The Impact of Dust, A Major Hazard to Health

Construction dust is not just a nuisance it can be a major health hazard. In this informative episode, Colin is discussing how the HSE and other stakeholders are working to control dust hazards. Chris currently heads the HSE health risk management unit within the policy team, interfacing between operational and the policymakers. They discuss the work of the HSE in this area and the ways in which companies can control and manage the risk successfully.   KEY TAKEAWAYS We want people to go home healthy, it is a clear and simple message about what we want to achieve. When you first place a design on a piece of paper any changes are easy to make when the change is made on site the cost and risk have increased exponentially The biggest areas we have concerns about are long latency illness where the disease doesn’t manifest itself until much later. It's not what you see at the moment but what will be seen in the future and the effects from exposure to dust are not seen until much later. We are undertaking a big social media campaign to raise awareness inspections are an important part of improvement, but we are looking to ultimately change people’s long-term behaviour. It is seen as tomorrows problem, but we want to make sure people are aware of it today Silica dust can scar your lungs and is linked to cancer and the dust from natural products such as wood are also a risk. People are not aware because it takes so long to manifest itself What should businesses be doing to control or eliminate risks? Reviewing the materials used and the equipment to reduce and control dust. Controlling at the source is about stopping the dust escaping. It needs to be captured in some way. The key thing people get wrong is not recognising the risk at all or they think a mask is an adequate control when it is only good as a last resort It's vital that people gain a better understanding of the risks. There is information easily available from the Construction Dust Partnership and the HSE   BEST MOMENTS ‘Everything has to work well and is only as good as its weakest part’ ‘People are not aware because it takes so long to manifest itself’ ‘It’s not what you see at the moment but what will be seen in the future’   VALUABLE RESOURCES  The Interesting Health & Safety Podcast The Construction Dust Partnership https://www.hse.gov.uk/   ABOUT THE HOST Colin’s Biography   ‘Making health and safety as important as everything else we do.’ This is the belief that Colin is passionate about and through his consultancy Influential Management Group (IMG) is able to spread into the industry. Colin works at a strategic level with company owners and board members. He helps business leaders establish and achieve their health and safety ambitions. He has developed a number of leading competency improvement programmes That are delivered across industry and his strengths are his ability to take a practical approach to problem solving and being able to liaise at all levels within an organisation. Colin also runs a company that vets contractors online and a network that develops and support H&S consultancies to become better businesses. Colin chairs the Construction Dust Partnership, an industry collaboration directly involving many organisations, including the Health and Safety Executive. He is a Post Graduate Tutor at Strathclyde University and a highly sought-after health and safety speaker and trainer. He has a Post Graduate Certificate in Safety and Risk management, an engineering degree and is a Chartered Member of the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH).