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Blake Lapthorn is a major law firm based in the South East of England. This month, it has issued a news report stating that two companies have been prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) for Legionella exposure. Blake Lapthorn’s Health and Safety team report that the prosecutions involved a company in the manufacturing industry and the firm hired to carry out the cleaning and maintenance of its three water-cooling towers. According to the article, the HSE found that neither company had taken the necessary steps to control the potential spread of Legionella bacteria. This included failing to assess the risk of Legionella, and not cleaning and maintaining the water-cooling system to a satisfactory standard. The manufacturer was fined £80,000 by the HSE and ordered to pay £45,000 costs, while the water treatment company was fined £40,000 and ordered to pay £80,000 costs. The article also notes that even where there has not been an outbreak of Legionnaire’s disease, companies can still be prosecuted if they have not taken precautions to control the risks in accordance ACoP L8 guidelines. Legionella Intelligence, a tool created by the company Black Box Intelligence, can assist with compliance of ACoP L8. It monitors critical points in water systems and can send warnings if the optimum temperature for Legionella to multiply is reached. In this way, it also reduces the risk of manual checking. To read more about Legionella Intelligence, visit http://www.jla.com/our-products-and-parts/energy-intelligence/legionella-intelligence/ JLA15082011
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Legionella, Legionella Intelligence,
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