| HEALTHY BUILDINGS INTERNATIONAL : ASBESTOS! YOUR NEW LEGAL DUTYAsbestos-containing materials must be kept in a good state of repair. Many Healthy Buildings International clients’ buildings have now been surveyed for the presence of asbestos. However, Regulation 4 of the Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations 2002 now requires you to take additional action to safeguard occupants. This includes:
• Making a written record of the location and condition of asbestos, and keeping this record up to date.
• Assessing the likelihood of anyone being exposed to ACMs - asbestos containing materials. Each location and type of material must be assessed individually, and consideration given to the risk of ACMs being disturbed or damaged by maintenance repair, refurbishment or any activity. This is because, for asbestos to pose a risk, asbestos fibres must be released and become airborne
• Preparing and implementing a plan to manage the risk of airborne fibres.
This includes ensuring that asbestos containing materials are kept in a good state of repair or removed, and that information on the location and condition of such materials is given to anyone potentially at risk.
Essential planning with Healthy Buildings International
It is vitally important to inspect the state of any asbestos to check that is has not deteriorated or been damaged. As a minimum, the material should be inspected every six to twelve months even if it is in good condition and not likely to be disturbed (and even more often if it is in a place where it might be damaged). The system of inspection must be written into the plan, and any records/drawings must be updated to reflect any changes. Finally, there should be periodic checks to ensure that your safety arrangements are working, and that people are fully aware of their responsibilities in compliance, duty and day-to-day management.
Healthy Buildings International - asbestos assistance
Many organisations are now turning to Healthy Buildings International ’s www.RecordsForBuildings.com for assistance in managing the risks from asbestos. This is a secure web-based repository for statutory building records, including – as well as asbestos – legionella risk assessment and control, health and safety, and disabled access.
Contractors who are due to attend your site can now view your asbestos plan and be kept completely up to date with the latest information on the location and condition of your ACMs, and there is no chance of the information going astray.
LEGISLATION WATCH | Subject | Progress | Asbestos: A new legal duty on employers to manage the risks posed by asbestos in non-domestic premises under the Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations 2002
| New duty came into force on 21 May 2004. | Disability Discrimination: The new law under Part III of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 requires businesses and service providers to make reasonable adjustments to the physical features of the premises to avoid discrimination.
| Final phase of Part III came into force on 1 October 2004. | | Noise: HSC Consultative Document on proposed new regulations places tougher legal duties on employers to control exposure to harmful noise levels. | Proposed changes to the Noise at WorkRegulations 1989, including the lowering of the 1st and 2nd action levels, are expected to come into force by February 2006. | | Fire: Government proposal to replace 60 different sets of fire safety regulations with a single Fire Safety Act is based on the principles of risk assessment. | If approved by Parliament, the proposed changes are expected to come into force during 2005. | | Working At Heights: Proposed new regulations will set specific control measures that must be followed whilst working at height. | The new regulations are expected to come into force during late 2004. However, some duties may be phased in over a transitional period. |
HEALTHY BUILDINGS INTERNATIONAL : LEGIONNAIRES’ DISEASE BUBBLES OVER AGAINLegionnaires’ disease is again in the news, and the spotlight is on spas as a major source of infection. At Healthy Buildings International we know that around 10% of the 300 Legionnaires’ disease outbreaks reported annually are attributed to spas? Or that during 2003, spa outbreaks resulted in 3 deaths? Healthy Buildings International has noted a huge growth in spa facilities, ideal breeding grounds for legionella bacteria. If you are responsible for spa maintenance, or for the management of any indoor water system, it is vital to be aware of the dangers. A recent study by the Health Protection Agency found that 26 of the 100 pools it tested contained legionella bacteria, despite the fact that 16 had passed current safety inspections.
Healthy Buildings International : What is Legionnaires’ disease?
A pneumonia-like infection caused when individuals inhale water droplets or spray that contain legionella bacteria. Early symptoms include muscle aches, tiredness, headaches and a dry cough or fever. Typically between 10% to 15% of victims will die, with those particularly susceptible being people over 50, especially men. Legionella bacteria occur naturally, and can be found in most outdoor water systems. At Healthy Buildings International we know that poorly maintained indoor water systems connected to a spray outlet – such as cooling towers, humidifiers, fountains and particularly showers – prove an ideal medium for the organism to grow and cause infection.
The susceptibility of spas
Spas baths generally operate with high water temperatures, placing a greater demand on the disinfection and filtration systems. Poor maintenance of these can lead to the build-up and spread of legionella bacteria, after which spa jets can produce aerosols, which can subsequently be inhaled resulting in infection.
Healthy Buildings inernational advise : Guidelines under review
In light of the particular problem in spas, the Health Protection Agency is currently reviewing its spa guidelines in conjunction with the Health and Safety Executive, and legislation islikely to change. Healthy Buildings International will inform you quickly of any developments. HEALTHY BUILDINGS INTERNATIONAL : NEW E-LEARNING COURSE ON MOULDSHealthy Buildings International is pleased to announce a new state-of-the-art e-Learning course – “Moulds in Commercial Buildings”– to help you understand moulds and what to do about them.The course was produced at Healthy Buildings International headquarters in Fairfax, Virginia, in response to a national, media-driven concern about toxic moulds throughout the USA. What are moulds? How do they enter buildings? What damage can they do to your building and its occupants? And how can you prevent these unwanted invaders? Healthy Buildings International tells you how.
24 hour access to Healthy Buildings International knowledge
Our easy-to-understand 5-part programme provides you with everything you need to know on how to prevent moulds, how to test for them and what remedial action to take.
The programme is based upon our 24 years+ experience studying moulds in no less than 4,000 buildings in forty-five countries, and on our long experience of delivering training seminars and solutions. Because it is Internet based, you and your employees can have access 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, via a simple dialup connection.
“At Healthy Buildings International we have been training people on mould and related indoor air quality issues for over 24 years,and have never seen a solution that better addresses the problem” says Gray Robertston,the President of Healthy Buildings International inc.
Allergies warning from Healthy Buildings International
Evidence suggesting that toxic moulds can cause fatal illnesses is still inconclusive. However, there is ample evidence that many moulds may well trigger allergies, or exacerbate the condition for those with asthma. For this reason alone, visible mould growths in occupied areas should not be tolerated,and we advise all our clients to remove such visible growth.
This advice is also pure commonsense, simply because any mould growing on a substrate is doing what moulds do naturally; destroying the substrate by attempting to digest it.
Other Healthy Buildings International e-Learning packages include ‘Asbestos Awareness’, ‘Display Screen Equipment’ and ‘Workplace Fire Safety’.
For the answers to any other questions you may have, please contact Healthy Buildings International at any of our offices as shown below.
Healthy Buildings International Ltd
(UK Head Office)
229 Hyde End Road
Spencers Wood
Berkshire RG7 1BU
United Kingdom
Tel: (0118) 988 9999
Fax: (0118) 988 5599
email: info@hbi.co.uk
directions: download
map: multimap
| Healthy Buildings International
(UK North)
Monckton Road
Wakefield
Yorkshire WF2 7AS
United Kingdom
Tel: (01924) 888 166
Fax: (01924) 332 334
email: info@hbi.co.uk directions: download
map: multimap | Healthy Buildings International Ireland
(Belfast)
Unit 16
Laganside Studios
Ravenhill Road
Belfast BT6 8AW
Tel: (028)90 738777
Fax: (028)90 732777
email: info@hbi.ie
www: http://www.hbi.ie
| Healthy Buildings International
(Scotland)
Suite 220
Claymore House
145 Kilmarnock Road
Glasgow G41 3JA
United Kingdom
Tel: (0141) 571 2967
Fax: (0141) 6327726
email: info@hbi.co.uk | Healthy Buildings International
USA Headquarters
9401 Mathy Drive
Fairfax, Virginia 22031-5311
Tel: (703) 323 4400
Fax: (703) 323 4440
email: hbi@hbiamerica.com
www:http://www.hbiamerica.com | Healthy Buildings International
USA Western Region
25 Mauchly, Suite 314
Irvine, CA 92618
Tel: (949) 450 1111
Fax: (949) 450 1120
email: hbiwest@hbiamerica.com
www: http://www.hbiamerica.com
| Healthy Buildings International
USA Mid Atlantic Region
1055 Parsippany Boulevard,
Suite 102
Parsippany, NJ 07054
Tel: (973) 394 1330
Fax: (973) 394 1331
email: hbiatlantic@hbiamerica.com
www: http://www.hbiamerica.com | Healthy Buildings International
USA New England Region
3 Baldwin Green Common
Suite 201
Woburn, Massachusetts 01801
Tel: (781) 932 6800
Fax: (781) 932 5995
email: dtyler@hbiamerica.com
www: http://www.hbiamerica.com
| Healthy Buildings International
Australia
7/33 Ryde Road
Pymble NSW 2073
Australia
Tel: (02) 9880 2744
Fax: (02) 9880 2766
email: hbi@hbi.com.au
www: http://www.hbi.com.au | Healthy Buildings International
Dublin
Unit 10/11 Santry Hall Industrial Estate
Dublin 9
Ireland
Tel: 00353 1 8623794
Fax: 00353 1 8621680
eail: info@hbi.ie
www: http://www.hbi.ie
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