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FTA aims to shake up EC
Page 7
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Directive on body vibes
• The Freight Transport Association is campaigning to get truck drivers exempted from a European Commission Directive that seeks to limit the amount of vibration workers are exposed to because it is unworkable in its current form.
Originally designed to reduce the number of workers being injured by prolonged use of pneumatic drills, the Physical Agent (Vibration) Directive is due to be published later this year and to come into force in 2005,
The EC subsequently expanded the Directive to include 'whole body'' vibration which potentially affects drivers of older vehicles or those in new trucks, like tippers, on poor surfaces.
The whole thing is a bit a bit of a mess at the moment and we are trying to get it sorted out," says the ETA's engineering policy manager, Geoff Day. The directive sets a new lower limit of vibrations that workers should not be exposed to but it doesnt say who, or how it should be measured.'
Most experts agree that drivers travelling along well-maintained roads in modem vehicles will not encounter enough vibrations to qualify under the terms of the directive. However, anyone driving down long farm tracks, off-road or in quarries could. One problem is that it requires very sophisticated equipment to measure vibration— well beyond the scope of all but a few.
"We have spoken to the Health & Safety Executive who agree with us that it is not up to operators to measure it," says Day. "We feel ills something that the [vehicle] manufacturers should do—but there is nothing in the Directive to say how they should do it."
The problem is highlighted by tests conducted in Sweden by Volvo.
Day says the Swedes recently tested one of their vehicles and it was close to the new level. However, the road was resurfaced a few days later and Volvo retested the same truck, only to find the vibration levels had halved.
"Everyone agrees the matter needs clarifying,' he says. "The UK government agrees with us and the truck manufacturers are now putting pressure on their governments to act. We just need the EC to make some decisions."
• For a detailed analysis of the Physical Agent (Vibration) Directive see 0122-28 Nov 2001.