CONTROL OF SUBSTANCES HAZARDOUS TO HEALTH REGULATIONS | COSHH ASSESSORS | COSHH CONSULTANTS | COSHH RISK ASSESSMENTS | COSHH COMPLIANCE | CHEMICAL HAZARD ASSESSMENT | WORKPLACE EXPOSURE ASSESSMENT
What is COSHH? An Introduction to COSHH Assessment
The UK Law requires you to adequately control exposure to materials in the workplace that can cause ill health. This is the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH).
What hazardous substances do you handle? Are you aware of any changes to substances in terms of composition, quantity or regulations?
Who might be exposed; are their any vulnerable persons?
Are you in compliance with the requirements of COSHH?
Are you able to carry out a COSHH assessment yourself or do you need the support of a qualified COSHH Assessor?
Are you also in compliance with DSEAR in relation to COSHH?
Safety Engineering Solutions' COSHH Assessors can help you determine whether you have substances that are hazardous to health, what the workplace exposure limits (WELs) are, what the safeguards need to be considering what you do with the substances and then carry out the COSHH risk assessment for you. Our COSHH Assessors can do COSHH assessments for any industry or setting either large or small including offices, shops, factories, chemical plants, refineries, warehouses, hospitals, schools, airports, farms, catering, health & beauty, printing, minerals processing, mining, pharmaceuticals, laboratories, swimming pools, tennis clubs, etc. See below for more detail on each. Call today for a COSHH consultation.
COSHH Risk Assessment
A COSHH assessment concentrates on the hazards and risks from hazardous substances in your workplace. Remember that health hazards are not limited to substances labelled as 'hazardous'. Some harmful substances can be produced by the process you use, for example wood dust from sanding, fumes from welding, etc. Our experienced COSHH Assessors can help you develop the COSHH risk assessment.
As an employer, you must protect workers from exposure to hazardous substances, including dust, fumes, chemicals, vapours, mists, nanotechnology, gases, biological agents and germs that cause disease. Where substances have been classified as carcinogens, mutagens or asthmagens, to comply with the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH), exposure must be controlled to as low as is reasonably practicable (ALARP). We can also help with the ALARP demonstration. Safety Engineering Solutions can also represent COSHH assessments as Bowtie diagrams which is a great way to communicate hazards to workers and allow them to appreciate their role in the management of the hazards and risks.
Safety Data Sheets & COSHH
Safety Data Sheets (SDS) [also called Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS)] provide key information on chemicals that help users of those chemicals to make a chemical hazard risk assessment and support the COSHH assessment. They describe the hazards the chemical presents, and give information on handling, storage and emergency measures in case of an accident. The Safety Data Sheet will provide information on any chemical incompatibilties e.g. inadvertent mixing of bleach and acid resulting in heat and fume generation. A safety data sheet is not a risk assessment: you should use the information it contains to help make your own assessment. Are your safety data sheets in date? Do you need a COSHH Assessor? Our COSHH Assessors can help obtain and collate the safety datasheets and feed them into the COSHH risk assessment. The maintenance of safety data sheets is also import for DSEAR compliance: please visit our page on DSEAR assessment.
COSHH Action Plan | COSHH Assessment Implementation Plan
After carrying out the COSHH risk assessment, you may need an action plan to manage the risk on an ongoing basis, especially if improvements are required in managing the risk and the workplace exposure. Our COSHH Assessors will help develop the COSHH assessment implementation plan for you and, as qualified Safety Engineers, can help with the implementation of any COSHH recommendations using a pragmatic, measured approach, as consistent with ALARP principles.
Contact Safety Engineering Solutions today to find out more about COSHH Assessment
Contact Safety Engineering Solutions today on 07808 889 684 or click the link to find out how we can help you manage risk.