The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998

Made: 15th September 1998

Laid before Parliament: 25th September 1998

Coming into force: 5th December 1998

The Secretary of State, in the exercise of the powers conferred on him by sections 15(1), (2), (3)(a), (5) and (6)(a), 49 and 82(3)(a) of, and paragraphs 1(1), (2) and (3), 9, 14, 15(1) and 16 of Schedule 3 to, the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974[^f00001] (“the 1974 Act”) and of all other powers enabling him in that behalf and for the purpose of giving effect without modifications to proposals submitted to him by the Health and Safety Commission under section 11(2)(d) of the 1974 Act, after the carrying out by the said Commission of consultations in accordance with section 50(3) of that Act, hereby makes the following Regulations:

PART I — INTRODUCTION

Citation and commencement

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These Regulations may be cited as the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 and shall come into force on 5th December 1998.

Interpretation

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• (1) In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires—

• “the 1974 Act” means the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974;

• “employer” except in regulation 3(2) and (3) includes a person to whom the requirements imposed by these Regulations apply by virtue of regulation 3(3)(a) and (b);

• “essential requirements” means requirements described in regulation 10(1);

• “the Executive” means the Health and Safety Executive;

• “inspection” in relation to an inspection under paragraph (1) or (2) of regulation 6— means such visual or more rigorous inspection by a competent person as is appropriate for the purpose described in the paragraph; where it is appropriate to carry out testing for the purpose, includes testing the nature and extent of which are appropriate for the purpose;

• “power press” means a press or press brake for the working of metal by means of tools, or for die proving, which is power driven and which embodies a flywheel and clutch;

• “thorough examination” in relation to a thorough examination under paragraph (1), (2), (3) or (4) of regulation 32— means a thorough examination by a competent person; includes testing the nature and extent of which are appropriate for the purpose described in the paragraph;

• “use” in relation to work equipment means any activity involving work equipment and includes starting, stopping, programming, setting, transporting, repairing, modifying, maintaining, servicing and cleaning;

• “work equipment” means any machinery, appliance, apparatus, tool or installation for use at work (whether exclusively or not);

and related expressions shall be construed accordingly.

• (2) Any reference in regulations 32 to 34 or Schedule 3 to a guard or protection device is a reference to a guard or protection device provided for the tools of a power press.

• (3) Any reference in regulation 32 or 33 to a guard or protection device being on a power press shall, in the case of a guard or protection device designed to operate while adjacent to a power press, be construed as a reference to its being adjacent to it.

• (4) Any reference in these Regulations to—

• (a) a numbered regulation or Schedule is a reference to the regulation or Schedule in these Regulations so numbered; and

• (b) a numbered paragraph is a reference to the paragraph so numbered in the regulation in which the reference appears.

Application

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• (1) These Regulations shall apply—

• (a) in Great Britain; and

• (b) outside Great Britain as sections 1 to 59 and 80 to 82 of the 1974 Act apply by virtue of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (Application outside Great Britain) Order 1995[^f00002] (“the 1995 Order”).

• (2) The requirements imposed by these Regulations on an employer in respect of work equipment shall apply to such equipment provided for use or used by an employee of his at work.

• (3) The requirements imposed by these Regulations on an employer shall also apply—

• (a) to a relevant self-employed person, in respect of work equipment he uses at work;

• (b) subject to paragraph (5), to a person who has control to any extent of—

• (i) work equipment;

• (ii) a person at work who uses or supervises or manages the use of work equipment; or

• (iii) the way in which work equipment is used at work,

and to the extent of his control.

• (4) Any reference in paragraph (3)(b) to a person having control is a reference to a person having control in connection with the carrying on by him of a trade, business or other undertaking (whether for profit or not).

• (5) The requirements imposed by these Regulations shall not apply to a person in respect of work equipment supplied by him by way of sale, agreement for sale or hire-purchase agreement.

• (6) Subject to paragraphs (7) to (10), these Regulations shall not impose any obligation in relation to a ship’s work equipment (whether that equipment is used on or off the ship).

• (7) Where merchant shipping requirements are applicable to a ship’s work equipment, paragraph (6) shall relieve the shore employer of his obligations under these Regulations in respect of that equipment only where he has taken all reasonable steps to satisfy himself that the merchant shipping requirements are being complied with in respect of that equipment.

• (8) In a case where the merchant shipping requirements are not applicable to the ship’s work equipment by reason only that for the time being there is no master, crew or watchman on the ship, those requirements shall nevertheless be treated for the purpose of paragraph (7) as if they were applicable.

• (9) Where the ship’s work equipment is used in a specified operation paragraph (6) shall not apply to regulations 7 to 9, 11 to 13, 20 to 22 and 30 (each as applied by regulation 3).

• (10) Paragraph (6) does not apply to a ship’s work equipment provided for use or used in an activity (whether carried on in or outside Great Britain) specified in the 1995 Order save that it does apply to—

• (a) the loading, unloading, fuelling or provisioning of the ship; or

• (b) the construction, reconstruction, finishing, refitting, repair, maintenance, cleaning or breaking up of the ship.

• (11) In this regulation—

• “master” has the meaning assigned to it by section 313(1) of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995[^f00003];

• “merchant shipping requirements” means the requirements of regulations 3 and 4 of the Merchant Shipping (Guarding of Machinery and Safety of Electrical Equipment) Regulations 1988[^f00004] and regulations 5 to 10 of the Merchant Shipping (Hatches and Lifting Plant) Regulations 1988[^f00005];

• “relevant self-employed person” means a self-employed person who conducts an undertaking of a prescribed description for the purposes of section 3(2) of the 1974 Act;

• “ship” has the meaning assigned to it by section 313(1) of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995 save that it does not include an offshore installation;

• “shore employer” means an employer of persons (other than the master and crew of any ship) who are engaged in a specified operation;

• “specified operation” means an operation in which the ship’s work equipment is used—by persons other than the master and crew; orwhere persons other than the master and crew are liable to be exposed to a risk to their health or safety from its use.

PART II — GENERAL

Suitability of work equipment

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• (1) Every employer shall ensure that work equipment is so constructed or adapted as to be suitable for the purpose for which it is used or provided.

• (2) In selecting work equipment, every employer shall have regard to the working conditions and to the risks to the health and safety of persons which exist in the premises or undertaking in which that work equipment is to be used and any additional risk posed by the use of that work equipment.

• (3) Every employer shall ensure that work equipment is used only for operations for which, and under conditions for which, it is suitable.

• (4) In this regulation “suitable”–

• (a) subject to sub-paragraph (b), means suitable in any respect which it is reasonably foreseeable will affect the health or safety of any person;

• (b) in relation to–

• (i) an offensive weapon within the meaning of section 1(4) of the Prevention of Crime Act 1953 provided for use as self-defence or as deterrent equipment; and

• (ii) work equipment provided for use for arrest or restraint, by a person who holds the office of constable or an appointment as police cadet, means suitable in any respect which it is reasonably foreseeable will affect the health or safety of such person.

Maintenance

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• (1) Every employer shall ensure that work equipment is maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair.

• (2) Every employer shall ensure that where any machinery has a maintenance log, the log is kept up to date.

Inspection

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• (1) Every employer shall ensure that, where the safety of work equipment depends on the installation conditions, it is inspected—

• (a) after installation and before being put into service for the first time; or

• (b) after assembly at a new site or in a new location,

to ensure that it has been installed correctly and is safe to operate.

• (2) Every employer shall ensure that work equipment exposed to conditions causing deterioration which is liable to result in dangerous situations is inspected—

• (a) at suitable intervals; and

• (b) each time that exceptional circumstances which are liable to jeopardise the safety of the work equipment have occurred,

to ensure that health and safety conditions are maintained and that any deterioration can be detected and remedied in good time.

• (3) Every employer shall ensure that the result of an inspection made under this regulation is recorded and kept until the next inspection under this regulation is recorded.

• (4) Every employer shall ensure that no work equipment—

• (a) leaves his undertaking; or

• (b) if obtained from the undertaking of another person, is used in his undertaking,

unless it is accompanied by physical evidence that the last inspection required to be carried out under this regulation has been carried out.

• (5) This regulation does not apply to—

• (a) a power press to which regulations 32 to 35 apply;

• (b) a guard or protection device for the tools of such power press;

• (c) work equipment for lifting loads including persons;

• (d) winding apparatus to which the Mines Regulations 2014 apply;

• (e) work equipment required to be inspected by regulations 22(4) or 23(2) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015;

• (f) work equipment to which regulation 12 of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 applies.

Specific risks

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• (1) Where the use of work equipment is likely to involve a specific risk to health or safety, every employer shall ensure that—

• (a) the use of that work equipment is restricted to those persons given the task of using it; and

• (b) repairs, modifications, maintenance or servicing of that work equipment is restricted to those persons who have been specifically designated to perform operations of that description (whether or not also authorised to perform other operations).

• (2) The employer shall ensure that the persons designated for the purposes of sub-paragraph (b) of paragraph (1) have received adequate training related to any operations in respect of which they have been so designated.

Information and instructions

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• (1) Every employer shall ensure that all persons who use work equipment have available to them adequate health and safety information and, where appropriate, written instructions pertaining to the use of the work equipment.

• (2) Every employer shall ensure that any of his employees who supervises or manages the use of work equipment has available to him adequate health and safety information and, where appropriate, written instructions pertaining to the use of the work equipment.

• (3) Without prejudice to the generality of paragraphs (1) or (2), the information and instructions required by either of those paragraphs shall include information and, where appropriate, written instructions on—

• (a) the conditions in which and the methods by which the work equipment may be used;

• (b) foreseeable abnormal situations and the action to be taken if such a situation were to occur; and

• (c) any conclusions to be drawn from experience in using the work equipment.

• (4) Information and instructions required by this regulation shall be readily comprehensible to those concerned.

Training

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• (1) Every employer shall ensure that all persons who use work equipment have received adequate training for purposes of health and safety, including training in the methods which may be adopted when using the work equipment, any risks which such use may entail and precautions to be taken.

• (2) Every employer shall ensure that any of his employees who supervises or manages the use of work equipment has received adequate training for purposes of health and safety, including training in the methods which may be adopted when using the work equipment, any risks which such use may entail and precautions to be taken.

Conformity with Community requirements

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• (1) Every employer shall ensure that an item of work equipment conforms at all times with any essential requirements, other than requirements which, at the time of its being first supplied or put into service in any place in which these Regulations apply, did not apply to work equipment of its type.

• (2) In this regulation “essential requirements”, in relation to an item of work equipment, means requirements relating to the design and construction of work equipment of its type in any of the instruments listed in Schedule 1 (being instruments which give effect to Community directives concerning the safety of products).

• (3) This regulation applies to items of work equipment provided for use in the premises or undertaking of the employer for the first time after 31st December 1992.

Dangerous parts of machinery

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• (1) Every employer shall ensure that measures are taken in accordance with paragraph (2) which are effective—

• (a) to prevent access to any dangerous part of machinery or to any rotating stock-bar; or

• (b) to stop the movement of any dangerous part of machinery or rotating stock-bar before any part of a person enters a danger zone.

• (2) The measures required by paragraph (1) shall consist of—

• (a) the provision of fixed guards enclosing every dangerous part or rotating stock-bar where and to the extent that it is practicable to do so, but where or to the extent that it is not, then

• (b) the provision of other guards or protection devices where and to the extent that it is practicable to do so, but where or to the extent that it is not, then

• (c) the provision of jigs, holders, push-sticks or similar protection appliances used in conjunction with the machinery where and to the extent that it is practicable to do so,

and the provision of such information, instruction, training and supervision as is necessary.

• (3) All guards and protection devices provided under sub-paragraphs (a) or (b) of paragraph (2) shall—

• (a) be suitable for the purpose for which they are provided;

• (b) be of good construction, sound material and adequate strength;

• (c) be maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair;

• (d) not give rise to any increased risk to health or safety;

• (e) not be easily bypassed or disabled;

• (f) be situated at sufficient distance from the danger zone;

• (g) not unduly restrict the view of the operating cycle of the machinery, where such a view is necessary;

• (h) be so constructed or adapted that they allow operations necessary to fit or replace parts and for maintenance work, restricting access so that it is allowed only to the area where the work is to be carried out and, if possible, without having to dismantle the guard or protection device.

• (4) All protection appliances provided under sub-paragraph (c) of paragraph (2) shall comply with sub-paragraphs (a) to (d) and (g) of paragraph (3).

• (5) In this regulation—

• “danger zone” means any zone in or around machinery in which a person is exposed to a risk to health or safety from contact with a dangerous part of machinery or a rotating stock-bar;

• “stock-bar” means any part of a stock-bar which projects beyond the head-stock of a lathe.

Protection against specified hazards

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• (1) Every employer shall take measures to ensure that the exposure of a person using work equipment to any risk to his health or safety from any hazard specified in paragraph (3) is either prevented, or, where that is not reasonably practicable, adequately controlled.

• (2) The measures required by paragraph (1) shall—

• (a) be measures other than the provision of personal protective equipment or of information, instruction, training and supervision, so far as is reasonably practicable; and

• (b) include, where appropriate, measures to minimise the effects of the hazard as well as to reduce the likelihood of the hazard occurring.

• (3) The hazards referred to in paragraph (1) are—

• (a) any article or substance falling or being ejected from work equipment;

• (b) rupture or disintegration of parts of work equipment;

• (c) work equipment catching fire or overheating;

• (d) the unintended or premature discharge of any article or of any gas, dust, liquid, vapour or other substance which, in each case, is produced, used or stored in the work equipment;

• (e) the unintended or premature explosion of the work equipment or any article or substance produced, used or stored in it.

• (4) For the purposes of this regulation “adequately” means adequately having regard only to the nature of the hazard and the nature and degree of exposure to the risk.