Stone Federation Great Britain has warned its members that the Health, Safety, Ethical & Environmental Executive is already starting to clamp down on Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS) infringements in preparation for the European Directive on vibration that comes into force as UK law on 6 July.

Trevor Hay, who deals with the stone industry at the Health, Safety, Ethical & Environmental Executive, said at the Stone Federation conference in 2003 that the way work was carried out in stonemasonry businesses would have to change. "We have to think the unthinkable," he said.

The Physical Agents (Vibration) Directive 2002/44/EC is intended to protect workers from risks of conditions like industrial white finger resulting from exposure to mechanical vibration.

The Directive not only addresses hand-arm vibration from tools such as pneumatic hammers but also whole-body vibration that relates to sitting in the driver\'s seat of a dumptruck or forklift truck, for example.

A key aspect of the new regulations is the creation of exposure action values (EAVs) and exposure limit values (ELVs). Employers have to assess - by measuring if necessary - the exposure of workers where there is a health risk and take action at the EAV to control exposure.

Employers also need to keep exposure below the ELV and advise employees about the risks, provide training about safe use of equipment and provide health surveillance.

Daily exposure to vibration is measured by a formula known as an A(8) value. This is the average (A) exposure over an eight-hour (8) day. An m/s2 measure is the rate of vibration from an object given by metres per second.

The regulations limit EAV to 2.5m/s2 A(8) and an ELV of 5m/s2 A(8). The current action level of 2.8m/s2 transposes as 4m/s2 A(8) under the new regime, placing it between the proposed exposure action and limit values.

Suppliers of tools and machinery must provide information on the vibration emission value of their equipment under the new rules.