Hi Meady Firstly I would like at engineering measures such as dust extraction, is there any local exhaust ventilation in place. I would also look at introducing health monitoring forms, to pro-actively identfy if there are any health issues with the workforce. It would also be a good idea to use an industrial vacuum cleaner (M Class) to clean up the dust rather than sweeping, as sweeping as you point out can matters worse. Another area to look at during the risk assessment process is the use of RPE and whether it is required. Hope this helps Gav

Not a solution but might help somewhat, instead of the sweeping, use a wet machine for the floors? It will clump the dust and debris rather than lift it back into the air when sweeping.

Rather than a conventional approach using workplace area LEV systems, think about on-tool extraction. Each item of equipment, including hand held power tools, should be fitted with such extraction. This can be much more effective than allowing the dust to get out into the workplace then trying to remove it through LEV, sweeping, etc. I have just produced a proposal on this for a dusty workplace (with lots of hand held tools for sanding and grinding) with extensive LEV that was not achieving control needed. (I have no commercial interest in any of the suppliers of such equipment.) If you need more information PM me and I will happily (and without obligation) point you in the appropriate direction. Chris

Thanks for the comments guys. The on-tool extraction is definitely an idea I am going to look into, and trying to get the vacuum is another one that I hadn't even thought of...but I am told that the company looked at this option previously but decided it was too much of an expense (I'm hoping to get a good deal from somewhere!). Thanks again for all of the input

Try Numatic for the vacuum cleaners (they also produce the good old Henry). The heavy duty/ATEX approved versions can get into the high hundreds but at the end of the day if it prevents multiple health claims in the years to come then it is probabaly an investment worth considering. BVC and Nederman would be others worth contacting?

Hi, Some years back I worked in a joinery manufacturing company and dust levels too where quite high and you always seemed to be clearing up, what we done to combat was; 1. Sourced some dressed material that meant minimal work needing completed on the wood 2. Made sure that the crown guards where fitted with LEV as well as the underside of table saws 3. Used a hard brush to sweep off the top layer of dust from undressed woods, it is quite amazing the amount of dust that is displaced when feeding through a thickness planer. 4. Damping down as much as possible when sweeping It certainly never eliminated the amounts of dust but it did make an impact on the frequency of sweeping up, the organisation I worked for certainly could not afford to source out everything or install a top of the range LEV but we did what we could. Chris

Hi thanks again for the input. There was a dust test a few months back which found the levels within the WELs but I still think there is room for improvement (and so do the guys in the factory) so im going to keep raising the issue and see what we can do. Thanks again