LEGIONELLA – MANAGING THE RISK

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LEGIONELLA – MANAGING THE RISK

As an employer, or person in control of premises, you must appoint someone competent to help you meet your health and safety duties and to take responsibility for controlling any identified risk from exposure to legionella bacteria. A competent person, often known as the responsible person, is someone with sufficient authority, competence, necessary skills, knowledge of the system, and experience. The appointed responsible person could be one, or a combination of:

·         yourself

·         one or more workers

·         someone from outside your business

If there are several people responsible for managing risks, e.g. because of shift-work patterns, you must make sure that everyone knows what they are responsible for and how they fit into the overall risk management of the system.

If you decide to employ contractors to carry out water treatment or other work, it is still the responsibility of the competent person to ensure that the treatment is carried out to the required standards. Remember, before you employ a contractor, you should be satisfied that they can do the work you want to the standard that you require. There are a number of external schemes to help you with this, for example, A Code of Conduct for service providers  . The British Standards Institute have published a standard for legionella risk assessment  .

 

http://www.hse.gov.uk/legionnaires/what-you-must-do.htm

Based on OHSAS 18001 and BS 8800 which are the recognised UK models for Health & Safety Management Systems, Envirochem is able to provide Health & Safety Assessment Services as part of a range of occupational health and safety support services to cover all health and Safety issues.

 

For Legionnaires testing or risk assessments please fill out the form below or call on 01329 287 777

 

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One of our occupation team was recently up in Cardiff at the Brunel House

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One of our occupation team was recently up in Cardiff at the Brunel House. We attended site following the cleanup of a sewage leak that spread throughout the bottom basement floor. Whilst on site we took bio-aerosols within each of the separate rooms where the leak spread to make sure all airborne bacteria had also been removed from the cleaning.

 

For more on this and all our services please call us on 01329 287  777 or fill in our contact form below;

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Noise at a Waste Recycling Depot

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Envirochem were recently approached by one of their clients to carry out a noise survey at a waste recycling depot in Reading

Envirochem travelled to Reading to carry out a Noise survey at a waste recycling depot in Reading. The waste recycling depot had a variety of areas in which noise could potentially become a problem for employees exposed to levels of noise above that of 80dB being the lower exposure action level as stated in the Noise at Work Regulations 2005. Using a Cassella CEL 620B Class I integrating sound meter with octave band filter and with the guidance of the client, noise samples were taken from nine different areas of the depot to take into account the different activities which take place in the yard and in the indoor areas. The noise levels were on a whole below the action level in the outdoor areas within the yard but exceeded this level when the samples were taken inside. This would suggest that employees working in the internal areas should be provided with hearing protection and this area should be classed as a hearing protection zone.

Envirochem can carry out a variety of occupational hygiene monitoring services for individual clients and businesses for noise and any other health, safety and environmental need. If you require any of our chemical analysis services, occupational hygiene services, asbestos or microbiological services, please fill out the form below or give us a call on 01329 287 777.

 

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Envirochem’s Microbiology Laboratory is now UKAS Accredited

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We are excited to announce that our Microbiology laboratory is now UKAS accredited.

The United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) is the sole national accreditation body for the United Kingdom. UKAS are recognised by the government to assess laboratories  against internationally agreed standards.  Organisations that provide certification, testing, inspection and calibration services are assessed by UKAS.

An accreditation from UKAS acknowledges the competence, impartiality and performance capability of a laboratory.

For more information on our microbiology laboratory click here

To contact Envirochem you can fill in the form below

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Legionella Bacteria Identified at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital

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A patient of Gloucestershire Royal Hospital may have been infected with legionella bacteria after attending the hospital’s dialysis unit in October earlier this year. The hospital stated that enhanced measures were put in place in order to stop the bacteria from spreading to any other patients.

Legionella bacteria is more likely to spread in larger commercial buildings with more complex water systems and if contracted can lead to Legionnaires Disease; a potentially fatal lung infection.

For more on this story click here

To enquire about legionella testing or for more information please contact us below:

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Legionella Discovery Leads to Swimming Pool Closure

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Traces of Legionella Bacteria were found in the males showers of Castleton Swimming pool during routine checks, leading to it’s closure. The same swimming pool was shut for three weeks in May following the discovery of Legionella in the heating system.

Legionella bacteria can cause legionaires disease, this has flu like symptoms and affects the lungs. In some cases the disease can be fatal.

For more on the story click here

Envirochem offer an array of microbiological tests including tests for legionella. If you would like to enquire please fill in the form bellow.

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Envirochem’s New Autoclave

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Envirochem’s microbiology department has recently upgraded to a new autoclave, this is a 135L  AMA270BT.  This will sterilise our equipment using high temperature steam at high pressures.

If you have any questions about our microbiology department please fill in the attached form,

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Envirochem Are Developing Tests for Clostridium Perfringens in our Microbiology Laboratory

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Envirochem are developing a new test, this is for the bacteria Clostridium Perfringens. These bacteria are indicators of faecal contamination. They are however found when other faecal indicators a not detectable, for example at times of remote or intermittent pollution. Therefore, detection of Clostridium Perfringens can help us detect contamination different levels.

For further information on microbiological testing please contact us below, or call us on 01329287777.

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Envirochem’s New Microbiology laboratory

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We are excited to announce the expansion of our Microbiology department. The image above shows a section of our new laboratory, we offer a wide array of microbiological analyses including tests for Legionella, E.coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Total coliforms.

Water samples that are sent to Envirochem come from a variety of sources, for example: drinking and potable water, recreational water such as pools and spas and many more.

If you would like to inquire or learn more about our Microbiology department and services please fill in the attached form or call us on 01329 287 777

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Legionella Bacteria Detected In The Cooling Towers Of Sellafield

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The bacteria Legionella have been detected at high levels in tower at the Highly Active Liquid Effluent and Storage (HALES) facility. The chief nuclear inspector has released a statement assuring that there has not been an outbreak of legionnaires’ disease and that this does not impact nuclear safety.

For more information on this story click HERE

Envirochem offer tests for Legionella in many environments including:

  • Domestic water systems
  • Cooling towers
  • Any drinking water service
  • Swimming pools
  • Spa pools
  • Car washes
  • Effluent
  • And many more

For more information on Legionella testing please visit the Microbiology page of our website or fill in the form below.

 

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