As Temperatures Rise, so does the Risk for Heat-Related Illness

As Temperatures Rise, so does the Risk for Heat-Related Illness

For most of the JSABuilder community, it will soon be summer, which means more daylight hours, longer work days, and hot, humid working conditions.  It’s an important time to understand the dangers of excessively hot working conditions, and how to protect employees from suffering heat-related illnesses.  Exposure to prolonged periods of heat and humidity, without shaded rest breaks or adequate fluid intake, can result in various heat disorders, some so severe they can result in death.

Listed in the table below are numbers compiled from an OSHA report, of on-the-job heat-related deaths for the years 2008 through 2012, broken down by industry.

A quick look at this table reveals that workplace deaths caused by heat are on the rise.  While these increases may be due to more thorough reporting, better inspections, or a growing workforce, the fact remains that heat-related deaths continue to occur in the workplace.   According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), heat waves are the country’s deadliest weather-related phenomenon, accounting for more fatalities than hurricanes, tornados, earthquakes and floods combined.

Experts expect climate change to increase the number and temperature of heat waves in the U.S. in the coming years.  According to the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), heat-related deaths in the U.S. are estimated to rise to 150,000 by the end of the 21st century, due to a greater number of dangerously hot days caused by climate change.  The three cities projected to take the most lives due to excessive heat are Louisville, Kentucky (with an expected 19,000 deaths); Detroit, Michigan (17,900 deaths); and Cleveland, Ohio (16,600 deaths).  For more information, read NRDC’s Killer Summer Heat report.

Who is at Risk for Heat-Related Illness?

Older adults are especially susceptible to heat stress.  With a growing number of employees remaining in the workforce after age 65, the likelihood of job-related heat stress is stronger than ever.

Recent hires or workers new to working outdoors are at a greater risk for heat disorders.  In the 25 heat-related illness incidents Cal/OSHA investigated in 2005, in nearly half of the cases, the worker involved was on his or her first day on the job, and in 80% of the cases, the worker had been on the job for four or fewer days.

In the agriculture industry, heat stroke is the leading cause of work-related deaths.  According to the CDC, during 1992 to 2006, 68 crop workers died from heat stroke, a rate nearly 20 times greater than for all U.S. civilian workers.  While agricultural workers and older adults are most affected by hot working conditions, all personnel working in hot environments that are also humid, are at a greater risk, especially workers performing heavy labor or wearing bulky, personal protective equipment (PPE).  PPE traps heat close to a worker’s body, therefore workers should be monitored routinely throughout the workday for heat illness symptoms.  Workers need to be conscious of the affects their PPE has on their body.  Here are a few tips to minimize the hazards of bulky, heavy PPE in the hotter months: 

• Consider purchasing lighter-weight PPE for hot summer months
• Implement a heat-monitoring program where workers monitor each other at regular intervals throughout the day
• Make sure workers understand the symptoms of heat stress and know how to watch for it in themselves and their coworkers
• Add additional rest and shade breaks throughout the day; workers should be drinking lots of fluids and eating salty snacks.

Workers in drier, non-humid areas are also at risk for heat-stress, as in these climates, moisture quickly evaporates out of and off the body at a higher rate, without providing any of the cooling benefits of perspiration.

What is Heat Illness?

Heat illness includes heat stroke, heat exhaustion, heat cramps, heat syncope (fainting) and heat rash, and occurs when body temperatures rise to dangerous levels.

Heat stroke is the most grave of the heat-related disorders, occurring when the body’s sweat production and homeostasis fails.  The temperature of a person suffering from heat stroke can spike up to to 106 degrees Fahrenheit within 15 minutes, causing death or permanent disability if emergency care is not immediately provided.  Heat stroke symptoms include confusion, dizziness, slurred speech, chills, hot, dry skin, and intense sweating.

Heat Exhaustion occurs when the body loses dangerous amounts of water and salt, usually due to excessive sweating.  Its symptoms include weakness, fatigue, dizziness, confusion, nausea, and sweaty, clammy skin.

Heat Syncope is normally caused by dehydration and lack of acclimatization, often with prolonged standing or suddenly rising from a sitting position.  Its symptoms are light-headedness, dizziness and fainting.

Heat Cramps are brought on by low salt levels in muscles, due to excessive sweating during strenuous activity, and are recognized by muscle spasms or pain in the stomach, arms or legs.

How to Prevent Heat Disorders

Educate – Train managers and personnel on the dangers of hot working conditions and how to lessen their effect, and how to spot symptoms of heat illness in their co-workers.  To read more about how to protect yourself and your workers from the dangers of abnormally hot working conditions, visit http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/heatstress/ and http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/heatstress/.

Acclimatization and Strategic Work/Rest Scheduling – Allow workers to get used to hotter working environments the safe way—gradually, by incrementally increasing their time spent in the sun over a 5-day work period.  When possible, schedule jobs with high heat exposure at cooler times of day, and routine maintenance/repair work for cooler months.  Reduce the physical requirements of a job (e.g. heavy lifting, digging, climbing) by assigning extra personnel to share the load.  To determine an appropriate work/rest cycle (which will vary by day and throughout the day) OSHA advises work periods be shortened and rest periods increased:

• As temperatures rise
• As humidity increases
• When sun gets stronger
• When there is no air movement
• When protective clothing or gear is worn
• For heavier work.

Workers should rest in a cool place, such as an air conditioned room, trailer or vehicle, or in full shade.  Rest periods do not always have to be breaks, or times of stalled productivity.  During the rest periods of a work cycle, employees can perform light work such as paperwork, sort small parts, or take part in a meeting or training session.  When possible, more frequent, shorter periods of heat exposure are better than fewer, longer exposures.  Determining ideal work/rest cycles is a crucial component of fighting heat illness.  OSHA offers free, confidential advice to small and medium-sized businesses in the U.S.  Contact OSHA’s On-site Consultation Program for assistance in designing work/rest schedules that are appropriate for your workers.  For more information or for additional compliance assistance contact OSHA at 1-800-321-OSHA.

Hydrate – Provide employees with cool water, in visible shaded, air-conditioned rest areas close to the worksite.  Remind workers to drink at least one pint (16 ounces, or two cups) of water each hour.  Ideally, workers should consume about six ounces every 15 minutes, regardless of whether they feel thirsty.

Please visit JSABuilder’s website to create JSAs that address the hazards of heat illness.

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Safety Suggestions in the Workplace

Safety Suggestions in the Workplace

Giving safety suggestions is one of the best ways to improve the quality of any working environment. Some workplaces might be more hazardous than others, but the main point is that safety is always important.

The thing with suggestions is that some people have no idea on how to handle them.  More often than not, most people toss suggestions to the side without giving them much thought.  Below is a list of ways that an organization can handle the suggestions they are given, regarding safety in the workplace.

Take each suggestion seriously

Safety should be a main tenet that an organization prioritizes.  Employers owe it to the people who work for them to provide them with an excellent working environment.  That being said, it is always important to remember that some of the best suggestions can come from almost any level of the organization.

Some of the best suggestions will come from those who are directly exposed to a certain working environment, e.g. an assembly worker is better suited to give suggestions regarding safety in the factory than an office employee working at a desk in accounting.

Be receptive

One of the best ways to handle safety suggestions is by opening lines of communication that can be accessed by anyone in the organization.  This way, when someone has an idea they can simply contact the person or department that is in charge of workplace safety.

Such a program does not have to be complicated. For example, an organization could leave pieces of paper or forms where employees can make comments and suggestions regarding safety in the workplace. The employees need only drop them in drop boxes to be collected.

The method mentioned above is quite effective.  Safety concern in the workplace can become more apparent as more and more people talk about it.

Assign an employee or a department to handle all the suggestions

Being receptive and open to suggestions does not mean accepting each and every single one.  In any organization, a person or a department who handles suggestions regarding safety in the workplace is strongly recommended.

The person or department charged with the responsibility of seeing whether or not a safety suggestion has some credence needs to be qualified for assessing safety risks.

Test the suggestion before applying it

If there is some merit to a person’s safety suggestion, then the best way to see if it will work is to test it out. Try and see if it has any effect on workplace-related injuries.  Comparing data from previous months or years since the new safety suggestions were implemented can give tremendous insight to the suggestion’s efficacy.

To develop task-specific JSAs to keep your workplace as safe as it can be, visit JSABuilder’s website.

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Which OSHA Records Do Employers Keep?

Which OSHA Records Do Employers Keep?

Employers are often confused about which OSHA records they need to keep.  The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires employers to follow their rules and regulations regarding the recordkeeping of work- related injuries and illnesses.  There are plenty of OSHA forms that employers need to get acquainted with, but none are perhaps are as important as form 300 and 300A.

Complying with the rules and regulations of OSHA is mandatory, and failure to do so can result in dire consequences that employers will definitely wish to avoid.  Knowing about the two forms can go a long way in knowing what OSHA records to keep and prioritize.

Form 300

Form 300 is one of the requirements that OSHA requires from employers.  Basically speaking, the OSHA form 300 is simply a log for all the work-related injuries and illnesses that employees experience in a given year.  The form itself is also used to record the number of days that an employee is absent from work.

OSHA does not require the employer or any organization to submit its form 300.  OSHA merely requires them to store it in somewhere in the organization’s filing system to be used later on for future reference.

Form 300A

While there are plenty of OSHA records out there that an employer needs to get understand, the form 300A is perhaps one of the most important ones.  Whereas form 300 was used as a record keeping log, form 300A is used to summarize all injuries and illnesses in a given year.  This is required of all companies and organizations that fall under the umbrella of the statutes written in CCR Title 8 Section 14300.

It is strongly recommended that form 300 is accomplished before even attempting to start work on OSHA form 300A. Basically, all one should do is transfer all the data gathered in form 300 onto 300A in order to be summarized. Form 300A is then posted at a location that is frequented by the employees and is clearly visible for all to see.

Posting of form 300A must be done no later than Feb. 1 of the year after the log was started; e.g. form 300A for 2012 needs to be posted on or before Feb. 1 of 2013.  Form 300A needs to be posted up until April 30.  Failure to comply will result in dire consequences.

Those exempted from OSHA forms

Organizations excluded from OSHA forms fall under two categories: The first one being organizations that have fewer than 10 employees. Only organizations that employ 10 or more people are required to have OSHA forms.

The next category is a bit broader. On its website, OSHA has a list of industries which they describe as being “partially exempt” from using OSHA forms. For a comprehensive list of industries that are not required to maintain and keep OSHA records, except when explicitly told to do so by certain authorities, check out OSHA’s Recordkeeping Handbook page.

To create a JSA that assists your company in being OSHA compliant, please visit www.jsabuilder.com

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Safety Hazards in Food Processing

Safety Hazards in Food Processing

Workers, managers and owners of food processing stations must be aware of the safety hazards of their workplace. This is key to avoiding and preventing injuries, contamination and death. But what are the safety hazards in food processing?

One safety hazard is the lack of knowledge of managers and workers.  It is one of the reasons why companies are now advised to train their workers regarding hazard control.  Poor hygienic practices and equipment contamination are also safety hazards in this industry.  Malfunctions of equipment may also cause injury or contamination, especially if the failure allows pathogens to grow in the foods being processed.

According to the Hospitality Institute of Technology and Management in Minnesota, the contamination of fish, meat and poultry is difficult to prevent because the animals are exposed to pathogens when they are slaughtered.  However, injuries and health problems may be avoided by precisely doing the slaughter and food processing.  Cleanliness and sanitation would also help control contamination during the processing whether it is minimal or extensive processing.

Some hazards may involve chemicals.  There is a wide range of chemicals and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration grouped the chemical hazards into toxic, corrosive and flammable. Studies show that a chemical hazard is next to a biological hazard and can harm more than a physical hazard.

The FDA recognizes that there is a wide range of chemicals that are used in the food processing industry.  To help prevent problems, the FDA and USDA determined the acceptable chemicals and their levels.  Some chemicals that are poisonous yet unavoidable are processing aids, herbicides, and pesticides.

The physical safety hazards in food processing include objects like nuts and bolts, fruit pits, plastics, and glasses.  As mentioned, the physical hazards are the easiest to determine and control. Some strategies for prevention are inspection, detection, and elimination. Sanitation and training of employees are usually the key to avoiding physical hazards.

On the other hand, the biological hazards are the hardest to monitor and control. The biological hazards include parasites, bacteria and viruses.  There are several categories depending on how these microorganisms work. Some cause and spread infections so they are called infective pathogens but others produce toxins so they are called toxin producers.  There are also spoilers that include yeast and molds.

In general, safety hazards are potential for harm, and may include damage on tools or equipment, injuries or health problems of people, or death. There are several safety hazards in food processing, but the most common are lack of information and training of workers, lack of sanitation, chemicals, physical objects that may get into the foods, and microorganisms that may damage the integrity or quality of food.  Lack of information can be solved by programs, while sanitation just requires a system.  Physical objects are the easiest to solve, while the biological hazards are the hardest to contain.  The chemical hazards are in between physical and biological in terms of the difficulty for solution.

To create a JSA to combat safety hazards in food processing, please visit the JSABuilder website.

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Basics of safety risk assessment

Basics of safety risk assessment

Learning and understanding what safety risk assessment procedures are all about can help an agency or organization identify the risks that their employees are being exposed to. The procedures are necessary because the assessment of safety risks is one of the best ways of ensuring that employees are protected from danger.

The job of risk assessment and management does not fall on one person alone. Although one person can be assigned to conduct a systematic approach, the task of risk assessment and management ultimately falls upon all managers and supervisors.

Below are a few things that managers and supervisors need to get acquainted with.

The Risk Assessment Matrix

The Risk Assessment Matrix is essential for safety risk assessment procedures. This is a six-step process used by risk assessment managers.

The safety professional starts off by creating a list of the organization’s functions and operations. The safety professional then ranks each function in order of its criticality. A recovery time must be assigned to each function.

The third to final step involves the safety professional performing risk assessment by identifying potential threats for each function. After that, the professional is required to assign the level of risk or vulnerability that a person is exposed to. Finally, they are required to draw up predetermined routines and methods for responding in case certain risks are realized.

Asking advice from other organizations

Another way to make risk assessment procedures work is by simply emulating the efforts of others. A large number of organizations share resources regarding risk assessment on the internet for free. Organizations that choose to go down this path need to be aware of how to do it properly.

The most important consideration is finding the right organization to emulate. The person in charge of risk assessment needs to be sure that the organization that they are following is similar enough to the way in which their own organization operates. Incorporating the risk assessment procedures of different organizations is an excellent way of saving both time and money.

Incorporating elements of risk assessment from other organizations is often better than starting from the ground up.

An excellent example would be the risk assessment documents provided by the University of Massachusetts on the internet. Their documents are composed of a list that covers certain areas that are applicable to a large amount of organizations. Some of the areas included in the document are water drainage, personal computer security, contingency planning and data control.

Developing the safety procedure

The final step in risk assessment is to develop safety procedures. For starters, the person responsible for carrying out a certain safety procedure and what steps need to be done to perform the procedure needs to be explicitly outlined.

It is the safety coordinator’s job to observe and analyze whether or not the safety procedures are yielding positive results. The safety coordinator must determine the efficacy of the safety procedures and make recommendations based on how well things go. Safety risk assessment is never over because when a mishap occurs, the safety coordinator is responsible for making changes to the procedures in order to prevent future loses.

For more on safety risk assessments, please visit JSABuilder’s website.

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Elements of a lock out/tag out program

Elements of a lock out/tag out program

It is important for employers to be well acquainted with the elements of a lock out/tag out program if they want to continue doing their business.  While it might seem difficult at first, knowing the elements of a good lock out/tag out program is actually quite easy.

Excellent equipment

One of the most important elements of a quality lock out/tag out procedure is having the proper equipment. The significance of having the right equipment cannot be stressed enough.

For one thing, the locks that a worker uses to isolate a machine or piece of equipment need to be strong and in good working order.  Ideally, workers check their locks every single time they use them for any signs of defects.  Locks need to be in excellent working condition if they are to be used.  Those that are damaged need to be removed and replaced.

The type of lock used does not matter, so long as the person who put the lock there is the only person with access to the key or combination that removes the lock.

A good tag is also important.  The tag needs to be big enough to draw attention.  It also needs to be big enough so the worker can write vital information such as what work is being conducted and when the machine or piece of equipment will be put back into production.

Training

The training of employees in lock out/tag out procedures is one of the essential elements of a lock out/tag out program. OSHA requires organizations and employers to train all their employees the basics of a lock out tag/ out procedure.

Employees need to be aware of lock out/tag out procedures and what they are supposed to do during such events. Training employees, even if they do not directly participate, in lock out/tag out programs ensures that no one will be unaware of the dangers of taking out the lock or tag used during the procedure.

In fact, OSHA requires employers to keep on retraining their employees in lock out/tag out procedures.

Keeping records is an OSHA requirement

Another essential element to any good lock out/tag out program is having a record that is always be up to date.

The records include things such as the methods and materials used for training employees for lock out/tag out procedures, employee information such as the employee’s name, identification number, and the dates when the employee underwent training and so forth.

Situations where routine retraining is required

OSHA requires employers to adapt to any change in the workplace that can potentially be hazardous.  Employees are required to undergo training and certification in order to accommodate the changes in the working environment.

Changing the program itself also merits the retraining of employees on the basic elements of a lock out/tag out program and the changes that were made.

To learn more about lock out/tag out, please visit JSABuilder’s website.

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A Discussion of Safety Officer Courses

A Discussion of Safety Officer Courses

There are plenty of safety officer courses to choose from.  There is no such thing as a best safety officer course, as each course has its own unique merits and finding out which one would suit a person best depends largely on the person’s preference.

Below is a short list of some of the different types of safety officer courses people might be interested in.

Safety officer in construction

In construction companies, safety officers fill a management position that is charged with the task of making sure that all the workers follow rules and regulations.  People who want this kind of job need to fulfill certain requirements.

Having at least three years of working experience on the field is always a necessity. Many, though not all, require their safety officers to have an academic degree.

Furthermore, the safety officer is in charge of making sure that the policies, rules and regulations of the company adhere to the standards of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) as well as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). This also entails that the officer be aware of local or federal laws in the area that they are working.

Fire safety officers

There are plenty of officer safety courses out there, but anyone who has ever wanted to ride on a fire truck might want to take one for fire safety.  The responsibilities of a fire safety officer are numerous.

For one thing, fire safety officers are in charge of safety training of new recruits and fellow officers. Being a fire safety officer automatically makes one a firefighter, i.e. one has to participate in fire control activities. Also, being a safety officer means that the person will engage in educating the community of potential fire risks and hazards.

Anyone interested in this kind of job will have to contact the Fire Department Safety Officers Association (FDSOA), an organization that offers the safety course necessary for the job.

Those who take the course will be given an examination to see if they pass. The minimum score for passing according to the FDSOA is 70 percent.

Safety courses for the Navy

Those who like being out on the ocean may want to check out the officer safety course offered in the Navy.  One of the requirements for this position requires the person to have a rank equivalent to a department head.

The task of a Navy training safety officer is to make sure that all the safety programs aboard the sea-faring vessel that the officer is assigned to follow safety protocols. The safety officer is also responsible for making sure that everyone on the ship is aware and informed of the safety protocols of the ship.

Being a Navy-trained safety officer means having to consult with the commanding officer of the vessel. Those who wish to enter this line of work will have to take the Naval Safety Supervisor course.

For more about safety officer courses, please visit the JSABuilder website.

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A Breakdown of OSHA PPE Requirements

A Breakdown of OSHA PPE Requirements

It is imperative that employers familiarize themselves with OSHA PPE requirements. Anyone who wants to do business will need to comply with the standards and regulations that OSHA has put into place. Those who do not adhere to the policies are at risk of being sanctioned and penalized by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Learning OSHA’s requirements might seem like a daunting task. A little bit of reading and a bit of in-depth study will go a long way in understanding what PPE requirements are all about. Below is a discussion on OSHA PPE regulation that can help an employer get started on fulfilling OSHA requirements.

What are the OSHA PPE requirements?

In a nutshell, OSHA requires employers to equip their employees with the appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). OSHA is responsible for enforcing health and safety regulation in the workplace and telling employers to make their employees use PPE is just one of those ways OSHA does their job.

The requirements for PPE are numerous and an in-depth study that goes into the specifics would require the use of literature that could be found at OSHA’s website. Basically, the requirements of OSHA for PPE can be broken down into three categories: hazard assessment, proper equipment, and training.

Hazard assessment

Hazard assessment is the process where the employer does a survey of the working facilities where employees do their work. Electrical components, possible falling debris, pressurized containers and systems, harmful dust, and chemical exposure are just some of the few things that employers need to look out for. After finding out the potential risks and hazards, the employer needs to determine the level of risk and the potential injuries that employees might experience in the workplace.

This hazard assessment is certified by means of a written certification.

Finding the proper equipment

The next step, after hazard assessment has been finished, is to find which pieces of equipment would best protect the employees. It is up to the employer to find out which PPE would best protect their employees from the risks and hazards of the workplace. The PPE chosen by the employers must be up to the task of protecting the employees who use them from harm.

OSHA expects employers to provide all their employees with the necessary PPE. Not just that, but the task of maintaining the equipment falls onto the employers as well.

It is important that the employers, at all times, maintain the PPE in a sanitary and reliable condition.

Training of employees

Employers are also responsible for training their employees in the use of their PPE. Excellent PPE is nothing if employees have no idea on how to use them properly.

Employers are expected to develop a program that will train their employees in the proper use and handling of PPE. It should cover things such as how to use them and discussions of the PPE’s capabilities and limitations. Maintenance and disposal of PPEs should also be covered.

OSHA PPE requirements also say that retraining is necessary should new pieces of PPE be introduced.

To learn more about OSHA PPE requirements, please visit www.jsabuilder.com

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Engineering Controls

Engineering Controls

Employers owe it to their employees to provide them with a safe working environment, which is why they need to learn as much as they can about safety engineering controls. Engineering controls might seem like a daunting topic for most people given that it covers topics on applied science.

All one needs to do is read about engineering control systems in order to gain a better comprehension of the role it plays in work safety. Below is a discussion on why engineering controls are so important for safety, followed by a few examples.

What is engineering control?

People working in industrial plants are exposed to a lot of high risk scenarios.This is usually a result of having to work with heavy machinery and equipment. Safety is paramount in these settings.

Basically, safety engineering controls are ways and means of minimizing working hazards that are already built into the designs of the machines, equipment or even the plant itself. The main goal is to minimize or outright eliminate employee exposure to hazards.

Of course, engineering controls would be for nothing if they are not maintained, designed, and used appropriately. There are three types of engineering controls:

• Isolation of the source of emissions
• Process controls, and
• Ventilation

Isolation of emissions

Chemical fumes are common in a lot of industrial settings and unfortunately a large number of these chemicals are harmful to human beings. Industrial plants often get around these problems by looking for non-hazardous replacements; however in cases where there is no replacement, the only real solution is to isolate the emissions.

The aim of isolation is to remove employees from physically making contact with the chemicals or vice versa. Glove boxes are an excellent example of isolation. It must be noted that the equipment used for isolation needs to be well maintained and should be opened for no other purpose than maintenance or repairs.

Process controls

Process controls are methods of controlling how a particular task is done in such a way that it will reduce risk exposure. There are a lot of ways to implement process controls.

Wet methods, for example, are very common in a lot of places where grinding or drilling is involved. Either of the two activities often involves a lot of dust which can be harmful to anyone exposed to it. To eliminate this issue, some organizations have begun to use water in their drilling or grinding processes. The water basically eliminates the dust produced by either of the two operations.

Ventilation

Ventilation is probably the most popular form of engineering control. What makes it so popular is that it can practically fit in almost any industrial setting.

A proper ventilation system will be more than capable of filtering the air of hazardous contaminants. Local exhaust ventilation is an excellent way of filtering chemical exhaust at its source. Out of all the different forms of safety engineering controls ventilation is most likely the method that is most often used in industrial settings.

For more on safety engineering controls, please visit JSABuilder’s website.

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What are Chemical Safety Hazards?

What are Chemical Safety Hazards?

Safety is always a top concern in a work place. Those who work in laboratory settings are even more exposed to potential harm, especially in those laboratories where handling hazardous or reactive chemicals is part of the daily schedule. In a nutshell, chemical safety hazards are chemical substances that could possibly be a threat to human health.

Almost all chemicals are reactive or responsive to the presence of other chemicals or to certain physical conditions, such as elevated temperature. These reactive properties are a key concern in handling chemicals in the production process of material, chemical, pharmaceutical and food products we utilize. When these chemicals are not handled properly, there can be unwanted results such as harmful consequences such as fires and explosions. These may even cause deaths and injuries to people, severe and negative effects to the environment, and even damage to physical properties.

Chemicals and the procedures they are used in are carefully scrutinized first in order to identify the chemical safety hazards and to prepare chemical safety precautions for future use. The Process Safety Management serves as a guideline in preventing chemical hazards in construction and production companies. The companies are mandated by the law to follow these precautions.

A hazardous chemical has been defined by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) as a chemical that can be either a physical or a health hazard. A chemical is considered to be a physical hazard if it has at least one of the following attributes: water reactive, combustible liquid, flammable, compressed gas, explosive, oxidizer, organic peroxide, or pyrophoric unstable.

On the other hand, a chemical is deemed as a health hazard if it gives immediate or delayed health effects to those people who are over-exposed to it. Exposure here refers to the dose, route, duration and frequency of the exposure. Health hazardous chemicals are the following: irritants, sensitizers, corrosives, carcinogens, hepatotoxins, toxic, reproductive toxins, neurotoxins, nephrotoxins, agents acting on the hematopoietic system, as well as those who damage the eyes, skin, lungs, and mucous membranes.

Physical chemical hazards are much easier to define than health chemical hazards. Physical hazards can be identified with explosions, fires, extreme temperature or just the presence of large amount of gas or vapors. Health hazards are assessed by the signs and symptoms experience by the over-exposed person such as shortness of breath. The signs and symptoms, of course, vary from person to person.

Although there is no precise way to identify all of the chemical safety hazards in measurable terms, it is still very important to at least be informed of those known physical and health effects in order for one to protect or prevent him or herself from possible danger in handling those hazardous chemicals. As a basic precaution, one is required to wear personal protective equipment when entering a laboratory, much like in a school chemistry laboratory, such as coats, gloves, and goggles. There are also other safety controls installed in the lab, such as fire alarms, extinguishers, and showers.

To learn more about chemical safety hazards, please visit the JSABuilder website.

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