CLEANING AND HYGIENE
as washing hands before eating, drinking or having a cigarette. When it comes to the end of the working day, it’s advisable to change clothes and (providing the facilities are available) take a shower to try and reduce the risks as much as possible.
7. TRAINING
Education about the matter is key to helping eradicate the problem. The effects upon health as well as the importance of effective controls and the correct procedures to follow should all be ingrained in a workforce. Any training that you put in place should cover the following key points:
• •
•
• • •
The adverse health effect of exposure to crystalline silica
The importance of putting effective controls in place, safe work practices, and personal hygiene
The purpose of boundaries or signs that identify the work areas that contain crystalline silica dust
How to safely handle, label, and store hazardous materials
The proper use and care of personal protective equipment
How to use dust control equipment effectively
8. MASK UP
systems that are designed to work in the construction industry with suction guards fitted to power tools to capture dust at source and prevent dusts getting airborne. Always use construction vacs in place of sweeping and use the vacs to prevent dust getting airborne when pouring powders into mixing vessels. Complement this approach with airborne dust cleaners to draw down remaining ambient dust, which can be caused simply from people walking around on site.
The right vacs and air cleaners will not only drastically reduce airborne dust, but power tools will last longer and work better and other trades will not be affected, making the whole site more efficient.
4. WET IT Water is the enemy of dust, so where possible use water to contain any dust in the air. Wet drilling and sawing is advised. Remove dust and debris with a wet vacuum or hose it down. When it comes to wet concrete coring, products such as stainless steel wet vacs can extract slurry from the
coring unit, separate out any debris that’s inside the vac and simultaneously pump away the cleaned water back to a drain or suitable collecting tank.
5. MONITOR THE AIR FOR DUST
Using air quality monitors can tell you how much dust is in the workplace atmosphere and help you to make a judgement on the appropriate steps to help control the amount of silica present. It’s not just the working environment that you need to keep an eye on. Workers should also be monitored and advised to take medical check-ups before starting a job and then every two to three years after that to ensure that they’re in good health. If the warning signs of silicosis appear it’s best to begin tackling them as soon as possible.
6. BE HYGIENIC
Crystalline silica has the capacity to stay on hands and clothing during the course of contact, so whilst this might seem like straightforward advice, it really is as simple
Correctly fitted protective masks should be a minimum requirement in the presence of silica dust. FFP3 masks are recommended as they filter at least 99% of airborne particles. Make sure that, not only are they distributed amongst the workforce, but also that they are properly fitted and worn in the appropriate areas.
9. EFFECTIVELY COMMUNICATE The presence of crystalline silica needs to be clearly labelled; if it’s in a greater concentration than 0.1% then a safety data sheet must accompany any products where this is the case.
10. SIGNPOST IT
If crystalline silica is present, make sure that the area is clearly marked and that warning signs indicate the potential hazard so that workers are aware of the risk. Any personal protective equipment that’s required should be clearly identified and easily accessible.
For more information visit
www.dustcontroluk.co.uk or phone 01327 858001.
PUBLIC SECTOR ESTATES MANAGEMENT • JULY/AUGUST 2014
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