Team News

Post Date

17/11/2023

This week we got together for lunch at Perch Pizza in Worthing to celebrate Simon Barrett’s ten-year work anniversary. Simon is a much valued member of Acoustic South East and brings a wide range of skills to the team. Not only is he a highly experienced Acoustic Consultant, he also heads up our Air Tightness Testing team and also looks after all of our I.T. needs. Our lunch time gathering also gave us the opportunity to welcome Josh Robinson to our team. Josh joined us on the 1^st of November as a Technician and has already settled in to the team and has hit the ground running.

The venue for our celebration was chosen as Perch Pizza is situated on The Bayside Development which is a project that we were involved in as Acoustic Consultants, engaged by ECE Planning and Roffey Homes, from the early planning and construction stages all the way through to post construction sound insulation and air tightness testing.

As you can see from the remnants shown in the photograph lots of Pizzas were consumed and very much enjoyed!

1. 2025 HAVS Compliance Updates for Sussex

Key Changes from HSE

Lower Exposure Action Value (EAV): Now 2.5 m/s² (down from 2.8 m/s²).
Mandatory Health Surveillance: Required if workers exceed EAV for 15+ days/year.
Digital Record-Keeping: Employers must log vibration levels in cloud-based systems.

Sussex-Specific Risks

Gatwick-area factories: High use of pneumatic tools in aerospace supply chains.
Brighton food processing: Prolonged vibrating conveyor belt exposure.

Case Example: A Crawley metalworks faced £12k in fines after workers reported numbness. Our HAVS assessment identified grinders exceeding 5 m/s²—fixes cut exposure by 60%.

2. Which Sussex Industries Need HAVS Testing?

Industry	High-Risk Tools	Common Violations
Automotive (Gatwick)	Impact wrenches, sanders	Missing tool maintenance logs
Construction (Brighton)	Demolition hammers, drills	No worker rotation system
Food Processing (Horsham)	Dough mixers, packers	Inadequate health checks

Sussex Compliance Hotspots:

Shoreham Port factories: Shipbuilding tools (need daily monitoring).
Burgess Hill warehouses: Forklift vibration risks.

3. How HAVS Testing Works (Step-by-Step)

Step 1: Tool Vibration Measurement

We use ISO-compliant accelerometers to measure m/s² exposure.
Test 10+ tools per site (e.g., angle grinders, jackhammers).

Step 2: Worker Exposure Assessment

Track daily usage time per employee.
Flag workers exceeding EAV (2.5 m/s²) or ELV (5 m/s²).

Step 3: Mitigation Plan

Engineering controls: Anti-vibration gloves, tool upgrades.
Administrative fixes: Job rotation, reduced shifts.
Health surveillance: Annual medical checks for at-risk staff.

Pro Tip: Sussex factories using Hilti TE 6-A22 drills reduced HAVS claims by 45% after our workplace noise assessments.

4. Penalties for Non-Compliance in Sussex

HSE Inspections: 40% of Sussex factories failed spot checks in 2024.
Common Fines:
- £5,000: Missing vibration logs.
- £15,000+: Worker injury lawsuits.

How to Avoid Fines:
✔ Pre-test high-vibration tools quarterly.
✔ Train staff on HAVS symptoms (tingling, numbness).
✔ Use HSE’s vibration calculator for self-checks.