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Lung diseases: Silicosis – Major disease risk from RCS dust

HSE — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 08:40:40 +0000

Respirable crystalline silica (RCS) is found in stone, rocks, sands and clays. Exposure to RCS over a long period can cause fibrosis (hardening or scarring) of the lung tissue with a consequent loss of lung function.

Case study – Bardsley Construction Ltd

HSE — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 13:35:51 +0000

When the culture of health and safety became Bardsley Construction’s number one concern, they set up a Health and Safety Consultation Committee and sought elected representatives of employee safety at site level to liaise with on-site workforce and management.

Stonemason ‘as seen on TV’ is prosecuted

HSE — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 16:00:34 +0000

A Cambridgeshire stonemasonry business has been fined over dangerous stone dust after the firm appeared on a BBC television programme.

Firm fined after employee trapped under stone slabs

HSE — Mon, 16 May 2011 15:30:07 +0000

A granite business and one of its directors has been fined after a man was trapped under a two-and-a-half tonne pack of stone slabs while unloading a truck in Hillingdon.

Companies fined £400,000 after labourer’s fatal fall

HSE — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 16:30:11 +0000

Two companies have been fined a total of £400,000 for breaches of health and safety legislation that resulted in the death of a stonemason’s labourer at a Glasgow construction site.

Scotland: Silica awareness event 19 April

HSE — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 07:00:47 +0000

Details are now available of the following event in Scotland:

Silica awareness events for people who cut stone, concrete and masonry

View Scotland: Silica awareness event 19 April details

South London directors fined after falling stones kill man

HSE — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 13:47:23 +0000

Two directors of a marble and granite manufacturing company have been fined after a worker died and two others were injured when six tonnes of stone slabs fell on them.

HSE prosecuted Marble City Ltd and company directors Gavin and Jamie Waldron following an incident on 20 March 2008 outside the company’s site in Wandsworth, London while the slabs were being unloaded from a truck.

View press release ‘South London directors fined after falling stones kill man’

Stone workers event is a resounding success

HSE — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 11:00:16 +0000

A stonemasons’ health and safety event in Vauxhall, south London, has been such a proved so successful that further events are now being arranged to answer the demand.

Directors, managers, owners and supervisors of stonework companies who deal with quality marble, granite and other stone finishes for the domestic end of the market attended the event. The safety workshop held at Marmi & Granito, discussed the potential health hazards that are associated with this kind of work.

View press release ‘Stone workers event is a resounding success’

Local Authority Circular – The control of silica risks associated with kerb, paving and block cutting

HSE — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 07:45:50 +0000

This circular provides specific guidance on the control and enforcement of Respirable Crystalline Silica (RCS) issues associated with kerb, paving and block cutting in the construction industry.

View Local Authority Circular 61/2 – ‘The control of silica risks associated with kerb, paving and block cutting’

Event aims to keep London’s stonemasons safe

HSE — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 10:38:00 +0000

Stonework companies in and around London are being invited to attend a free event in a bid to help reduce the rate of injury and ill health in the sector.

Quality marble, granite and other stone finishes are now common in many high-spec houses and flats across the capital, and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is keen to see that the many small businesses in this sector are aware of the potential health hazards associated with this work.

View press release ‘Event aims to keep London’s stonemasons safe’

HSE Safety Notice – Handling and storage of large sheet stone slabs

HSE — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 15:00:49 +0000

Six people have been killed in five years due to being struck by falling stone slabs during storage and handling operations. Such slabs are potentially unstable when stored on edge.

HSE Safety Notice – Handling and storage of large sheet stone slabs

Liverpool construction workers warned over killer dust

HSE — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 08:00:26 +0000

Construction workers in Liverpool are being warned they could be putting their lives in danger if they regularly cut stone, concrete or masonry.

Silica dust kills more than 500 construction workers every year but HSE is concerned that many people are unaware of the dangers.

View press release ‘Liverpool construction workers warned over killer dust’

Stonemasons fined after workers suffer long-term lung damage

HSE — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 11:52:58 +0000

HSE is warning employers who work with silica-based materials to take correct safety precautions after two employees were left with potentially life-shortening lung diseases.

York-based stonemasons William Anelay Limited, of Murton Way, Osbaldwick, York, today (5 November) pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. The company was fined £30,000 and ordered to pay £6,000 by York Crown Court.

View press release ‘Stonemasons fined after workers suffer long-term lung damage’

Central Scotland stoneworkers safety event aims to clear the air

HSE — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 16:15:48 +0000

Construction workers in central Scotland are being invited to an event this Monday (30 November) to find out more about protecting themselves from Silicosis – a potentially lethal lung disease caused by breathing in stone dust.

Read ‘stoneworkers safety event aims to clear the air’ press release

Lanarkshire stoneworkers safety event aims to clear the air

HSE — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:30:47 +0000

Construction workers in Lanarkshire are being invited to an event this Tuesday (24 November) to find out more about protecting themselves from Silicosis – a potentially lethal lung disease caused by breathing in stone dust.

View press release ‘Lanarkshire stoneworkers safety event aims to clear the air’

Fine after driver’s arm amputated during Kent delivery

HSE — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 12:30:15 +0000

A stone company has been fined after a delivery driver had to have his left arm amputated when slabs, weighing 220 kilograms each, fell on him.

HSE prosecuted Colin Parker (Masonry) Ltd following an incident on Bedlam Court Lane in Minster, Ramsgate. The company pleaded guilty to breaching Sections 2(1) and 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.

View press release ‘Fine after driver’s arm amputated during Kent delivery’

Stonemasonry – Rebranded

HSE — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 17:10:38 +0000

Health and safety issues in the stonemasonry industry website has been rebranded – New design, new features, better navigation, ask the expert, manual handling, hand and arm vibration, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease…

View rebranded stonemasonry site

The health and safety law poster

HSE — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 06:37:33 +0000

As from 6 April 2009, HSE is publishing new versions of its approved health and safety poster and leaflet. To avoid an unnecessary burden on business, HSE has set a five year transition period. The current poster and leaflets must be replaced by the new versions by no later than 5 April 2014.

Find out more about the new law poster

RR689 – Silica baseline survey

HSE — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 07:50:52 +0000

The Silica Baseline Survey (SBS) has established baseline intelligence on employee exposures and the control of respirable crystalline silica (RCS) in four UK industry sectors: brick- and tile-manufacture, stonemasonry, quarrying and construction.

View RR689 – Silica baseline survey report and annexes