SAFETY
To ensure the safety of its workers, Turkish mining company Eti Bakır AŞ opted for DuPont’s Tyvek coveralls for its Küre plant
SUBTERRANEAN
orkers in the mining industry face many on-the-job hazards that pose a constant threat to
SAFEGUARD W
Garment-based innovations have greatly bolstered miner safety. By Siobhan Doyle
different types of PPE. “The mining sector is a big client of
their safety. Mining personal protective equipment (PPE) play a major part in ensuring the protection of miners. Although there are common types
of PPE typically used by miners, from safety glasses to hard hats and earplugs, it’s important to acknowledge the garment-based innovations present across the sector. Here, we explore the personal
protective solutions chemical company DuPont have created for underground mining applications.
PROTECTION FOR EVERY TASK The risks faced by mine workers differ depending on the type of method used for processing minerals and metals, from electric hazards with drilling equipment, to protection against dirt and grim. Different methods require
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ours and they use different products for different tasks,” says Steve Marnach, EMEA training manager and specialist for Critical Environments at DuPont. “For example, some teams wear disposal dust protective garments to protect the worker’s skin.” DuPont has developed a broad range
of PPE to address such hazards. These include its synthetic fibre garments known as Nomex for thermal and electric arc flash hazards, gloves made from another one of its products called Kevlar for mechanical and multi- hazard protection, and a high-density polyethylene fibre called Tyvek for protection against fine particle hazards and liquid splashes. Most miners wear DuPont’s Tyvek
500 HV coveralls because of its high-visibility, are ideal for working in naturally dark places such as underground mines, and come with chemical and biological protection.
Miners at the Eti Bakır AŞ Küre Plant in Turkey, the largest underground copper mine in the country, use these disposable coveralls. Work equipment and workers
operate together in the mechanised underground mine system: the extensive system runs 960m below the surface and has tunnels that are up to 40km long. Officials at the site realised the importance of workers’ safety under such conditions and opted for the Tyvek 500 HV coveralls. “With so much work equipment in
operation at the mine, high visibility of workers is essential. This is why we prefer fluorescent colours and highly reflective tapes in our underground workwear,” says Kazım Küçükateş, design and underground mine manager at Eti Bakır AŞ. “We have made sure our workers have high visibility, and machine operators can easily spot them, thanks to the Tyvek 500 HV coveralls.” Küçükateş also says that disposable
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