fitting respiratory protection and job-specific techniques for preventing the release of asbestos fibres). It is particularly important to cover ‘face-fit testing’ for all types of respiratory equipment. M&E operatives who only need general asbestos awareness can receive their ‘refresher training’ as part of other health and safety updates, or as part of an in-company ‘toolbox talk ‘and other sessions, provided these are effective in communicating practical preventative measures. Contrary to messages from some asbestos trainers, the asbestos Approved Code of Practice (ACoP) clearly states that refresher training ‘should not be a repeat of initial training’ – as far as the HSE is concerned, operatives do not have to repeat the same refresher training course, but they do need refresher training.
Can we do refresher training ourselves? In principle, the answer is ‘yes’ – provided it is delivered by a suitably competent person. HSE does not insist on using external trainers, but a trainer must be ‘practically experienced and competent’. This, of course, raises the fundamental question ‘how can a contractor demonstrate to others that they are delivering effective refresher training?’ To answer this, contractors need to consider factors such as: n Has the trainer received good quality asbestos- related training?
n Does the prospective trainer have relevant qualifications and positive, practical training experience?
n Do they have industry-specific experience of when asbestos may be encountered?
n Do they know the employer’s methods of work? n What do they know about asbestos issues (or example, safe methods of work, potential asbestos containing materials (ACMs) that may be encountered)?
Many M&E contractors successfully demonstrate in-
house capability to their customers with bespoke evidence of refresher training (which they vary according to what’s needed) and the trainer’s competency to do it.
Is ‘e-learning’ acceptable for refresher training? Increasingly, yes – but it depends who is doing the accepting. The HSE recognises that e-learning can be
Asbestos: extra risks
Workers are at extra risk from asbestos when: n They are on an unfamiliar site; n The site pre-dates 2000; n They don’t know how to recognise asbestos or how to work safely if asbestos is about;
n They put themselves and others at risk by not taking proper precautions;
n Asbestos-containing materials are not identified before the work starts; or
n Information about asbestos is not passed on to those who are doing the work.
Protecting workers from exposure to asbestos is as important as it gets for M&E contractors
58 ECA Today November 2011
‘Hidden Killer’ campaign links to employee awareness
The HSE’s acclaimed ‘Hidden Killer’ campaign aims to help protect building services operatives from exposure to asbestos. It provides excellent background material for asbestos awareness and refresher training. For example, a campaign brochure covers the asbestos awareness issues that M&E operatives must know about by law (as shown in the asbestos ACoP). The ECA fully supports the HSE’s ‘Hidden Killer’ campaign – protecting
employees from asbestos has been a central theme of the ECA’s highly successful ‘ZAP’ initiative, which has significantly raised the profile of health and safety in our industry, and actively supported good practice. The HSE’s website also outlines the various measures required to prevent
exposure to airborne asbestos, including ‘task sheets’ for everyday maintenance jobs (for when tasks don’t need an asbestos licence). These show good practice and all contractors should make a bee-line for them – not least because they can provide basic material for in-company awareness activity. (Training for ‘licensed’ asbestos work is a much more demanding proposition, and not covered it in this article.)
a viable method for delivering this training, if it satisfies the objectives of regulation 10 of Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006 (CAR 2006) and the supporting asbestos ACoP. Online learning (e-learning) is an attractive route to asbestos awareness and refresher training because it can offer considerable flexibility in terms of timing, employee availability, and location. The learning must be credibly tested, and ideally, include an e-forum link to a competent person, who can answer operatives’ questions.
What about initial training? All initial training should achieve basic asbestos awareness, but there is a need to provide additional content for those (notably supervisors, but also others) who need to know about non-licensed asbestos work (for example, removing fuse box ‘flash pads’ or laying cables in areas containing undamaged asbestos). Competent external training providers may be the
best choice for initial training (even if they deliver it in- company) because:
1) They have training experience; 2) An outside assessment of whether M&E operatives have understood the training may be more credible; and
3) As we have seen, it is usually easier to demonstrate accredited external training to the supply chain.
How long should courses last? When a course is required, most training providers offer half a day for basic awareness training, and a day for supervisors or those doing non-licensed training. Refresher courses should take no longer than half a day. Whatever training is given to employees, keeping
good training records helps electrical contractors to demonstrate legal compliance, keep track of who needs or has received training, and help protect against any future claim of negligence. It can also help to address a range of supply chain enquiries about the type of
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