LRS Flooring Specialists

Control Of Substances Hazardous To Health

Regulations which cover the control and the safe use of all materials, chemicals and substances are covered by the Control of Substances Hazardous to HealthRegulations 2002.

General Guidelines to be applied are covered in HSE Guidance Notes of which
there are a great variety published. Those more specific to the Construction
Industry, include:

INDG163 - COSHH: A brief guide to the regulations
CIS24 – Chemical cleaners - general principles of protection
CIS26 - Cement
HSG 193 – COSHH Essentials – Easy steps to control chemicals (Web only)
HSG 204 – Health and Safety in Arc Welding
INDG258 - Safe Work in confined spaces

Other information is contained in Information Sheets (HSE) and downloadable booklets and information packs from www.hse.org.uk.

All work will be planned to take the above standards into account.

The company will provide written assessments for all those products which have been assessed as hazardous to health. Where necessary the Company will request specialists to assist them in making the necessary assessments.

Before work starts, the site manager will ensure that any special protective clothing, or equipment, required is available for use on site. He will ensure that, before operatives are set to work, they will be instructed in the safe use of any product they are using in accordance with the written assessment. He will take into account the circumstances and conditions in which the substance is being used when instructing the workforce. He will ensure that any necessary protective clothing or equipment is provided and used.

Managing hazardous substances, and complying with the COSHH Regulations, requires the Company to take the following steps to comply with the regulations:

• Identify the problem.
• Assess it, measure it, get some idea of the scale.
• Decide on the method of solving the problem.
• Implement the chosen method of solving the problem.
• Check that the method is being implemented properly and monitor the outcome.

L.R.S FLOORING SPECIALISTS

Staff will be made aware of the hazards of any materials they will be asked to use, hazard data sheets will be obtained for each product and control methods will be devised. Where bagged cement is being used by RDA Contractor’s employees, the Site Foreman will ensure that the product is not stored beyond the “Safe Shelf Life”as indicated by the supplier.

The Company will keep records of all assessments, data sheets and medical surveillance as required in the regulations. These assessments will be reviewed at regular intervals to ensure that they are up to date and still relevant. The Company will review the situation at regular intervals to ensure that the control systems are working and that they remain adequate.