The Manual Handling Assessment Chart (MAC Tool)

The MAC Tool helps to identify high-risk manual handling activities in workplaces and is aimed at employers, employees and safety reps. The HSE makes clear that while using the MAC will help with the initial screening of possible high risk manual handling activities within the workplace, it is “not appropriate for all manual handling operations, and so may not comprise a full ‘suitable and sufficient’ risk assessment if relied on alone. A risk assessment will normally need to take account of additional factors such as an individual’s ability to carry out the task e.g. whether they have any health problems or need for special information or training”.

The MAC incorporates a numerical and a colour coding score system (green — low level of risk, amber — medium level of risk, red — high level of risk and purple — very high level of risk) to highlight high risk manual handling tasks. There are three types of assessment that can be carried out with the MAC: lifting operations, carrying operations and team handling operations.

The charts and information on how to use them can be downloaded from the HSE website at: www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg383.pdf