Important Note: The Non-ionising Radiation Standards and associated documents have been issued in draft in order to provide users the opportunity to make comment.
If you have any feedback, please contact the Health and Safety Advisory Service email: safety or telephone 2944. Thank you.
This site provides advice on how to manage the health and safety of employees, students and others who work with lasers or may be affected by laser work in the University. It explains what heads of department, principal researches, academic supervisors, managers, employees and students need to do to manage laser risks and provides resources to do this.
Use of lasers off University premises
Laser displays and outside laser work on University premises
Safety of optical fibre communication systems
Registration and records for laser workers
The Laser Safety Standard applies to activities using laser products and laser systems as part of the University business that present a significant risk to health and safety.
If you know the class of laser and want to know what you need to do, go to the Quick Guide to Laser Safety.
The Laser Safety Standard
forms
part of the University's
Health, Safety and Wellbeing Policy for controlling health and safety risks
arising from the use of lasers and compliance with the
Control of Artificial Optical Radiation at Work Regulations 2010.
In accordance with the Health, Safety and Wellbeing Policy, all employees and
students are therefore required to comply with the Laser Safety Standard. Also,
the Laser Safety Standard and its implementation in the University will be
periodically audited as part of the University’s health and safety management
system.
Heads of Department/Section
have overall
responsibility for ensuring their department complies with the University’s
requirements relating to the control of health and safety risks arising from
laser work.
Academic Supervisors
are responsible for the safety of staff and students whilst they are under their
supervision, which includes ensuring that they understand the health and safety
risks associated with academic activities and follow health and safety
instructions.
Principal Investigators
are responsible for the
health and safety management of their research projects and must ensure laser
risks are assessed during the planning of the project and kept under review
throughout.
Students
follow the University’s and their
department’s health and safety local rules, and any instructions given to them
by a member of staff for their health and safety.
Managers are
responsible for the implementation of
Laser Safety Standard in their area of control.
Managers, principal investigators
and academic supervisors will be referred to
as
responsible persons in this Standard.
They are responsible for ensuring
that the departmental laser local rules and other departmental rules are
implemented in their area of responsibility
The following are advisory roles.
Departmental Non-Ionising
Radiation Protection Advisers (DNIRPAs)
Provide advice on the purchase and safe management of lasers that present a significant risk to health. Ensure such equipment is used in accordance with statutory requirements, the University’s Standards and laser local rules.
University Non-Ionising Radiation
Protection Advisor (UNIRPA)
Coordinating the development and
review of University-wide policy on the safety management of lasers.
Other University health and safety
standards that may apply:
The responsible person must ensure a suitable and sufficient risk assessment is undertaken
for the laser work before it starts. Guidance on laser risk assessment is available
from the Association of University Radiation Protection Officers (AURPO)
Guidance on the
safe use of lasers on education and research
and the HSAS’
Risk Assessment
webpage. Laser risk assessments templates are available for
lasers
class 1M, 2M, 3R and higher
risk lasers class
3B and 4.
An adequate risk
assessment will cover the lifecycle of the work.
Laser installation
Normal operations, including testing
Maintenance and servicing
Emergency and
unforeseen circumstance
Relocation and
transportation
Decommissioning
Disposal
At each stage of the laser work, a range of laser and
non-beam hazards could be present and cause laser workers and others harm.
For more information on laser class, laser and non-beam hazards go to:
A Guide to Laser and Non-Beam
Hazards. The risk assessment should be
reviewed periodically and updated as the nature of the work changes by the
responsible person.
The responsible person must ensure the risks from the laser work are controlled, are implemented, communicated to those people at risk, monitored and maintained throughout the work. Guidance on general safety procedures for specific classes of laser and basic risk reduction measures are available in AURPO’s Guidance on the safe use of lasers on education and research.
If reasonably practicable, the
lowest class of laser should be used for undergraduate student teaching and
should be restricted to Classes 1, 1M, 2, 2M and visible Class 3R.
Undergraduate students who want to use Class 3B and 4 lasers will be treated as an authorised laser worker and subject to the normal registration and training process. The responsible person must submit a suitable and sufficient risk assessment and laser scheme of work to the DNIRPA and UNIRPA for approval. This should be done in reasonable time before the laser work commences.
Lasers, other than Class 1 and 2,
must not be used away from the University without the written permission
from the head of department. The responsible person must have this
permission, a risk
assessment and a laser scheme of work and provide it for the DNIRPA and UNIRPA for approval.
It should be done in
reasonable time before work starts off site.
The responsible person for the display must:
carry out a risk assessment for the display;
ensure that the requirements of Health and Safety Executive’s Radiation Safety of Lasers used for Display Purposes are complied with;
statutory notifications are made (for example Public Entertainment Licenses);
consult
the Civil Aviation Authority if the beam goes into air space.
For more information:
Operation of Directed Light, Fireworks, Toy Balloons and Sky
Lanterns within UK Airspace
submit the risk assessment to UNIRPA for approval in reasonable time before the scheduled display.
Where an optical fibre
communications system is being installed as part of the University’s infra
structure the system it should be installed to BS EN 60825-2 Safety of laser
products, Part 2 Safety of Optical Fibre Communication Systems.
Where such a system is used for
research the system should comply with the above. If this is not practicable the
system should conform to the Section's or Departmental local rules.
The head of department ensures local rules are developed and in place to locally manage the risk from Class 3R, 3B and 4 lasers are that they reviewed regularly. The responsible person(s), with support and advice from the DNIRPA, or DHSO or HSLO where applicable, will develop the local rules and implement them in their area of responsibility. For guidance on local rules go to: A guide to laser local rules.
Class 3R, 3B and 4 lasers must be
identified by the responsible person and recorded on the departmental laser
inventory. Updated copies of the laser inventory are kept by the department and be available to the UNIRPA. A laser inventory template is
available from AURPO’s
Guidance on the
safe use of lasers on education and research,
Appendix 1.
Class 3R, 3B and 4 laser work must
have its own laser scheme of work
based on the outcomes of the risk assessment. A laser scheme of work
template is available from AURPO’s
Guidance on the
safe use of lasers on education and research,
Appendix 5. The current laser scheme of
work must be displayed in a prominent position close the work area and readily
available to laser workers and others who may be affect by the laser work.
A laser control area is a
designated area under the responsibility of the department where the laser work
needs supervision for the purpose of protection from the laser radiation
hazards. Class 3B and 4 lasers operate in laser controlled areas. Open beam work
for laser Classes 1M, 2M and 3R should be carried out in a laser controlled
area.
The department with the co-operation of the responsible person for the high risk
laser will ensure laser control areas are identified and suitable signs put in
place. Guidance is available on what labels are required (Guidance
on the safe use of lasers on education and research,
Appendix
10 and in section 4.6). Only authorised laser workers can enter the laser control area.
The responsible person will identify potential laser workers in the risk
assessment and ensure they are registered with the department. All people
intending to work with any class of laser, except inherently safe Class 1 or
Class 2 devices or embedded products, should be registered. People who could or
are going to modify Class 1M or 2M devices should be registered.
The department will maintain an up to date record of departmental laser workers and
have it available to the UNIRPA.
A laser worker registration form is available from AURPO’s
Guidance on the
safe use of lasers on education and research,
Appendix 2. A
laser worker register template
The head of department should
ensure adequate training for all registered laser workers and others who may be
affected by the work. It is the responsibility of the responsible person to
ensure laser workers receive appropriate training before work starts.
All registered laser workers should have basic instruction in laser hazards and their control. A Laser Safety PowerPoint presentation and Laser Safety session plan are available and can be modified to reflect local arrangements.
Appropriate refresher training
should be given by the responsible person at regular intervals to registered
laser workers and when there are significant changes in the risk assessment.
Advice on training frequency is available from the UNIRPA.
Other workers not directly associated with the laser work, but could be affected
by the work (for example cleaners, maintenance workers, serving contractors,
other University employees etc.) identified by the risk assessment require basic
laser safety
training and information on the control measures to ensure their safety whilst
carrying out their work.
The department will maintain an up to date training record for departmental laser workers and have it available to the UNIRPA. A record of attendance should be made and a training record template is available to AURPO’s Guidance on the safe use of lasers on education and research, Appendix 13.
The responsible person should
identify lasers with the appropriate hazard warning label, according to the risk
they present. Guidance is available on what labels are required in AURPO’s
Guidance on the
safe use of lasers on education and research,
Appendix 10 and in section 4.5.
Health and safety incidents
involving lasers and/or laser workers should be reported as soon as possible to
the DNIRPA and the UNIRPA using the
University's Health and Safety Incident Reporting procedure and forms.
People whose eyes and skin may have been exposed to a laser beam should seek medical assistance immediately. The details on where to go and the consultant’s name for specialist medical help are available from the UNIRPA.
Emergency details form part of the
departmental laser local rules. A laminated emergency notice kept with each
laser can be taken to hospital. The notice should have the laser output
characteristics, instructions on what to do in an emergency, details on where to
go and consultant details.
Servicing and maintenance of lasers by external contractors needs to be managed by the department. Advanced planning and communication with the contractor, the responsible person and the DNIRPA to ensure adequate risk assessments for proposed work takes place. The contractor must submit a suitable and sufficient risk assessment and method statement to the DNIRPA and responsible person for approval. This should be done in reasonable time before the work commences.
It is likely the contractor will need to have a laser controlled area for their work and it is recommended that this should be designated to the contractor for the duration of the work. Transfer of control should be recorded, in writing, to the DNIRPA and include a copy of the contractor’s local rules. The work may require a Permit to Work. Estate Management Section has advice on Permits to Work and when they are required.
