The aim a risk assessment is to help you decide what you need to do to ensure the health and safety of your employees who are exposed to hand and arm vibration.
Your risk assessment should:
- Identify where there might be a risk from vibration and who is likely to be affected;
- Contain a reasonable estimate of your employees’ exposures time and;
- Identify what you need to do to comply with the law eg whether vibration control measures are needed, and, if so, where and what type; and
- Identify any employees who need to be provided with health surveillance and whether any are at particular risk.
The findings of your risk assessment must be recorded. An action plan should be developed which details what you have done and what you are going to do to comply with the law and protect your employees from ill health.
You will need to review your risk assessment if circumstances in your workplace change such as the hand tools used, the amount of time they are used for or how they are used. Even if it appears that nothing has changed, you should not leave it for more than two years without checking whether a review is needed