Robins Timber have their saw removed

[mattonthesea]

Went there a few days ago to buy three different widths of wood to make some dresser shelves only to find that H&S have decreed it too much of a risk for a wood yard to have a saw. A wonderful service withdrawn, but I wonder if it is the mgt doing a cost saving.

I don't know how many times I've bought sheet wood cut to the width I needed over the years. At least they will still do half sheets both long and wide.

 

[fredrussell]

Wood you believe it!

 

[Thistle]

Wood you believe it!

Knot really.

 

[KevinV]

Wood you believe it!

I never saw that coming!

 

[fredrussell]

Let’s not pine the loss of a great service.

 

[Poignard]

Wood you believe it!

I woodn't without more evidence.

If they can't saw up timber then what are they for?

 

[Davy_S]

That sort of Deal goes against the grain.

 

[thinwater]

I guess you'll have to split.

---

The more troubling one, for me, is steel yards that won't cut down, or allow cutting of 20-foot lengths on premises. 20 feet on a roof rack requires some carefull lashing.

 

[MoodySabre]

Some people like a good lashing.

A friend told me.

 

[oldharry]

Which branch is that?

 

[fredrussell]

Which branch is that?

Root and branch apparently. I know their CEO, Tim Burr, and he reckons they could see der trouble coming long ago.

 

[Snowgoose-1]

Went there a few days ago to buy three different widths of wood to make some dresser shelves only to find that H&S have decreed it too much of a risk for a wood yard to have a saw. A wonderful service withdrawn, but I wonder if it is the mgt doing a cost saving.

I don't know how many times I've bought sheet wood cut to the width I needed over the years. At least they will still do half sheets both long and wide.

It's happening all over.
I'm guessing that you now need only a trained sawyer to do it for all the modern reasons. There was always a fear that customers got too close to the machinery and employers feared action being taken against them. You cant really blame them.

 

[MisterBaxter]

Is that the big panel saw at the back on the warehouse? It was a wonderful beast for getting clean cuts across plywood but watching the guys operate it in a fairly casual manner while members of the public wander about with long 2x4s on their shoulders you could see the potential for trouble.

 

[jbweston]

A timber merchant without a saw sounds like as much use as a garage without a spanner or a barber's without a pair of scissors.

Surely this can't be serious?

 

[AntarcticPilot]

A timber merchant without a saw sounds like as much use as a garage without a spanner or a barber's without a pair of scissors.

Surely this can't be serious?

Root and branch apparently. I know their CEO, Tim Burr, and he reckons they could see der trouble coming long ago.

It does seem very strange that a wood merchant can't have a saw! And if they saw it coming, why didn't they find out what was needed to meet/exceed the regulatory burden? This is entirely a guess, but I imagine the problem might have been twofold - having the saw in an area accessible to customers and/or untrained staff, and staff needing adequate training and supervision. After all, most places that have such a big panel saw have it in the same area as the wood stock, where people can wander around to choose what they need, and it's usually operated by the warehouse staff. But both issues should be surmountable, with fairly minimal cost - partition off the bay where the saw operates, and give staff training - which they probably already have, but make sure there's something documented and on file.

However, I note that my local hardwood supplier won't cut wood for you; you have to buy a whole plank.

 

[doug748]

Looks like "Health and Safety" by proxy - ie explain any unpopular decision by saying the magic words.

B and Q still seem to be managing:

https://www.diy.com/services/timber-cutting

.

 

[RunAgroundHard]

It’s not just the saw risks, there is a load of occupational exposure limits around breathing in wood dust that has to be managed as well as the explosion risk from wood dust. It soon becomes a bit of an engineering effort to control these risks, which may not be worth it.

Just an opinion, perhaps irrelevant to the case in point.

 

[Boathook]

My local wood place has an 'upright' circular saw with a barrier to keep people away. The unit also has a dust extraction unit so no mess. I suspect all standard stuff off the shelf so to speak. They will cut a plank, etc, but who have to buy the whole lot.

 

[Keith 66]

THe HSE are not in the business of telling people they cant do something unless there is a good reason. Woodworking machines like saws can be dangerous but if you are sensible & take the right precautions there should not be a problem.
Preventing public access to areas can be done with barriers, Extraction in places like that is usually in place, I suspect that someone is using the HSE as a cop out quoting "They made us do it" as an excuse to get rid of it.
I worked in education until relatively recently & came across similar instances where perfectly servicable machines were got rid of because they failed modern H&S legislation, Usually this was PUWER 98 where machines have to stop within 10 seconds of the stop button being pressed. We lost a perfect condition Startrite bandsaw & Arboga Milling machine because of this rule, The Arboga only failed because in bottom gear it ran on for 11 seconds! Retro fitting braking to both was too expensive or not possible so they were "scrapped". problems in guarding or safety switching will do the same. Do it right & HSE wont fail it!

Im not complaining though, the Startrite & Arboga now live in my workshop at home!