A 3M welding campervan has just completed a first ever tour of the UK and Ireland meeting more than 1,300 welders, health and safety professionals and engineers talking about the latest Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE) guidelines for welding fume, hazard awareness and introducing the new Speedglas Heavy-Duty Welding Helmet from 3M. The roadshow team, including application engineers, also delivered tool-box talks, training sessions and other product demos in the van. Destinations included large construction and heavy manufacturing sites.
Scott Blakelock, application engineering specialist for the Personal Safety Division at 3M, who was on the tour said, “We had a brilliant reaction from everyone, so much so that we’ve arranged another tour for next spring. People were interested in understanding more about the HSE welding fume regulations and how they can better protect themselves and their employees.
“The roadshow was timely as the HSE has recently issued a safety alert classifying all welding fumes as a carcinogen and has issued new guidelines about levels of protection for all workers exposed to welding fumes including those generated from mild steel, stainless steels, high chrome steels, armour plating and other metals.
“Taking the campervan to end-users was really well received as we were able to reach people who want more information but don’t have time to visit one of our sites.”
So far the 3M welding campervan has visited Hungary, Slovakia, Greece, Italy, Spain and Germany. It’s now off to Benelux for a six-week welding tour.
3M’s Personal Safety Division is touring the UK again in October with a fully equipped fall protection van, including the latest Virtual Reality technology so visitors can experience fall from height scenarios. Demonstrations will include drop tests, showing the forces workers experience during a fall from height, practical rescue and confined space scenarios, as well as demonstrations of products designed to prevent the dropping of tools.
If you would like to arrange for the 3M fall protection demo van or 3M welding campervan to visit your business to provide training and support to your teams, contact 3M Personal Safety Division by emailing personalsafetyUK@mmm.com.
