HSE targets Fabricated Metal Businesses

In order to make sure that employees are working in a safe environment and are protected against dangerous welding fumes and metalworking fluids, the HSE will be inspecting fabricated metal businesses in the UK between May and September 2021.

If your business falls under this category, you will receive a letter with a notification of the planned visit. You are obliged to reply to it by the end of March 2021 if you have received such notification. The visits will be conducted by an HSE inspector and will provide employers with the chance to examine their existing metalworking processes by taking control measures into account.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer classified mild steel welding fumes as an extremely dangerous carcinogen that are associated with lung cancer, kidney cancer, and a range of other diseases. As a result, all companies conducting metal fabrication will be inspected. In March 2019 the HSE updated their weld fume regulations, to require mechanical extraction of the fumes irrespective of the scale of the work, along with respiratory protective equipment for outdoor welding operations and indoor processes, where the local exhaust ventilation is not able to trap the fumes efficiently.

An LEV Test, which is a quick and affordable check of the existing fume and dust extraction system, can help you ensure that all systems are working according to regulations and are providing a safe workplace for employees. Furthermore, you may require a new extraction system or other extraction equipment like downdraught benches, extraction arms and hoods, and mobile weld fume extraction units are all ways to provide maximum safety at the workplace.

We offer a wide range of weld fume extraction solutions in stock ready for dispatch to you as soon as next day and we can also help by providing LEV testing of the systems to ensure they are compliant with regulations. Get in touch to learn more about welding fume extraction options and LEV testing, today.