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Festool has launched its ‘Giving You Time’ dust extraction campaign and has partnered up with the British Lung Foundation at this year’s W16 to offer free lung health tests.

Festool, a leading provider of power tools, will be at W16 at the NEC on 2-5 October, offering demonstrations, support and advice on a range of its latest products. Festool has also teamed up with The British Lung Foundation (BLF) to support its ‘Love Your Lungs’ health campaign. There will be free screening on its exhibition stand A610 for tradespeople on Monday 2nd – Tuesday 3rd October. 

This association with the BLF is part of Festool’s ‘Giving you time’ dust extraction campaign which promotes the benefits of working safely with dust, an issue that is prevalent in the woodworking industry.

The health benefits of dust extraction are widely recognised, but many choose to ignore them due to other factors. Wood dust is a significant contributor to asthma and shockingly, carpenters are four times more likely to contract asthma compared with other UK workers. Asthma is a long-term condition whereby airways become overly sensitive to certain triggers. These triggers, including wood dust, cause airways to become inflamed and tighten when breathing.

The inhalation of wood dust is also thought to be associated with the development of Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF), a type of lung disease which causes a build-up of scar tissue in the lungs. This limits the lungs’ ability to inflate and your ability to breathe. Around 32,500 people in the UK live with IPF, and research from The British Lung Foundation finds that it is a cause of death for over 5,300 people per year.

Dr Penny Woods, Chief Executive at The British Lung Foundation, said: “Prevention of lung disease is a cornerstone of our work. We are pleased to work with Festool to promote safe working practices and preventative healthcare. We want to make sure that all tradespeople – with a focus on carpenters – are aware of the dangers of inhaling dust from wood and stone, so it’s great that we are working with Festool to raise awareness of occupational risks and how to avoid them.”

The health risks associated with wood dust inhalation can all be dramatically reduced with the use of a dust extractor, removing harmful particles at the source. This means that dust never comes into contact with the nose, airways or lungs, reassuring families that their loved ones are not at risk while working. This also ensures that property owners are not exposed to potentially hazardous substances.

Jonathon Burcham, Marketing Manager at Festool, said: “By keeping harmful particles away from your lungs – and your tools – Festool dust extractors enable you to extend your working life as well as the tool’s longevity. With dust extraction, to remove dust at source, the mess and therefore clean-up time are dramatically reduced.

“Our aim with Festool’s ‘giving you time’ campaign is to drive home the key benefits of dust extraction in a way that will resonate with every tradesperson in one way or another: safety, efficiency and longevity.”

See the Festools website for more details of their products.