PLACE COVER IMAGE HERE

Presentation to - “Thames Valley Health & Safety Group” 10th November 2015."Property management & “Statutory Inspections”. What you need to know"

page 2

Statutory inspections. What is required? How do we recognise this need? and why do we bother?What difference does it make if its statutory or not?

Nigel Haddock.

Engineering inspection control and development manager.

Before I make my somewhat hesitant start. I would like to thank the Thames Valley Health & Safety Group for inviting me to address you all today to discuss statutory inspection in property management.

It’s always a bit of a daunting prospect addressing a room full of my piers.

Especially when, the majority of whom, have a string of qualifications longer than my working title and address put together!

So before I start. Allow me introduce myself!

Before “mobile phones” or the “internet” & if you wanted to change channels on your TV you were forced to get out of your chair .My career in Engineering began. Engineering apprentice: 4 years (MOD – Royal ordinance)Professional & technological office: 3 years Production manager. Electrical manufacturing industry 2 yearsProduction Director. Electrical manufacturing industry 3 yearsEngineer surveyor (lift and crane & power press) RSA 17 yearsConsultant engineer RSA 3 yearsEngineering inspection business manager RSA 1 yearEngineering inspection underwriting manager RSA 3 yearsStrategic pricing leader engineering inspection and consultancy RSA 3 yearsEngineering inspection control and development manager Aviva 3 years42 years in engineering last 30 in Engineering inspection.

To complete the picture:Black belt 3rd Dan Goshinquay, BAGA 4 star award winner, RSA “Platinum award winner” and a Coca-cola 4 star junior skier. (junior?)Married , 2 daughters, 1 grand daughter and 2 tortoises (Bell and Trigger).

“We are all expected to be an expert“The trouble is “X” often means. “no longer” or “not current”.

or just plain wrong!

And its probably fair to say

A “Spurt” can be described as a

under pressure! drip

Risk assessment.

Vital for those of us who’s responsibility it is, in our job role, to ensure we are doing everything “reasonably practicable” in our gift, to ensure Health and safety is assessed, implemented, controlled, monitored, recorded, re-assessed and updated within the working environment.

After all, “you” are the “expert”. If your not the “competent person”, you will be certainly appointing one! In this ever growing and changing field of expectation and knowledge around Health & Safety!

You could say you are the “Farmer”. Farmer?

One definition of an expert “is”…….. “A person who know more and more, about less and ”

A think we could amend this to read A person who has to know moreAnd more about more and more.

So lets look at some items.

Less!

Health & Safety

Lifts

Water treatment – Legionella – Air quality

Lifting Plant & Machinery

Air Conditioning

Risk Management

Training

Boilers – Heaters - PSSR!

Electrical integrity

Typical property. What might we. Should we. Must we, consider?

Your property may look slightly different!

But in general. It’s a place of work. It’s a place or property you may be responsible for!

What question should you be asking yourself with regard to “Statutory inspections?”

Is it?

Is this item statutory?If so, then what frequency do I need to ensure it is inspected at?

Or should it be something different?

AND

I can then use the report of “thorough examination” as a way to assess what level of maintenance is required. Can’t I?

When you are performing your “risk assessment”

Some of the main legislation we looking at include…….LOLER. PSSR, CoSHH, EAWA/R, PAT, PUWER etc ………Lifting operations and lifting equipment regulations 1998 (LOLER)Pressure systems safety regulations 2000 (PSSR)Control of substances hazardous to health 2002(CoSHH)Electricity at work Act 1974 (EAWA) and Electricity at work regulations 1989 (EAWR)Portable appliance testing 1989 (PAT)Provision and use of work equipment regulations 1998(PUWER)And a raft of specific regulations around areas controlling known health issues

Today we are mainly looking at LOLER PSSR PUWER CoSHH. But don’t forget a few others!Air conditioning maintenance Automatic door servicingBoiler (gas, coal, oil) servicing and flue cleaningDust extractionEmergency lighting maintenanceExtract fan/canopy cleaning, testing and sterilisingFire alarm maintenanceFire fighting equipment testing (including sprinkler systems)Fire hose reel maintenanceFixed electric installation testingFume cupboard testing – portable and fixedGas installation (pipework) testingDisplay Energy CertificatesWater hygiene inspection and monitoring

Generator testingHoist testingIntruder alarms (including access, burglar alarms and CCTV) maintenance Lift maintenanceLocal Exhaust Vessel (fume extraction) testingOil line testingOil tank testingParker bath testingPortable electrical equipment testing and inspectionPressure vessel testingRadon TestingSewage/water treatment and septic tank cleaningSteam generator maintenanceSteam iron inspectionsUninterrupted electric power supply maintenance

This leads us to the question of who is the duty holder. We can see this as a “virtual person” known as a persona ficta in legal terms, such as a corporate body. Otherwise, it may be an identified human being known as a “natural person” who may take on the duty holder role by virtue of his or her job role, or as identified as such in documentation required by legislation.

In the instance of HSWA, s.4, it refers to a person “who has, to any extent, control of premises”, who may be an identified person with that specific responsibility within an organisation or a landlord. Specific legislation, mainly in the form of an Approved Code of Practice (ACOP), looks at an identified duty holder, eg obligations under ACOP L8 for the control of legionella bacteria in water systems. In other legislation, such as the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, the duty holders have been commonly interpreted as “everyone who is involved with electricity, ie working on it, working with it and/or using it, from the engineer in the main switch room to the person on the shop floor pressing the trigger on a power drill” (Electrical Safety Guide for “Duty Holders”, British Gas Business). From this definition we can see there would be a wide variety of persons within an organisation who would be duty holders, but the duty they have would be very different.

Duty holder?

Lets start looking at a few typical items we might expect to find

Duty holder

Of course I can stand here all day long showing you different items and saying this is statute under this or this is statute under that! But why is it so?

Statute? What does that mean? Is it actually relevant?

What does that mean?

Simply put. The H&SE, following guidance from the European Community, were required to put in place a framework that ensured the communities within the EEC looked at potential risk areas in the work environment and put forward a suitable system within which the UK could comply with the over arching european directives and laws.This took the UK away from previous legislation like, The offices, shops and railway premises act 1963. Construction regs. Power press regs 1967-1972. Docks regs 1988 etcThe new process was to be based upon “risk assessment” of the operation being carried out and required for any associated risk to be eliminated or reduced to an “acceptable” level. We all look at this under the umbrella of the “Management of Health and safety at work regulations 1999” and various other forms of information and guidance since. However there were known areas which were clearly “higher risk” which needed specific guidance and controls this formulated the need for “statute” requirements.

Which brings us back to the second question raised earlier.

What question should you be asking yourself with regard to “Statutory inspections?”

Is it?

Is this item statutory?If so, then what frequency do I need to ensure it is inspected at?

or

Should it be something different?

There are some simple rules we can use to help us recognise if it is “statute” .LOLER? Does it lift or lower anything ? Other than itself.

Yes. Then it is probably LOLER. But what frequency?

It lifts or lowers persons! Or it is used between the lifting hook and the load being lifted. 6 months.

It lifts or lowers goods! Then it is 12 months

NO?

Not LOLER. (Probably).

But does this mean you don’t need to inspect it?

And then there’s this little chap!

LOLER is then pretty straight forward. But what about Pressure system safety regulations?

Relevant fluid?

Steam?

250 bar litre?

Written scheme of examination?

More than ½ bar?

How do I know?

Pressure item? PSSR?Start

Does the system contain a "relevant fluid"?

No PSSR does not apply.

Yes

Is there a pressure vessel that contains steam or has a

pressure x volume product of 250 bar litre (bl) or more.

No PSSR regs 5(4), 8–10 and 14 do not

apply

Yes

Is the system mobile orsubject to a lease/hire

agreement?

Is the system mobile orsubject to a lease/hire

agreement?

No Yes No Yes

User has duties Owner has duties User has duties Owner has duties

Reg 7: Safe operating limits Reg 7: Safe operating limits

Reg 8: Written scheme of examination Reg 11: Operation

Reg 9: Examination in accordance with Reg 12: Maintenance

the written scheme Reg 15: Precautions to

Reg 10: action in case of imminant danger prevent pressurisation of certain vessels

Reg 11: Operation (users only)

Reg 12: Maintenance

Reg 14: Keeping of records

Reg 15: Precautions to prevent

pressurisation of certain vessels

(users only).

Approved code of practice & guidance for PSSR 2000.Published by H&SE 12/14

PSSR Regulation 2. Defines “Relevant Fluid”.

The term “Fluids” includes gases and liquids which are capable of exerting a vapour pressure. They do not include Hydraulic oils. Hydraulic systems, while using high pressures , do not store energy in the system and so are not covered by PSSR.

Under PSSR a relevant fluid is:• Steam at any pressure• Any fluid or mixture of fluids which is a pressure >0.5bar above

atmospheric• A gas dissolved under pressure in a solvent. (eg acetylene).

So we are looking for something that “if” it goes wrong it has a major potential to cause harm.

Pressure item? PSSR?

These items should all be subject to a written scheme and examined accordingly.

Pressure systems are likely to fall into one of the following broad categories• Above the 250 bar litre threshold, or containing steam: Subject to written scheme of examination.• Below the 250 bar litre threshold: not subject to a written scheme of examination.• Not belonging to the Company / organisation / employer and therefore the responsibility of

another.• Air conditioning is to be treated under PSSR if its total system rating exceeds 25kW

Regardless of which category a system fits into, it is still our responsibility to conduct a risk assessment to define how to install it safely, use it safely and maintain it in a safe condition.

Written scheme of examination?

What?

OK with any system which comes under PSSR is also required a written scheme of examination.

This is actually the starting point for the examination and all future examinations and is required to be produced by the “competent person” before any examination can be made.

It states the scope of the system being inspected, identifies all the parts within that system and the thorough period of examination and supplementary working examination. This is needed by the competent person before every examination and must be updated by the competent person should the system alter. (Flixborough 1974. 28 killed)

Lets answer “that” question! Well…lets ask another question!

Is this item statutory?If so, then what frequency do I need to ensure it is inspected at?

What question should you be asking yourself with regard to “Statutory inspections?”

So you have satisfied yourself that there doesn’t appear to be any requirement under LOLER, PSSR, CoSHH, PAT, etc to have this item inspected. So its not “Statute”. Job done. Thank you very much. Lets’ Party!

What about your wiring?High level view “basically” says it must be maintained in a safe condition. So when 99% of it is hidden away how do we do this?

By some form of periodic inspection and testing and possibly by the additional services of thermography.

What is the general guidance?Type of installation Routine Check Maximum period of

inspection and testing as necessary

General installations Domestic Commercial Educational Hospitals Industrial Residential Offices Shops Laboratories

- 1 year 4 months 1 year 1 year 1 year 1 year 1 year 1 year

10 years 5 years 5 years 5 years 3 years 5 years 5 years 5 years 5 years

Buildings open to the public Cinemas Church installations Leisure complex (no pool) Places of public entertainment Restaurants and hotels Theatres Public houses Village hall / community center’s

1 year 1 year 1 year 1 year 1 year 1 year 1 year 1 year

3 years 5 years 3 years 3 years 5 years 3 years 5 years 5 years

Not forgetting your CoSHH 2002 assessments and Local exhaust ventilation!

Serious consequences if it does not effectively remove the air borne contaminates!

Long term effects can be life threatening.

ProcessMost LEV require a statutory test.

Minimum frequencyAt least once every 14 months.

Processes in which blasting is carried out in or incidental to the cleaning of metal castings, in connection with their manufacture.

1 month

Processes, other than wet processes, in which metal articles (other than gold, platinum or iridium) are ground, abraded or polished using mechanical power, in any room for more than 12 hours in any week.

6 months

Processes giving off dust or fume in which non-ferrous metal castings are produced. 6 months

Jute cloth manufacture 1 month

Don’t forget your “risk assessment” & PUWER!Ask yourself !

Does it have the potential to cause harm? Who could be harmed and how? Is my maintenance suitable and sufficient? Training?

Is the maintenance regime suitable and sufficient to ensure it will be safe to use / operate?

It’s really not all about “Statute”.

You might be interested to see a couple of items which do NOT come under LOLER or PSSR which might make you ask the question.

Is my maintenance suitable and sufficient? Should I ensure this item has an independent inspection and report by a “Competent” person? Just in case!

After all. It is great to sleep easy!

Non-Stat? Potential to cause harm! It makes you think! Doesn’t it?

Without confusing the issue we need to also consider its

“primary function”. Approved code of practice

and guidance. (02/15)

Hand pallet trucks: Specifically those that have the ability to raise the forks

Often subtle change makes the difference.One is “statutory” under LOLER.The other not!

That question about using your examination report to drive your maintenance?

In a word?

NO!The health and safety executive are quite rightly most insistent that you must have a maintenance regime in place which maintains your equipment in a safe manner. This is paramount in ensuring your equipment remains safe to use and

operate.

The examination from an independent competent person should merely be a conformation of this. They “should” find nothing wrong!

How many of you receive clear reports? Every time?Is your maintenance suitable and sufficient?

I can find out what’s wrong and then repair it!

For more information You may wish to visit:https://www.broker.aviva.co.uk/engineering-inspections

Any further questions?

In summation.

Statutory examinations. Essential. But not the whole solution.Imposes more duties on the reporting body than “non-stat” inspections.

An obligation to inform the enforcing authority if they find defect affecting safety. (even if it’s repaired at time of inspection).

There are strict protocols around the time it takes to inform you of any “immediate defect’s” identified .

It places a duty on you to ensure they are carried out, by a competent person.

There are opportunities to shape the frequencies of inspection from the norm but this can be a difficult and time consuming process.

Anyone heard of Fee for intervention? £124 per hour. (That’s another session).