposure Monitoring & COSHH Air Sampling

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The fifth step in the COSHH workplace exposure monitoring process happens once you have ensured all control measures are in place, and procedures have been put in to ensure that controls are used and maintained. We now need to see how effective these controls are. This can be done in two ways, the first of […]

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Noise Exposure Limits

Noise Exposure Limits | Everything You Need To Know

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Employers Basic Requirements For Noise Exposure Limits UK Noise Regulations (The Control of Noise at Work Regulations of 2005) states three stages of control regarding noise exposure limits in the workplace. These relate to the levels of exposure to noise of employees average over a specific working day or week and also the maximum noise to which […]

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COSHH Testing

COSHH Testing | Ensuring Exposure Controls are Used and Maintained

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The fourth step in the COSHH testing and COSHH risk assessment process is to ensure that all exposure controls installed are used and maintained. So You Have The Kit, Make Sure You Use It From over 20 years of experience in the field, we know that making sure the above statement is put into practice can […]

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COSHH Assessments

COSHH Assessments | How To Control Exposure

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The third step in completing your COSHH Assessments is the point at which you ask “we have the data, but what can we do to reduce and control exposure?” For this, we go back to the COSHH hierarchy of control: Elimination This is the gold standard for how to control exposure, but it is one […]

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Noise Regulations

Noise Regulations: What Are Your Obligations?

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A Brief Guide To UK Noise Regulations Noise Regulations act as a safety net due to noise being a common issue in most industrial environments we carry out work in, whether it be the hum of a production line in a printing works or the short, sharp noise of a hammer hitting a metal unit […]

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COSHH Precautions in the Workplace

COSHH Precautions In The Workplace

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The second step of the COSHH Risk Assessment process is to decide what COSHH precautions are required. For this, we look at the five W’s and an H: What? What does the process involve? What materials are involved? Does the work involve working in the breathing zone, and are the materials listed as hazardous on […]

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Removing Earwax

Removing Earwax And Tips For Clearing Blocked Ears

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Envirocare provide Workplace Hearing Tests and occupational ear examinations to companies within the UK. This article aims to help people in removing earwax or clearing blockages caused by wax. We regularly provide the below advice to anyone we encounter whose ear drums or ear canals appear to show a large build up of earwax. Here are some of the things […]

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COSHH Risk Assessments

COSHH Risk Assessment – Assessing The Risks

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What Is A COSHH Risk Assessment? A COSHH (Control of Substances Hazardous to Health) risk assessment will identify substances and activities where there may be exposure to hazardous substances, used or generated, which may damage health. It’s about taking sensible steps to prevent ill health to employees and visitors. The aim of an assessment is to know […]

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What is COSHH?

What Is COSHH? Everything You Need To Know

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We’re often asked the question ‘What is COSHH?’. So we’ve decided to create an article which aims to define COSHH in simple terms. We have supplied supporting information so that you have everything you need to know in order to run your operations safely, efficiently and profitably. So, What Is COSHH? The term COSHH stands for ‘Control of […]

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Combined Heat Power Plant

Combined Heat and Power Plant Emission Regulations

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Many Anaerobic Digestion (AD) facilities incorporate Combined Heat and Power (CHP) Plants to make efficient use of the biogas created by the process. As has previously been discussed in our What Is Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas and Anaerobic Digestion Process: From Waste To Energy articles, AD of organic material produces two outputs, namely digestate and […]

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Isocyanate Exposure in the Workplace

Isocyanate Exposure In The Workplace

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Recently, the Health and Safety Executive won a case against a paint spraying company in Derbyshire who had not complied with a number of improvement orders related to isocyanate exposure. The defendant was fined a total of £5,600 in fines and court costs. What Are Isocyanates? First, a bit of chemistry, isocyanates are organic (carbon […]

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Construction Dust Planner

Construction Dust Action Planner For COSHH

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Ensuring your company is both compliant with all the relevant health and safety legislation and COSHH Workplace Exposure Limits can be difficult and confusing. How do you know if the dust levels within your workplace are excessive? Or if your employees are wearing the correct PPE? That’s why we’ve put together this Construction Dust Action Planner to help […]

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Plastic Fume Monitoring

Plastic Fume Monitoring and Plastic Fume Exposure

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There are numerous types of plastics used throughout industry in a range of applications. Plastics are generally based on polymers, which are large strands based on multiple units of small molecules. For example, polystyrene, which looks like this: The plastic materials themselves are not an issue and from an occupational hygiene point of view, would need to […]

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