Roland
If it is your desire to cut down the chances of getting a belt from a 240 Volt then £1400 is nothing! Every time we have to get a 110 Volt machine from someone the costs rocket and they never perform as well. Every time I ask for a 110 volt machine both the Italians and the Germans just start rubbing their hands together! In fact the Americans prefer to buy 230 volt Grinders and Vacs from me rather than buying 110 Volt in their own Country.
The UK interpretation of site rules has got totally out of proportion! What HSE actually say is you should wherever possible use
Cordless Tools Then they go on to say 110 Volt is safer than 230/240 Volt! OK this is a fact and its true of course it is safer to use less voltage. However, what you gain in safety you lose in production and as you can well appreciate both Wet Vacuums and Wet Grinding Machines are designed to work near, in or around water! We are to my knowledge the only Country that use 110 Volts in Europe and having worked in Germany and knowing the German System the way I do, I am convinced if it were safer and just as productive then the Germans would be one of the first to utilise 110 Volts. In fact the total opposite is true they tend to use 3 Phase 380 Volts
The sad fact is that most producers of good machines only manufactur them as standard in 220-240 Volts and they charge significantly more for 110 Volt machines so if you want one that is of any use you have to pay the premium price!