A is for Asbestos

What is it all about?

Every week on average 20 tradesmen die from the “hidden killer” in the UK!

Asbestos is a mineral that was extensively used as a building material in the UK from the 50's through to the mid-80's. It was used for a variety of purposes and was ideal for fireproofing and insulation. Any building built before 2000 (houses, factories, offices, schools, hospitals etc) can contain asbestos.

What are the main regulations?

Control of Asbestos Regulations (CAR) 2006.

These Regulations bring together the three previous sets of Regulations covering the prohibition of asbestos, the control of asbestos at work and asbestos licensing.

What do I need to do?

There is duty on those who manage non-domestic premises, the people with responsibility for protecting others who work in such premises, or use them in other ways, from the risks to ill health that exposure to asbestos causes.
There are three essential steps for such duty holders:

1. Find out whether the premises contains asbestos, where it is and what condition it is in
2. Assess the risk
3. Make a plan to manage that risk and act on it

This will include a risk assessment (normally in the form of a survey) and a plan to manage any identified ACMS (Asbestos Containing Materials) - removal is not required if the ACMs are in good condition and no fibres are being released.

And finally:

Did you know the actor Steve McQueen died at the age of 50 from Mesothelioma, a lung cancer triggered by Asbestos exposure.

And that fake asbestos snow was used in the 1939 film "The Wizard of Oz" and the 1942 film "Holiday Inn" (yes Bing Crosby did have a white christmas).

Solutions-IMS' photostream

Solutions-IMS' photostream on Flickr.

Eric and Bob - just for fun

Renewable energy

Introduction - Efforts to reduce pollutants and greenhouse gases are a primary focus in today's culture. Our current rate of fossil fuel usage will shortly lead to an energy crisis. We therefore need to better exploit current renewable energy technology and also work on new ways to extract energy from renewable sources as a matter of urgency.
So what are some of the alternatives?

Wind Power - Harnesses the power of the wind to propel the blades of wind turbines which is converted into electrical current by means of a generator.
There is no pollution however consistent wind is needed for continuous power generation, wind turbines are noisy and if winds are too high the National Grid may not cope.

Water Power - There are several forms of hydroelectricity generation currently in use or development however harnessing the power of moving water has an incredibly long history.

Hydropower is the world's No.1 source of renewable energy. It does not produce pollution and is the most efficient way to generate electricity. Modern hydro turbines can convert as much as 90% of the available energy into electricity.

Solar Power - Can work in many ways the most common way is through the use of photovoltaic (PV) technology, which directly transforms sunlight into electricity.

When exposed to the photons found within sunlight, some electrons of the photovoltaic solar cells are knocked loose. These loose electrons create an electrical current which can be harnessed for electrical needs.

Of course solar power can only be gathered during daylight, however energy can be stored.

Nuclear Power - Is the power created from controlled nuclear reactions. The power source is the heat generated by a controlled nuclear fission chain reaction. The reaction involves uranium or plutonium being hit by a neutron and splitting.

Although nuclear power generation only results in relatively low amounts of CO2 being produced the radioactive wastes generated have considerable associated disposal issues.

Geothermal Power - Is energy in the form of the heat from the Earth. It's clean and sustainable. Resources of geothermal energy range from the shallow ground to hot water and hot rock found a few miles beneath the Earth's surface.

Although not used for electricity generation geothermal energy systems are increasingly used to deliver forced air space heating through ductwork and a heat exchanger. They can also be reversed to extract heat in the summer.

Conclusion - Energy generation from renewable sources is the way towards a low carbon economy. However, there has been a reported a 12% drop in renewable energy production between April and June which will reopen the discussions about the £1 billion support the industry itself receives from the taxpayers each year.

Solutions-IMS - Hazard spotting

Solutions-IMS' photostream on Flickr.

Spotting hazards is easy, and good health and safety is largely about common sense (sometimes in short supply).

All we need to do once we know what the hazard in is put in place some sensible control measures to lower the residual risk to an acceptible level.