AEFYT and Confemetal present the "Guide for the prevention of occupational risks in refrigeration systems"

AEFYT, the Association of Refrigeration Companies and their Technologies, and Confemetal, the Spanish Confederation of Metal Organizations, have presented the "Occupational risk prevention guide in the field of installation, maintenance, repair and dismantling of refrigeration systems."

Prepared by AEFYT with the collaboration of the consulting firm GESEME, it includes in detail the potential risks existing in the sector and the preventive measures that employers and workers must adopt in the field of different jobs related to the cold sector.

The enormous technological advance that this activity has undergone in recent years made it necessary "to offer companies and people in the refrigeration sector and the like a summary and specific guide with the measures that must currently be adopted during assembly, commissioning, maintenance , repair and dismantling of the different refrigeration systems and equipment ”, explains Susana Rodríguez, president of AEFYT. The purpose of the document is to identify the most common risks, disseminate them and report on how to combat them in order to protect all the people involved and also material goods. "In no case is it intended to replace, expand, modify or prosecute the extensive existing legislation on this matter, but rather to offer a document that is easy to consult and use," says Susana Rodríguez.

Collecting the information in a clear and simple way in a document was important because, as Andrés Sánchez de Apellániz, Confemetal secretary general states, “these minimum training contents entail something more than informing the worker of the risks they may be facing. exposed and the measures to avoid them, since it also implies the idea of ​​teaching and learning about the necessary measures to reduce or eliminate risk and implement a preventive culture at all levels of the company ”. For this reason, the guide recognizes the importance of training workers on the risks that shape their work environment and how to prevent them; The obligations of the employer in this regard are also detailed.

In the cold sector, the most common occupational hazards have to do with exposure to low temperatures, falls of people or objects, cuts, blows and projections, fires, electrical contacts, exposure to chemical pollutants, overexertion and repetitive postures and movements. All of this is answered in detail in this guide.