Health

and

safety

It is no coincidence that, before the introduction of the Health and

Safety at Work legislation, the workplace used to be considerably

more dangerous.

1930s skyscraper construction New York

1930s shipyard in Britain

1930s mine rescue team

Cotton mill. USA 1908

1930s iron foundry

Fishing

under sail in

Holland

The Health and Safety at Work Act

1974

The basis of British health and safety law is

the Health and Safety at Work etc Act

1974.

Basic principle

Health and Safety is everyone‟s responsibility. Employers have

a duty of care to workers and others. Before the 1974 Act, there

were many different pieces of legislation relating to specific

industries, such as Mining. The Act was different, it set out to

cover all industries and all people.

The 1974 Act was a major step forward because:

1) It protected everyone

2) It gave inspectors powers of investigation into accidents

3) It gave employers and workers duties at work

4) It included welfare at work e.g. toilets, washrooms etc.

5) It included imprisonment and fines as penalties

The Health and Safety at Work Act

1974 The Act sets out the general duties which

employers have towards employees and

members of the public, and employees

have to themselves and to each other.

And you thought it was a joke!

The Health and Safety at Work Act

1974

• It includes: The Factories Act 1961,

COSHH (control of substances hazardous

to health), The Management of Health

and Safety at Work Regulations 1992.

The Health and Safety at Work Act

1974

• All work places must have a health and

safety system in place.

The Health and Safety at Work Act

1974 • ‘As far as is reasonably practicable’. In

other words, an employer does not have to

take measures to avoid or reduce the risk

if they are technically impossible or if the

time, trouble or cost of the measures

would be grossly disproportionate to the

risk.

The Health and Safety at Work Act

1974 • What the law requires here is what good

management and common sense would

lead employers to do anyway: that is, to

look at what the risks are and take

sensible measures to tackle them.

The act does not cover

nominees for the

„Darwin Awards‟.

Like this…

…or this…

…or my personal favourite…

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE)

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is a United Kingdom non-

departmental public body. It is the body responsible for the

encouragement, regulation and enforcement of workplace health, safety

and welfare, and for research into occupational risks in England and Wales

and Scotland.

The HSE was created by the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, and

has since absorbed earlier regulatory bodies such as the Factory

Inspectorate and the Railway Inspectorate though the Railway

Inspectorate was transferred to the Office of Rail Regulation in April 2006.

The HSE is sponsored by the Department for Work and Pensions. As part

of its work HSE investigates industrial accidents, small and large, including

major incidents such as the explosion and fire at Buncefield in 2005.

HSE's job is to protect people against risks to health or safety arising out of

work activities.

"Our mission is to protect people's health and safety by ensuring risks in

the changing workplace are properly controlled."

Ways of managing risks

-Use personal protective equipment (PPE) – goggles,

apron etc…

Ways of managing risks

-Place notices around work place.

Circular signs are instructions.

These are instructions to not do something.

Triangles tend to

be used in warning

signs.

These are also warning signs.

Japanese public toilet signs

Ways of managing risks

-Fit guards and emergency stops to machines.

Ways of managing risks

-Be aware of health and safety rules and COSHH data.

This legislation covers accidents as well as long term

exposure.

Ways of managing risks

-Conduct ongoing staff training (fire, first aid...)

Ways of managing risks

-Keep servicing and log books up to date.

Ways of managing risks

-Use appropriate lighting, heating, ventilation and noise

levels.

It is also a requirement of the Health and Safety at Work Act

1974 that every place of work should have risk assessments

properly documented.

Risk assessment

Five steps:

1. Look for hazard

2. Decide who might be harmed and why

3. Evaluate the risk arising from the hazard and

decide whether existing precautions are

adequate or more should be done.

4. Record the findings.

5. Review the assessment and revise it if

necessary.

Workshop safety Identify the hazards in the picture below.

Risk assessment example

• What are the hazards

and risks relating to

the use of the pillar

drill?

So just to clarify: this is not covered…

…or this…

…or this…

…or even this!

(Not even if “you‟ve done it before”.)

Safe product use

-Products have become safer to use over time.

-This is partly due to changes in the law and partly due to

consumer demands.

-All new products must be provided with guarantees about

their safety and performance.

-Product safety is now a key criteria in determining a

product’s success.

Case study: food processor

-The blades will only rotate is the lid is

locked in place.

-The motor stops if the lid is removed.

-There is a separate ‘pusher’ for

pushing food down.

-Non-slip feet on underside.

-Waterproof casing, sealed bearings

and motor housing.

-Instructions on safe use and injury

avoidance.

Safety markings on products

The European community mark is often

referred to as the ‘product passport‟ –

meaning it can be freely traded across

Europe. It means that tax has been paid and

that a minimum standard of documentation

has been produced (to make the source

traceable). It is not a quality guarantee.

The British Standards Institute kite mark

symbolises that a product has reached the

required performance and safety standard

for the particular product type (according to

BSI).

The British Toy and Hobby

Association Lion mark is a

performance and safety standard for

toys.

Consumer safety & the law • The designer and manufacturer of a product have a moral obligation to

make sure that a customer / consumer is not injured by it when used. Also, both the designer and manufacture must be socially and environmentally responsible. Putting it in simple terms, the final product must not be a danger, cause damage to people in any way or damage the environment. A number of Government agencies try to protect the general public from products that are unsafe. Laws also protect the consumer and some are outlined below.

• The Consumer Safety Act is mainly concerned with safety especially when considering clothing, toys and electrical goods. The government can ban dangerous goods with this Act.

• The Trades Description Act protects the customer against false claims. For instance if a manufacturer says that a product will increase intelligence and it obviously fails to do so - then the manufacturer can be taken to court. The Trades Descriptions Act tries to ensure than manufacturers claims about their products are true.

• The Sales of Goods Act is aimed at ensuring that goods work in the way they should and that they last a reasonable amount of time.

• Fire Safety Regulations - aim to protect the public against poor quality furniture that could be a fire hazard. The aim is to stop the sale of furniture that is easily set alight and give off dangerous toxic fumes.

H & S Designers Safety of a product has two broad components.

Construction safety – Anything related to how the product is constructed, no matter what the

design.

– Use of materials,

– Components

– Quality

Design safety

• This safety should extend to – users,

– bystanders

– misusers – for instance, children who may „play‟ with a product in a way not intended.

• Because we are interested in design safety we are interested in interactions.