FOUR HEADS ARE BETTER THAN ONE
In a bid to further protect people at work Polyco has joined forces with three partners to find a solution to one of the least understood occupational injuries – hydraulic injection.
Hydraulic injection is the puncturing of the skin by a jet of fluid under pressure. These types of injuries are mostly sustained to the palm of the hand or pads of the fingers. These incidents can occur during the operation or inspection of pressurised hydraulic equipment, which is widely used in industries such as agriculture, construction, manufacturing, offshore and utilities. However, there is a risk of injury with all hydraulic equipment, irrespective of the system volume, fluid used, or pressure involved.
Although injection injuries are relatively uncommon, the ease with which they can occur, and the initial innocuousness of the injury itself, means the risk is often overlooked, or not taken seriously. Although the puncture wound itself is usually small and benign looking, the damage beneath can be life changing – and even life-threatening – if the injury is not treated immediately. Pressure from the fluid injected – which doesn’t have to be toxic or harmful in itself – can build up in the compartments of the hand and fingers, causing painful swelling and throbbing. If left untreated, the blood supply around the affected area will be compromised, leading to necrosis of the tissue and skin. In any case, tissue will be destroyed and will have to be removed, in a process known as debridement.
In all cases of hydraulic injection injuries, surgery is inevitable and must be carried out within six hours of
10 | Personal Protection 2016
the injury occurring. If not, the victim can expect a loss of function in the affected area, or amputation of fingers or other parts of the hand or body that are affected.
Martyn Smart, Health and Safety Manager for hydraulic hose and pipe- fittings manufacturer Pirtek, had been looking into ways to protect his employees when two serious incidents, prompted him to step up his efforts.
Speaking about the issue Martyn commented: “We had been carrying out our own basic tests on gloves and materials to prevent fluid injection but we were limited in what we could do. So, we contacted the HSE, who put us in touch with the Health and Safety Laboratory. Based on the work we had already conducted the HSL devised extensive tests to determine how fluid injection incidents occur and the damage that can be caused depending on various factors.”
After HSL published a research report in 2013, Pirtek approached a number of glove manufacturers with a view to developing a product that would mitigate the risk. Martyn added: “Of those we spoke to, Polyco was the most enthusiastic and proactive. They suggested what turned out to be the right solution and facilitated the communication between the various parties involved.”
Commenting on the partnership, Polyco’s technical sales manager, Phil Vanes, explained: “One of our key strategic partners are HexArmor
who use SuperFabric® to produce a number of our cut and puncture resistant gloves. SuperFabric® can exist in various formats - cotton, polyester and nylon or spandex all overlaid with specifically positioned guard plates to provide puncture protection. We felt it would be ideal to guard against the type of injury Pirtek and the HSL were interested in, so we suggested they test the fabric for resistance to hydraulic fluid injection.”
The HSL tested the HexArmor fabric and found it was the right choice. As a result, Polyco approached HexArmor® and together developed the new glove for Pirtek and managed the subsequent approvals process. Phil Vanes added: “We took the test reports to SATRA, so it could evaluate the test methods and their reproducibility – essentially, there has to be a way of determining that a product ‘does what it says on the tin’. SATRA validated the test methods and subsequently issued a CE certificate for the gloves.”
The Pirtek 4041P Fluid Injection Glove was made commercially available in October 2015 and is now the only glove on the market to provide protection from hydraulic injection injury up to 700 bar (10,150 psi).
Martyn Smart added: “As a Health and Safety practitioner I wanted to find a way to protect people in our industry. Basically, we thought, ‘if there isn’t a glove like this out there, then we’ll go and make one’. With the help of Polyco, the HSL and HexArmor® — we did it!”
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