Whilst our primary aim is to help and support our clients in ensuring their machines are safe and compliant to all the applicable directives, standards and local regulations for the machinery they manufacture or operate, our professional approach is always focused on our clients’ ‘real needs', issues and concerns. We do this by ensuring that we fully engage and work closely with our clients’ using a 'real world' collaborative  and relationship approach in the services we provide to them – whilst simultaneously understanding the need for compliant safety solutions that also allows clients to maximise production.

This approach is possible as our consultants (who are also Engineers), are highly qualified, and between us have over 100 years of experience in the field of machinery safety, compliance and certification across a wide range of industry sectors... Our consultants understand the need for machines to be able to manufacture products in the safest possible way, and one of our fundamental principles is to deliver our reports in such a way that they are understood by the client.

To support this principle – “We will never deliver a report by the easiest possible means, and then walk away from a client leaving them wondering what to do next…” and our aim is “to build a group of Independent Consultants who are customer focused, exceptionally well qualified, extremely competent and passionate about what they do so strong that we can’t be ignored”.

This system of working when used in conjunction with our approachability, reliability and professionalism, are key reasons why our consultants ‘personal clients’ have come back to them time and time again, and we take pride in the long-term relationships our consultants have established with their clients’ in helping and supporting them to make and keep their machines safe, compliant and productive.

Our company has been purposely set up as an ‘Independent’ provider of machinery safety and compliance services, without any formal ties to corporate manufacturers of machinery safety devices or components. This independence allows us to focus on our clients ‘real needs’ without the distraction or complications of any single corporate component manufacturer financially backing the consultants work. It also allows us to recommend the right safety product, component or solution, for the right application, whilst still adhering to the ‘hierarchy of control’ and all the appropriate directives, regulations and standards for reducing the levels of risk from machinery.

Our operational consultants are TÜV Rhineland or TÜV SÜD Certified Functional Safety Engineers (or studying towards the TÜV Rhineland qualification), and also hold EU or national specialist accreditation and registration in their respective knowledge and technology fields such as Functional Safety, Electrical Engineering, Hydraulics and Pneumatics and they have knowledge of COSHH, LOLER, and DSEAR amongst many subjects.

In addition to this Les our MD and Principal Consultant and our Consultant Jim Davis are qualified in the Risk Assessment and Managment of Confined Spaces, and both recently became NEBOSH qualified in Accident Investigation. Les is also IOSH qualified for the Noise Assessment of machinery.

As well as holding these high level qualifications, our consultants also hold membership of professional bodies that are recognised worldwide such as ‘Technical’ membership of the Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (TechIOSH), ‘Specialist’ membership of the International Institute of Risk and Safety Management (SIIRSM), membership of the Institute of Engineering and Technology (MIET), and membership of the Institute of Industrial Accident Investigators (AIIAI). With this level of competency added to our many years experience in the field of machinery safety and compliance, we are able to pursue our aim to provide a professional single point of contact for wide range of machinery safety services, such as:

For ‘End User’ clients we offer services such as pre-delivery UKCA / UKNI or CE Marking of new machinery, standards compliance validation of machinery either before or during factory acceptance testing, formal machinery based risk assessments (which is not the same as a task based risk assessment), and PUWER assessments. We can support the UKCA / UKNI or CE Marking of newly created ‘complex assemblies’, and the UKCA / UKNI or re-CE Marking of machinery that has been substantially modified or manufactured ‘in-house’, as any machines built ‘in-house’ for the end-user’s own internal use – still legally require a UKCA / UKNI or CE mark… depending upon where they are located and to be used.

For machine builders and OEM’s, our services include standards compliance support, initial machinery design support, post design assessment, and overall compliance assessment for the UKCA / UKNI or CE Marking of new machinery, or UKCA / UKNI and re-CE Marking of machinery that they have substantially modified or refurbished under the scope of the UK Supply of Machinery Regulations and / or Machinery Directive – again depending upon where they are located and to be used.

But it doesn’t end there…. We are also able to support clients from a practical machine automation perspective thanks to our ‘Collaboration Associates’ who can provide machinery safety and automation upgrade and remediation solutions, as well as a wide range of maintenance and engineering services such as thermal assessment of electrical panels, and the actual design and build of electrical control panels.

Astute Machinery Consultants Ltd take our moral, legal and ethical responsibilities very seriously. We pride ourselves on operating honestly, morally, responsibly and ethically whilst operating all aspects of our business activities, and condemn all forms of corruption and modern slavery.

As a socially responsible organisation, we adopt the highest professional standards and comply with all laws and regulatory standards applicable to our operation, and we are committed to continuous review and improvement of our standards so as to maintain our reputation as a business that makes a positive social, economic and safety contribution to society.

We hold the following insurances provided by Hiscox to allow us to pursue our business:

• Public Liability Insurance: £5 Million GBP
• Product Liability Insurance: £5 Million GBP
• Employer Liability Insurance: £10 Million GBP
• Professional Indemnity Insurance: £5 Million GBP

Additionally we have Legal Protection Insurance of £100,000 GBP and Crisis Containment Insurance of £25,000 GBP also through Hiscox.