Tag: safety

bryony 07.07.23

At Vulcan Inspection Services, we’re committed to keeping breweries brewing with the very best inspection services, making sure that our customers’ critical machinery is legally compliant, operational, and, most importantly, safe for their people to use.   

 

We work closely with NFU Mutual to understand how we can assist craft brewers in keeping their machinery and plant compliant, and from inspecting second-hand distillery equipment to carrying out Prior-to-Purchase exams, we put our customers and their equipment first, always.   

This is why we’re so thrilled to have the opportunity to sponsor We Are Beer this year once again, with the exciting addition that we’re also sponsoring their Raise the Bar competition too! This means that we’ll be able to meet even more people from across the UK to spread the word about the importance of breweries and distilleries keeping up to date with the relevant regulations and inspections to stay safe.   

Our team had a fantastic time at their first event of the year on Friday the 16th of June, and enjoyed having the chance to speak to brewers and distillers from across the nation about their machinery, equipment, and the regulations that affect them.   

Melissa Boyes, Account Director at Vulcan Inspection Services with years of experience in working alongside NFU Mutual to support craft breweries in the UK, attended the event with members of the NFU Mutual team.   

During the event, Melissa was able to put her expert knowledge to the test when she was asked to sit on the tasting panel for the Raise the Bar competition, where the best up-and-coming brewers in the country competed for the chance to come and share their beer at each of the Bristol, Manchester, and London festivals.  

Afterwards, she had a brilliant time meeting with the winners and asking them some questions about what this event meant to them.   

Melissa said, “It’s been a fantastic few weeks sitting as a judge on the tasting panel and then having the opportunity to meet the winners at the Bristol Craft Beer Festival. We work closely with NFU Mutual to understand how we can assist craft brewers in keeping their plant and machinery compliant, and this event provided an excellent opportunity to meet them for the first time.”  

The recent festival in Bristol was just the start of this year’s line-up, and we’re looking forward to meeting even more brewers and attendees at We Are Beer’s Manchester event on the 21st and 22nd of July, and their London Craft Festival on the 11th and 12th of August. Come and join us in discussing your requirements, and of course sampling beers from some of the best up-and-coming breweries in the UK, by registering here.

Have you recently purchased second-hand brewing or distillery equipment? Or perhaps you just want to make sure your farming equipment is safe and compliant with the regulations that affect you? No matter what, Vulcan Inspection Services are here for you.  

Get in touch with one of our experts today, who will be more than happy to discuss your requirements and our solutions with you, by filling out the form below. 

  

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Tag: safety

emma 14.02.23
Valentine’s Day brings with it a flurry of people dining at their favourite café or lavish restaurants to celebrate love, with no expectation of things going awry. But, when things go wrong with machinery and equipment relied on for the smooth running of even the very best places to eat, they can really go wrong.

You could be a restaurant owner busy serving couples out for a candle-lit Valentine’s dinner when suddenly… the passenger lift is not up to date with its statutory inspections and malfunctions with two of your staff inside, leaving you with no one to help take food orders. As the lift is being used by your employees while at work, it falls under the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998(LOLER), and it’s your duty, as the workplace owner, to stay up to date with regularly scheduled inspections.

You could be running your independent café during a busy lunchtime rush on Valentine’s Day when… the café steam boiler behind the bar explodes, propelling the boiler itself into the seating area. As the dedicated site manager, you would be liable for the cost of damage incurred, an unlimited fine from HSE, and could even be subject to any legal proceedings if anyone was injured.

No matter what, Vulcan Inspection Services are here to make sure you and your business are compliant with all the regulations relevant to you and your people are safe.

The Food and Drink Industry

The food and drink sector is the UK’s largest manufacturing sector, forming part of a diverse and complex supply chain. Whether you own a microbrewery or a thriving bakery with increasing orders as Valentine’s Day approaches, you need to comply with the relevant legislation if you own or operate lifting equipment or accessories. Simple.

PSSR

The Pressure Systems Safety Regulations 2000 (PSSR) is set in place to prevent significant injury from the hazard of stored energy if a pressure system were to fail, by working to prevent a failure from happening in the first place. What’s more, PSSR requires pressure systems to be inspected following a Written Scheme of Examination by a competent and impartial person – and that’s where we come in. We’re both impartial and competent, and we really know our stuff, simple. For more info on our PSSR services, click here.

Taking risks when it comes to the safety of your pressure systems is no joke. When any Pressurised asset malfunctions, you’re not just putting your business and livelihood at risk, but the lives of you and your people. When a pressure boiler explodes, it can send extreme heat, shock waves, and debris flying with enormous force. In fact, if you continue to operate your café steam boiler without the necessary inspection process, you will be in direct contravention of the Pressure System Safety Regulations 2000 (PSSR), which will invalidate any insurance claims made in relation to any incident with the machine.

Just some of the food and drink sector equipment that falls under PSSR include:

 

  • Boilers and steam heating systems
  • Pressurised process plant and piping
  • Compressed air systems
  • Pressure cookers, autoclaves, and retorts
  • Heat exchangers and refrigeration plant
  • Valves, steam traps and filters
  • Pipework and hoses
  • Pressure gauges and level indicators

What’s more, hot water boilers operating at more than 110°C fall within PSSR, although it is recommended that all hot water boilers be regularly inspected. Refrigeration and air conditioning plants with combined compressor motors exceeding 25kW are also covered by these regulations, but it is important that items below this cut-off are inspected frequently too.

Café boilers, in particular, should be thoroughly maintained by a competent team. Any faults can quickly escalate and cause injury, as with the 2010 Supermarket incident, where a boiler exploded and landed in the café seating area, injuring multiple people. With that, here are some of the most common causes of faults found in café steam boilers:

Unsafe system of work for the operation of the equipment

An unsafe system of work can lead to a whole host of faults and accidents down the line, which is why it’s so important that there’s a Written Scheme of Examination (WSE) in place before the machine is brought into use. This helps to both reduce the risk of faults and, most importantly, makes working with the equipment safer for all involved.

Poor maintenance of equipment

Poor maintenance of a café steam boiler can eventually lead to it failing, which can then seriously injure, and even be fatal, to anyone close by when it does.

All of these issues can be prevented with competent installation and maintenance practices, which is what we’re here for.

LOLER

LOLER play a vital role in keeping the food and drink sector producing and the people who work within it, safe. They apply to lifting equipment across all industries, covering any work equipment which lifts or lowers a load. This includes attachments used for anchoring, in addition to any chain, rope, sling or component used to attach loads to machinery for lifting or lowering purposes. For more info on what LOLER is and how it applies to you, click here.

In the food and drink manufacturing industry, LOLER plays a huge role in keeping critical machines safe to use, and just some of the equipment used within this sector covered by LOLER includes:

  • Telescopic handler
  • Forklift truck and accessories
  • Pallet truck
  • Passenger and/or goods lift
  • Fore end loader

Almost 10,000 people a year have to visit A&E due to accidents involving lifts and other lifting equipment. Knowing the risks can help reduce them and keep people safe – and that’s what Vulcan Inspection Services are here for.

There’s a variety of things that can go wrong when it comes to lifts, including:

Worn Sheaves

When the sheaves in an elevator shaft wear down, they place extra wear on the ropes, which then leads to more wear on the sheaves. This cycle quickly wears down both completely.

Power Failure

Elevators in commercial settings require a large amount of power from the utility systems, and any updates on the system’s voltage can affect motor operations, potentially damaging the elevator system and leading to faults.

Contamination

Another issue found in lifts is contamination, which can be caused by things like improper lubrication, worn seals, and the deterioration of elevator parts. When this happens, particles can break off and be released into the oil, causing problems with the functioning of the lift.

When it comes to lifting equipment, we’re proud to say that we really know our stuff.

The Reason We Do What We Do Is to Keep People Safe, Simple

This Valentine’s Day don’t take risks when it comes to safety. The Vulcan Inspection Services are the experts, so you don’t have to be. Our whole mission is to help you, your business, and your workers, stay compliant with all of the regulations that impact you and, above all else, stay safe each and every day. We take your risk seriously, with no compromise.  It works for us and we know it will work for you too.

To learn more about how Vulcan Inspection Services can make sure your equipment is kept safe to use, simply email info@vulcaninspect.co.uk or call 01789 455 322

Tag: safety

emma 15.12.22 A few useful minutes
Find out more about how we can support small farms by reading our quick blog
Risk management for small farms

Tag: safety

emma 08.12.22
Don't take a chance when it comes to your cafe steam boiler inspections.  Read our short document for more information.
Cafe Steam Boiler Inspections

Tag: safety

emma 23.11.22
We love getting out and about and meeting our customers Which meant we were thrilled to attend the recent National Farmers Union (NFU) hosted farm event in Cheshire!

Our very own Melissa Boyes, Geoff Butters, and Emma Rimmer spent the evening meeting with our NFU reps, NFU Mutual Agents and farmers to talk more about the importance of keeping on top of statutory inspections, and how Vulcan Inspection Services can help to keep machinery and equipment safe and operational with a thorough schedule of inspections.

Melissa and Geoff also spoke to the attendees about the regulations that directly impact farmers and the wider agricultural industry,  a topic which many can find confusing.

After tucking into the BBQ, kindly put on by the NFU, our team took to the floor (which just so happened to be in a working machinery storage barn), to chat through the relevant legislation in more detail.

Melissa shared a bit of background about Vulcan Inspection Services, its history, and how we have worked directly with NFU Mutual customers for over 25 years to keep them compliant with a suite of the very best inspections.

Geoff shared his expertise with the attendees by speaking about the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations, (LOLER) a regulation that farmers often aren’t aware affects them, when in fact it does He explained that anything from lifting equipment, overhead cranes and goods and passenger lifts to telehandlers, forklifts, and lifting accessories fall under LOLER, and what this regulation means for customers.

The questions came in thick and fast, and Melissa and Geoff were more than happy to share their expert knowledge on everything farmers need to ensure their machinery is compliant and safe.

How We Can Help

At Vulcan Inspection Services, we’re committed to helping farmers manage their risk and compliance. Everything we do has been tried and tested, and we’re proud to have been working with NFU Mutual for over 25 years to make the UK farming industry a safer place.

Safety is our number one priority and is the reason we do what we do.

During the event, Melissa and Geoff also spoke more about one of our innovative services they can take advantage of – our Mini Farm product

This product is perfect for small farms with less than 5 assets that need inspecting, and we offer a fixed price offer for those with 5 or fewer assets. We’ll work around you, always doing whatever suits you and your business best.

We had a wonderful time visiting the event, meeting our NFU reps and NFU Mutual Agents and talking to a whole host of local farmers – we can’t wait to attend even more!

For more information on our range of services, contact Melissa Boyes, Vulcan Inspection Services Account Director on 01789 265355.

Leave nothing to chance with Vulcan Inspection Services.

Tag: safety

emma 28.06.21 Just one minute
Helping keep breweries safe and compliant with the very best machinery and equipment inspections.

And if you’re looking to replace older machinery with new or second hand kit, we can help with that too.  Read our document here for more information.

Tag: safety

emma 28.06.21 Just one minute
There’s no doubt that it’s been a tricky time for pubs and bars over the last 15 months.  With lock down restrictions starting to relax, however, and a number of high-profile sporting events back on the table, things are finally looking up.

With the UEFA Euro 2020 championship now in full swing, it certainly looks like people across the whole of the UK are taking the opportunity to watch the home nations with a pint (or two) at their ‘local’.  So much so that The British Beer and Pub Association forecast that almost 15 million pints would be sold on the day of the Scotland, England clash in the two countries last week, with 3.4 million pints being sold during the actual game itself!

With things just heating up on the summer sports front and several weeks of the football still ahead of us, it’s likely pubs, bars and restaurants etc will be making the most of the opportunity.  And this, of course, has a knock-on effect on our breweries and distilleries.  After a quieter period, they’ll be working hard to keep up with increased demand meaning the efficiency and effectiveness of their machinery is absolutely key…

And that’s where we come in.  At Vulcan Inspection Services, through our partnership with National Farmers Union Mutual (NFUM), we work with breweries and distilleries all over the UK and Ireland to help keep their plant and equipment safe and productive.  Our team of skilled Engineer Surveyors complete the most thorough programme of statutory inspections on all of the relevant machinery, including lifting equipment and pressure systems, to ensure they’re safe for ongoing use and fit for purpose.

We want our breweries and distilleries to be able to meet their customers’ needs just as much as they do.  Failing plant and machinery can result in unavoidable production downtime, just when demand is at its highest.  And when it comes to replacing failing or aging industrial equipment, lead times can be lengthy, sometimes taking weeks or even months to get things back up and running at full capacity.  Not what your need when you’re trying to keep the nation ‘refreshed’!

Not only that, when operating machinery of this nature, when it goes wrong, it could really go wrong, and we all know if can’t be left to chance.  Not only is it a legal requirement for breweries and distilleries to ensure their machinery and equipment inspections are up to date, but it could help prevent a serious injury, or worse.

And with another England game just around the corner (and the potential sale of another 15 million pints) staying on top of machinery maintenance is much more than a nice to have for our breweries and distilleries.

For more information about how we support our brewery and distillery customers, click here.