Operatives on three of our sites across the north of England have had their risk of developing hand arm vibration syndrome (HAVS) significantly reduced after Howard Civil Engineering introduced HAVS monitor watches!

Launched in August 2022, the third-generation R-Link by Reactec is a wearable wrist device that helps manage hand arm vibration exposure and provides real-time alerts to notify workers of unsafe situations.

Reactec’s analytical platform provides cloud-based reporting which allows dynamic risk assessment and exposure reduction. For example, our team will be able to identify is a piece of equipment is faulty if it emits more or fewer vibrations than the manufacturer states, enhancing our operatives’ safety while ensuring a quality product for our clients.

Operatives on site in Sunderland were the first to receive their new watches last month, followed by our teams at Scarborough Hospital and The New Prison, Full Sutton.

Operatives on our Sunderland site having a toolbox talk about how to use the new HAVS monitoring watches. 

SHEQ manager Andy Rafton commented: “Although legislation states we don’t need to continually monitor our operatives’ hand arm vibration, Howard Civil Engineering recognises it has a duty of care to our employees. We have initially introduced these watches across three of our largest sites, but we are hoping to use these across every site in the near future.

“Not only will these watches significantly reduce the risk of our operatives developing HAVS, the cloud-based software means the entire system is completely paperless – meaning it is in accordance with our long-term goal of becoming a paperless company.”

Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS), which is also known as Vibration White Finger, is one of the most common industrial diseases in the UK. The condition is usually caused by the prolonged use of power hand tools, whose vibrations can damage the blood vessels, nerves, muscles and joints of the hand, wrist, and arm. 300,000 people in the UK suffer from the condition, for which there is no known cure, only prevention.