Introducing CHASAC to the UK foundry industry
Richard Heath
Helping the UK foundry industry develop and improve its physical safety practices and protect the occupational health of employees while also protecting the environment
The UK foundry sector has lots of hazards due to the nature of casting processes including molten metal, chemicals, large machinery, silica, and too many more here to mention, so it is vital that strategic work is undertaken at the highest level to help contribute towards keeping the highly skilled workers safe in an eon's old industry, that the modern world today does not function without.
CHASAC (Castings Health and Safety Advisory Committee) is a strategic health and safety delivery partnership for the castings and foundry industries to help in such matters.
The CHASAC partnership comprises the HSE, employers, trade associations and trades unions. All partners are of equal status.
CHASAC, formerly known as FIAC until 2013, is one of the long standing advisory committees established by the HSE after the introduction of the Health and Safety at Work Act. It has existed for best part of 47 years.
It affirms the commitment of the industry to the principles set out in the HSE strategy “Helping Great Britain Work Well”.
CHASAC has the following objectives:
a) To identify strategic high-level health and safety issues of relevance to the industry.
b) To agree and promulgate health and safety strategies that will lead to best practice being adopted by the industry.
c) To agree actions and programmes to deliver agreed strategic objectives.
d) To monitor and challenge the industry’s progress in implementing the strategies.
e) Promote its visible leadership role in Health and Safety to the castings and foundry industries.
f) Monitor, direct and promote the Safety and Health Foundry Targets Initiative (SHIFT).
#shiftfoundryhs