Commonly used Health and Safety abbreviations

Use the underlined links below to find areas of our site where related services can be offered.  If you have questions please call us on 01453 800100 to speak to an experienced safety consultant.

1. These are common terms used by health and safety professionals and enforcement agencies such as the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and Health and Safety Commission (HSC)
2. ACOP Approved Code of Practice
3. ACM Asbestos Containing Materials
4. BMA British Medical Association
5. BOHS British Occupational Hygiene Society
6. BSI British Standards Institute
7. BTS British Toxicology Society
8. C(WP) Construction (Work Place) Regulations
9. CBI Confederation of British Industry
10. CDG The Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Road Regulations, see also Dangerous Goods Safety Advisor
11. CDM Construction (Design & Management) Regulations
12. CDMC CDM Coordinator (see guidance section and construction safety consultancy section)
13. CE The letters “CE” do not represent any specific words but the mark a declaration by the manufacturer, indicating that the product satisfies all relevant European Directives. Note, however, that the mark only applies to products that fall within the scope of European Directives.
14. CFC Chlorofluorocarbons
15. CFM Cubic Feet per Minute Amount of air flowing through a given space in one minute 1 CFM approximately equals 2 litres per second
16. CHAS The Contractors Health and Safety Assessment Scheme
17. CHIP Chemical Hazards Information and Packaging
18. CO Carbon Monoxide
19. CO2 Carbon Dioxide
20. COMAH Control of Major Accident Hazards Regulations
21. COSHH Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations
22. COSHH RA COSHH Risk Assessment
23. CPHSP Construction Phase Health & Safety Plan (CDM Regulations / CDM Coordinator)
24. CNS Central Nervous System
25. CRT Cathode Ray Tube
26. CSSA Construction Site Safety Audit
27. CTS Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
28. CVD Cardiovascular Disease
29. dB Decibel, see also Noise Consultancy
30. DDA Disability Discrimination Act
31. DGSA Dangerous Goods Safety Advisor
32. DSE Display Screen Equipment, see also Display Screen Equipment Risk Assessment
33. EA Environmental Agency, see also Environmental Consultancy and ISO14001
34. EAW Electricity at Work Regulations
35. EHO Environmental Health Officer
36. EMAS Eco-Management and Audit Scheme, see also Environmental Consultancy and ISO14001
37. EMAS Employment Medical Advisory Service
38. FA Factories Act
39. FH(G) Food Hygiene (General) Regulations
40. FLT Fork Lift Truck, see also Skills Training
41. FPA Fire Precautions Act
42. FPWR Fire Precautions (Workplace) Regulations, see also Fire Risk Assessment
43. GMC General Medical Council
44. GP General Practitioner
45. H&S Health & Safety
46. HASWA Health & Safety at Work Act
47. HAZCHEM Hazardous Chemical Warning Signs
48. HR Human Resources
49. HSC Health & Safety Commission
50. HSCON Health & Safety Consultant
51. HSDSER Health & Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations
52. HSE Health & Safety Executive
53. HSP Health & Safety Policy
54. IAQ Indoor Air Quality
55. ICOH International Commission on Occupational Health
56. IOD Institute of Directors
57. IOSH Institution of Occupational Safety & Health
58. LOLER Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations
59. LPG Liquid Petroleum Gas
60. MAPP Major Accident Prevention Policy
61. MEL Maximum Exposure Limit, see also COSHH Risk Assessment
62. mg.m3 Milligrams per cubic metre, see also COSHH Risk Assessment
63. MHOR Manual Handling Operation Regulations
64. MHSWR Management of Health & Safety at Work Regulations
65. MSD Musculoskeletal Disorder
66. MSDS Material Data Safety Sheet, see also COSHH Risk Assessment
67. NAWR Noise at Work Regulations
68. NEBOSH National Examination Board of Occupational Safety and Health
69. NHS National Health Service
70. NIHL Noise Induced Hearing Loss
71. OHAC Occupational Health Advisory Committee of The Health & Safety Commission
72. OHSAS18001 BSI Standard for Occupational Health & Safety
73. OSRPA Offices Shops & Railway Premises Act
74. PAT Portable Appliance Test
75. PPE Personal Protective Equipment
76. PPEWR Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations
77. ppb Parts Per Billion, see also COSHH Risk Assessment
78. ppm Parts Per Million, see also COSHH Risk Assessment
79. PUWER Provision & Use of Work Equipment Regulations
80. QA/QC Quality Assurance/Quality Control
81. RAMS Risk Assessment and Method Statement
82. RCD Residual Current Device
83. RIDDOR Reporting of Injuries, Disease & Dangerous Occurrences Regulations
84. RoSPA Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents
85. RSA Regional Speciality Adviser
86. RSA Royal Society of Arts (training accreditation)
87. RSI Repetitive Strain Injury
88. SBS Sick Building Syndrome, see also Indoor Air Quality
89. SCon Safety Consultants, see also Health & Safety Consultant
90. SMAS – Safety Management Advisory Services
91. SSIP – Safety Schemes in Procurement
92. TUC Trades Union Congress
93. Type 2 Survey Asbestos Survey defined under MDHS 100 (types 1 and 3 also defined), see Asbestos Surveys
94. VDU Visual Display Unit
95. WEL Workplace Exposure Limit (COSHH Risk Assessment)
96. WHO World Health Organisation
97. WHSWR Workplace (Health Safety & Welfare) Regulations
98. WRULD Work Related Upper Limb Disorder