Blizard Institute Health and Safety Committee
Minutes of the meeting held on Monday 22ndOctober 2012
Present: Mike Curtis, Jeff Maskell, Chris Pelling, Jo Kirner, Sam Benson, Kerry Newbury, Chris
Evagora, Ralph Thompson, Graham Neil, Steve Cannon, Eithne O’Sullivan, Yoann Personne, Jenny
Waters, Susan Surguy, Debbie Hampson.
Action
1.
2.
3.
Apologies for absence:
Muriel McAughtry, Greg Michael, Aine McKnight
Minutes of the meeting held on 18th April 2012: Accepted as an accurate record
Matters arising:
 Terms of reference – amended to include 1. Innovation Centre and
Pathology and Pharmacy Building as areas of the Blizard Institute (item
2), 2. To cover actions to be taken in response to a Fire Risk Assessment
(item 6).
 To identify laboratory areas within the Pathology and Pharmacy
Building occupied by Blizard Institute staff: JK had sent a list of academic
staff to CE and CE has emailed them to find their location within the
building.
 Fault on MSC in HIV CL3 lab: Fault rectified.
 Fire equipment checks (laboratory areas): the Blizard Building and the
1st floor of the Abernethy Building are now checked regularly by Lab
Management.
Sue Surguy to arrange these checks for the Wingate Building (ground
floor and above).
JM to send SS the Fire Marshal weekly checklist
 Fire equipment checks (office and communal areas of the Blizard,
Abernethy and Yvonne Carter): to be arranged
 Fire Induction and Familiarisation:
Now extended to new staff and students on the Blizard and 1st floor
Abernethy Building (NCBRSI).
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
CE
SS
JM
JK/KN/MM
Sue Surguy to arrange/delegate this for the Wingate Building.
SS
Inductions to be arranged for the Yvonne Carter Building.
Fire safety refresher courses (required every 2 years): JM to contact Fire
Officer for information on how this can be accomplished.
Induction for new staff and students:
SS to arrange/delegate this task for the Wingate Building. SS will keep
records for all inductees.
JK/KN/MM
JM
SS
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

4.
MM to arrange inductions for staff and students in the YC Building and
maintain records.
Training records: JM had contacted the OHS Department about this.
They are working on a QM-wide system and hope to be able to circulate
details soon.
PPE: JM had sent a Blizard-wide email after the meeting in April
reiterating Kevin Thurlow’s edict that the wearing of PPE (i.e. safety
eyewear etc) must be based on risk assessment. The onus is on those
who supervise staff and students who work in the laboratory areas of the
Blizard Institute to ensure that they have ‘suitable and sufficient’ Risk
Assessments and that they are read and signed by everyone involved in
the project. It was also made quite clear that owing to the communal
nature of many of the Blizard laboratory areas staff and students should
be advised to wear safety eyewear at all times. Laboratory Management
continue to supply safety eyewear free of charge to all new staff and
students at the induction sessions.
MM
JM
H&S Co-ordinators’ reports:
Laboratory areas (SB): SB has been reviewing the Risk assessments in the Blizard
Building over the past few months. Although many were found to be good while
others needed to be reviewed and updated. An email will be sent to Centre
Leads where RAs are in urgent need of attention.
Has been leading his team in an effort to eliminate unlabeled and poorly labelled
bottles from the labs.
Removing empty boxes and cardboard waste from the labs on a daily basis.
Compiling a list of procedures to deal with spillages of various commonly used
chemicals.
Office and Communal areas (KN): KN has received many reports of problems
with disabled toilets. RT said that the contract has been taken over by Cannon
Hygiene.
Pathology and Pharmacy Building (CE): Nothing to report
5.
Containment Level 3 Laboratories:
Blizard TB (YP): YP reported problems with airflows in one of the MSCs. Higher
than normal values (1.2 – 1.4 m/sec) on the left hand side of the working
aperture, but normal readings elsewhere. The MSC will not be used until further
notice. JM to contact the engineer for advice.
Blizard HIV (EO): Nothing to report
Abernethy HepB/C (JW): Nothing to report
Abernethy HPA TB: No one to report
JM
Fire safety:
Inductions for new staff and students/ equipment checks discussed above.
Fire Marshals: It was agreed that the Fire Marshal system in the Blizard appears
to be adequate, despite not being regimented. It was emphasised that the two
push-bar doors leading to Turner Street must be patrolled by security or Blizard
staff in order to prevent access during an activation of the fire alarm. RT said that
a CCTV camera will be fitted to the Wingate Building to cover these doors.
New fire alarm system: A new fire alarm system is to be installed in the Blizard
Building. Work will begin in two weeks and the whole process will take
approximately five months. The new system will be fitted alongside the existing
one, the latter being removed at the end of the process. This work is necessary
as the existing system is not considered adequate and there have been several
problems with spurious activations over the past few years.
RT to circulate details of this project Blizard-wide to ensure that everyone is
made aware. It is hoped that any disruption during these works will be kept to a
minimum.
6.
7.
8.
Fire Risk Assessment – Wingate Building: SS said that many of the items
highlighted in the report were actually ok and didn’t require any action (COSHH
RAs, signs for compressed gases etc). Many of the other issues relating to fire
doors and the actual structure of the building will be considered if the Estates
Department has sufficient funds.
SS to draft a response and forward to MC for approval and submission.
H&S inspections: A peer review inspection of the Blizard delivery yard, post
room, chemical waste store and cryogenics room was carried out by a team from
the SMD Faculty Health and Safety Management Group on Wednesday 17th
October. A few minor issues were raised but otherwise all appeared ok. A report
will be sent to us in due course. A HasMap inspection of the Blizard will take
place early next year. However, we must be given three month notice.
Blizard Institute website: Under the Laboratory Management and Core Facilities
heading information is now readily available regarding access to, and training on,
the use of equipment in the communal areas of the laboratories, such as the
heavy equipment rooms. Also included are the local H&S rules and the forms
(induction, H&S and Fire Induction and Familiarisation forms) required for
requesting access to the building. There will also be training request forms for
supervisors to complete in order to arrange training sessions for their staff and
students on centrifuges, autoclaves and other equipment.
Minutes of the last SMD Faculty H&S Management Group meeting: This
document was included mainly for the information of Blizard Institute H&S
Committee members but several points were of interest to this Committee.
 A new laboratory clearance procedure is in place for the SMD. It will be
the responsibility of Institute Managers to complete and sign this
document, but they will be able to involve other staff in the process.
 A HASMAP audit was in process for the BCI. It is likely that the Blizard
Institute will be inspected during the early part of 2013.
 Progress on the QM-wide training records system was raised. This should
be completed by the end of the year and may be implemented in 2013.
RT
SS/MC
10. AOB:
CP said that he had been involved in a discussion with a member of the Estates
Department staff regarding the possibility that the Institute may be asked to pay
for paper towels sometime in the future. RT was aware, but said that he would
rather not comment at the moment.
Items raised by staff/students
Faulty infra red taps on hand-wash basins in Blizard Building labs: Lab
Management to contact Estates Help Desk to rectify.
JM
Lighting reported to be inadequate in some areas of the in open plan labs outside JM
normal hours when main canopy lights are off: Lab Management to investigate
A strong smell of mercaptoethanol vapour was reported emanating from the
central open plan lab area: Lab Management to investigate.
JM