What is the purpose of an engineering inspection?
Working in the engineering industry cannot be easy. Particularly if you are the owner of an engineering company. With a range of equipment and a team of employees, you have a lot of responsibilities to think about. Should a machine stop working or an employee injure themselves, all fingers are going to be pointed at you. That’s why it’s important you have regular engineering inspections, to ensure the ongoing safety of your company.
What is covered in an engineering inspection?
An engineering inspection will aim to cover all areas of your work environment. However, with a unique set of hazards to consider, the inspector will likely want to focus on the following areas to ensure your business maintains compliance with health and safety regulations.
Mobile work equipment
Mobile work equipment, such as fork lift trucks, are one of the main causes of accidents in engineering environments. With constant reports of employees driving at unsafe speeds, this is one of the first areas an inspector will want to look. Following the best practices set out in the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998, the inspector will want to see that mobile work equipment can only be used by authorised employees, who have received proper training.
Lifting equipment
Lifting equipment can help to lighten the load for employees. However, there are an increasing number of accidents happening due to employees overloading the equipment. During their visit, the inspector will want to see that lifting operations are always supervised by a senior employee, as advised in the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998.
Electrical equipment
Electrical equipment can be extremely dangerous, with instances of faulty wiring making equipment live. With the potential to seriously injure an employee, it’s important that you have precautionary measures in place to prevent any accidents. These measures will need to be evident during the engineering inspection on equipment to ensure you are remaining compliant with the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989.
Machinery
Whether manually operated or computer controlled, machines are responsible for a large number of accidents in engineering environments. With machines that are designed to drill, grind, press and cut, it is no wonder that employees are constantly being injured. During the inspection, you will need to show proof of the safety measures you have in place to ensure you abide by the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998.
Hazardous substances
Hazardous substances are often present in engineering environments, in the form of dust, fumes, spray and vapour. With the potential to have an adverse effect on employees, it’s important that you have methods of controlling these hazardous substances. When an inspector visits your engineering environment, they will want to see evidence of continuous air monitoring, in line with the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002.
