Hand Arm Vibration Testing by AP Tools

If your employees use any kind of powered tool, you need hand arm vibration (HAV) testing for every tool used in your business to comply with legal requirements.

The Control of Vibration at Work Regulations (2005) require employers to prevent or reduce risks to health and safety from exposure to vibration at work, focusing on:

  • Vibration exposure level
  • Vibration exposure time

Non-compliance can lead to large fines.

Need HAV testing in a hurry?

Contact us to discuss your requirements and make sure your business is compliant
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Hand Arm Vibration testing by AP Tools

The Regulations require you as a business to assess the risk to employees from exposure to vibration in the workplace. Our technicians can test all your tools either onsite or offsite using specialist software to deliver a complete HAV testing service that covers:

  • Precise vibration levels measurements
  • HSE compliant, detailed reports
  • List of actions you need to take to reduce risk

Our comprehensive testing service also includes:

  • Onsite or offsite Hand Arm Vibration tool testing
  • Whole Body Vibration (sit on diggers, lawnmowers etc)
  • Preventative maintenance of tooling
  • Trigger time risk assessment
  • PDFs supplied for all tool tests on request
  • Separate log sheets for areas/departments
  • Manufacturers suggested HAV level guidelines
  • Hand Arm Vibration testing monitors

Why choose HAV testing from AP Tools
All our technicians are fully trained and certified by the IOSH (Institution of Occupational Safety & Health) since July 2005. We’ve also worked closely with the HSE (Health and Safety Executive) in implementing best practice.

Our technicians have over 20 years of engineering experience, and have conducted additional training in tooling repairs for many manufacturers. Our dedicated team has an array of skills and knowledge to share, so do ask if you need help, advice or information.

Additionally, our highly competent sales team is always happy to assist. Some of our team have completed the same HAV qualification, so can give clear and precise advice.

We offer a very competitive price to suit on-site or off-site testing, according to your requirements, and we’re here at the end of the phone is your need specific information or tool specs fast.

Contact us to discuss your requirements:

The right tool for the job

It’s important that your team are using the right tool for the task. Our technicians have extensive knowledge and experience of the tools and consumables that should be used for any given process.

Your employees also have duties under the regulations. Operator training is a valuable step towards a more responsible HAV safety culture. Our technicians can also advise your employees on the correct method to use any of the tools we supply to supplement your own in-house training.

Ongoing monitoring and testing

As part of your business’s ongoing H&S, you need to provide information, training and health surveillance to control exposure to hand-arm vibration. Tools may vibrate more as they wear out, you may start to work with new materials that vibrate in a different way, or your workforce may start using new tools.

At AP Tools, we offer an annual PPM plan for all your tools, to ensure your employees are not exposed to excessive vibration. Our service takes the guesswork out of tool testing by providing a regular schedule for all your tools including:

  • HAV and WBV testing and associated HSE complaint reporting
  • Regular tool maintenance and repair including recall schedules
  • Recalibration of precision tools
  • Onsite visits to check measures to reduce vibration are in place
  • Total asset management to include type of tool, make and model

We can even schedule testing and maintenance around your work shifts and schedules to ensure minimal disruption to your business.

HAV FAQs

Hand Arm Vibration is the name given to vibration exposure to the hands and arms of workers from power tools and machinery. As the HSE explains:
“Hand-arm vibration (HAV) is a widespread hazard for employees in many industries and occupations, e.g. energy, extraction, manufacturing and construction. HAV exposure at work can arise from the use of handheld machines (such as grinders and hammer drills), hand-guided machinery (such as lawnmowers and plate compactors) and hand-fed machines (such as pedestal grinders and forge hammers). Regular and frequent exposure to this vibration, usually over many months or years, can affect the operator’s health.”

If any employees are sitting, standing or working on a surface that vibrates, such as a truck seat, you need to know the vibration levels to properly assess the risk to their health. That’s why you need Whole Body Vibration testing performed at your workplace. To discuss WBV testing, just contact us.

You can download a copy of the Hand-Arm Vibration regulations for free from the HSE website

Some companies use a tagging system after testing but at AP Tools, we use a label. We firmly believe that the more detail supplied on the label, the more informative it is for the customer. They can therefore choose to use what they want, when they want.

Once a tool has been tested by us, the label is immediately applied. This will state the vibration type and exposure value/s, (EAV – Exposure Action Value and ELV – Exposure Limit Value). The value you use will depend on your own H&S guidelines along with advice from AP Tools Ltd. This value then refers to the ’trigger time’ on the tool.

We use a simple traffic light system to make it easier for the operative, as shown below:

ColourVibration Levels
GREENThe tool is generating less than 2.5m/s2 of vibration and can be used for more than 24 hours.
ORANGEThe vibration magnitude is between 2.5m/s2 and 4.99m/s2. It will generally be okay but ‘may have’ a time restriction on a normal 8-hour working day.
REDHas a poor vibration result of over 5m/s2 and will have a restriction on its use over a working shift.

Another system often used in companies to simplify the use of tooling is a ‘points’ scale. Every individual has a maximum of either 100 or 400 points per day/shift. This will depend on the value/s used within the company or maybe even just for high risk individuals.

Each tool tested has a ‘points per hour’ rating based on ‘trigger time’. This can enable employees to monitor their own use of tooling.

AP Tools Ltd can supply and fit trigger timers where necessary or on request and can assist with the supply of a useful HAV calculator which offers guidance on multi-tool usage. For further advice on this, just contact us.