AirUser 2008 96+4pp 24/7/08 11:31 Page 16
Hand arm vibration
Vibration information and the
'new' Machines Directive
On the 29th December 2009 the law changes for all machinery but in particular
for hand-held powered tools. The change is in the way in which suppliers of
hand-held powered tools have to give vibration information. Gone will be the
single axis laboratory derived information and in will come the need to
present "the vibration total value to which the hand-arm system is
subjected" which translates to 3-axis measurement of vibration writes
Greg Bordiak, technical officer – BCAS
T
he standards, the ISO 8662 series, which
have been the subject of criticism since the
introduction of the Physical Agents
(Vibration) Directive that addresses the
user and demands information on vibration
related to real work activities, are now being
revised. The ISO 8662 series having
been drawn up to meet the
needs of the original
Machines Directive provided
comparative vibration
information based on single axis
measurements and did not relate to real work
activities. The revised standards will now harmonise
the need to meet the demands of both directives.
Manufacturers and standards makers have been working
for the past 3 years to produce standards that will allow
the provision of ‘real world’ vibration figures in a
standardised test. To ensure that there is no
misunderstanding about the revised figures being
presented and data already in the marketplace, a
positive move was taken to change the identity of
the revised ISO 8662 series to a new number. This
will then provide a readily and immediately
recognisable identification that 3-axis
information is being given. The new standard
Image supplied courtesy of Interflon UK
series is EN ISO 28927 “Hand-held portable power
tools — Test method for evaluation of vibration
emission” which has 10 parts to cover all tool types.
The information on vibration derived from these
standards will then be able to be used directly with
confidence to assess the vibration exposure of workers
where this is identified in the Control of Vibration (hand-
arm) at Work Regulations which is the UK incarnation of
the EU directive.
More information on the EU directive, UK legal provision
and the standards programme can be obtained from the
BCAS by contacting Greg Bordiak on greg@bcas.org.uk
ENTER 83416 airuser.com/enquiry
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