Updated standards list for the Machinery Directive

The Official Journal (OJ) is the part of the EU which publishes updates and notifications. When standards are harmonised they are published in the OJ to complete the harmonisation process and inform everyone that they are now legal. The list of standards for the Machinery Directive is updated 3-4 times a year and the latest version is available here.

http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/policies/european-standards/documents/harmonised-standards-legislation/list-references/machinery/

Different ways of implementing Directives across Europe

Here at Laidler, we're preparing for an exhibition in Dublin which is taking place on November 16th and 17th. As is often the case, we've also got a speaking slot at the show and we'd decided to talk about practical machinery safety risk assessments, introducing the requirements of PUWER, (Provsion and Use of Work Equipment Regulations). PUWER implements the Amended Work Equipment Directive in the UK which would be fine for Northern Ireland but not for Dublin in the South. A little research brought to light the different ways in which countries implement Directives and why, if you are working across Europe, you need to be aware of these differences.

In the UK, we have Regulations such as PUWER, Display Screen Equipment, LOLER (Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment) and others. Each are implementations of a European Directive. When you look at Ireland, you have the General Application Regulations which includes chapters for the individual Directives. 2 completely different approaches, but covering all the same information. it's relatively straight forward to compare the 2, but it's worth knowing for the future that if you have responsibilities across Europe, what should be a straight forward process, i.e. dealing with European legislation, may be a little trickier than you first imagined due to the different approaches used.

What is a machine?

A fundamental part of complying with both PUWER and the Machinery Directive is understanding what falls under the scope of both pieces of legislation. We'll look at the Machinery Directive over the next few weeks as there are a number of definitions within the Directive, so we'll start off looking at PUWER.

Regulation 2 of PUWER states the following: "Work equipment means any machinery, appliance, apparstus, tool or installation for use at work (whether exclusively or not). The HSE'sApproved Code of Practice (ACOP L22) includes the following guidance:

The scope of work equipment is extremely wide. it covers almost any equipment used at work including:
a) 'tool box tools' such as hammers, knives, handsaws etc
b) single machines such as drilling machines, circular saws, photocopiers, combine harvesters, dumper trucks etc
c) apparatus such as laboratory apparatus (bunsen burners etc)
d) lifting equipment such as hoists, lift trucks, etc
e) other equipment such as ladders, water cleaners etc
f) an installation such as a series of machines connected together for example a paper-making line

Another way of looking at the scope is to look at the HSE statistics to see what equipment has been inspected. In the past cases have gone to court for accidents with a postman's bike and a powered bed in a care home. It's also recognised that a company vehicle, or a car being used on company business, is also technically work equipment.

So next time someone says that PUWER isn't applicable, you might need to think again.

Work Equipment FAQ from HSE

The HSE in the UK have launched new online frequently asked questions pages for machinery and work equipment answering questions about CE Marking, PUWER and LOLER. Click here to view the site.

Welcome

Welcome to the new blog from Laidler Associates and Safety Systems Technology, the machinery division of TÜV SÜD Product Service. Over the coming weeks, we'll be looking at all aspects of machinery safety including unravelling what is actually meant by some of the terms in the European Directives, what EN standards have been amended and the latest safety products on the market.

To kick off, if you have an interest in automation and robotics or would like to use more automation within your business, have a look at the website for the Automating Manufacturing programme, that has been launched by the PPMA. Funding is available for applicable companies to see whether automation is an option for them.