LEV Testing · Portishead
The marine trades at Portishead marina and the units towards Gordano weld, machine, spray and fabricate, raising fume, mist and dust the law says must be controlled. We examine and test local exhaust ventilation to HSG258 and certify it.
Portishead keeps a working side around its marina and the trade units towards the Gordano estates by the motorway, where marine, engineering and vehicle firms run. Their welding and grinding bays, spray and glassfibre work and machining benches all raise something their local exhaust ventilation has to capture at source.
LEV works hard and quietly loses its edge - filters load, ducts fur, a fan tires - until a hood stops holding the exposure. We carry out thorough examination and testing to HSG258 across Portishead: measured capture and face velocities at the working points, a judgement against how the system was meant to perform, and a label carrying a next-due date you can trust.
CNC and manual machining raises oil mist and metal dust at the enclosure and bench that has to be captured at source.
Flour, powders and steam need capture at the mixing and process points, from bakeries to production kitchens.
Saws, sanders and routers throw fine wood dust that has to be drawn off at the tool and the bench.
Weld fume and grinding dust need capture at the arm and booth, wherever steel is fabricated.
Bodyshop spray booths and prep bays carry paint mist and solvent vapour that the extraction has to hold and clear.
Fume cupboards, safety cabinets and dental and salon extraction all count as LEV and all fall due on the same clock.
Real jobs, described by sector and area - never by a client's name.
In a marina boatyard, the extraction over the resin and spray work needed its thorough examination. We measured capture at the working points and the airflow through the system, set a fix on one reading, and re-tested before certifying.
A Gordano engineering unit needed its weld-fume extraction testing. We measured capture at each arm and the transport velocity, and labelled the plant with the readings and next-due date.
Condition of hoods, ducting, filters and fan - the damage, blockage and wear that quietly drops performance.
Measured capture and face velocities at the working points, plus transport velocity and static pressure through the system.
The readings assessed against how the LEV should perform to actually control the exposure - not just whether the fan turns.
Where the process warrants it, sampling to confirm the control is keeping the substance out of the breathing zone.
The point of a thorough examination and test is to prove the extraction still controls the exposure - so we measure it, we do not eyeball it. Condition, capture and face velocities, transport velocity and static pressure are checked against the design intent under HSG258, and the result is written up and labelled on the plant.
We test to the HSE's guidance, HSG258, and the job ends in a report and a label on the plant: what was measured, what passed, what needs putting right, and the date the next test falls due.
We examine the condition of the hoods, ducting, filter and fan and how each is meant to control its process.
We measure capture and face velocities, transport velocity and static pressure at every key point.
The readings are judged against the design benchmark under HSG258, with a clear pass or fail on control.
The plant is labelled and you get the report and next-due date for your COSHH records.
At least every 14 months for most systems, sooner for higher-risk work such as spraying and resin work. We match the interval to the process and label the next-due date on the plant.
The condition of hoods, ducts, filters and fan, and measured capture, face, transport and static-pressure readings - all weighed against how the LEV should perform to control the exposure.
We set out what failed and why, usually a single reading, so it can be corrected, then re-test to confirm control before certifying.
Yes - the marine, engineering and fabrication units across Portishead, and the wider Somerset.
No - weld fume, paint and resin spray, machining mist, metal and wood dust and fume cupboards all fall under the same duty.
The marina boatyards and the Gordano units carry Portishead's welding, spraying and fabrication trades, the fume, mist and dust drawn off wherever it is raised. We test to HSG258 so those lines can prove their extraction holds what their people would otherwise breathe.
We have carried out LEV thorough examination and testing to HSG258 since 2001, across Somerset and the UK. From a machine shop to a joinery, a spray booth or a lab fume cupboard, the job ends the same way: measured readings, a clear verdict, and a label whose next-due date you can rely on.
Tell us what you run and we will examine, measure, report and label it to HSG258 - across Somerset.
