With the government announcement on 10th May of its ‘road map out of lockdown’, in England at least, if you work in manufacturing, engineering or construction, or can’t do your job from home, you’ll now be able to return to work providing you can maintain social distancing. This is the first step in a phased process with 100% ‘normality’ still some months down the line.
The types of workplaces now permitted to re-open are sites where health and safety and environmental monitoring are key considerations. As well as arrangements for PPE, hand sanitisation, social distancing and effective cleaning regimes, a large number of sites will have environmental monitoring needs, many of which may be uniquely linked to the lockdown circumstances.
To ensure the workplace is safe for employees to return, assessments may be needed for various potential risks including gas build-up, air quality, noise, accumulation of dust, cleaning and ventilation.
The Shawcity team is available now to assist businesses to deliver site re-openings following shutdowns to help ensure they are fully compliant, especially with the relatively short notice permitting them to open their doors to employees again. Speed will now be of the essence for businesses to remain competitive while ensuring the work environment is safe to return to.
One consideration is that many companies may have closed their operations in a time frame which didn’t allow for a complete switch-off or hibernation of all monitoring devices. This may result in instruments not being in a ‘ready to use’ state.
Depending on the range within a fleet, an instrument restart checklist might include:
- Battery check
- Boot-up and bump test
- Calibration and service due dates check
- Spares and accessories stock check
- Hires for specific restart tasks
- Training requirements to cover any temporarily reduced staff numbers.
- Consideration will also need to be given to lead times for any equipment that needs to be ordered.
During shutdown there is also a real probability that some fixed gas detection systems will not have been maintained, calibrated or serviced according to schedule. While this won’t prevent the system from working, the accuracy of the system may be compromised or some key element may need updating or replacing, such as a gas sensor. This could potentially affect the system’s ability to detect the gas/es it’s looking for.
In this situation a simple bump test using a calibration gas with a known concentration will demonstrate that the system is operational until an engineer can conduct a full inspection.
Here at Shawcity we can offer video calls and surveys, phone or email technical support on all of the health and safety issues above. Site visits are also possible where remote advice is not adequate or there is an emergency, providing social distancing guidelines can be maintained.
Our team is ready to help any organisation seeking advice on how to re-open effectively and avoid any unnecessary or costly delays which could put your business at a disadvantage.
Contact us via the following details for further information and to start the conversation.
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Call: 01367 899419
