17 Jun. 2021

Use a Spill Kit

Use a Spill Kit – Prevent Impact of Chemical Spill:

Spill accidents are common at workplaces involved in handling, storing, or transporting oil or any hazardous chemical substances.  These oil and chemical spills are very dangerous to the environment as well as to human beings. To deal with these accidental spills, a spill kit is a must-have safety tool for spill control and clean-up. When a spill happens, it is crucial to contain the spread; otherwise, it might lead to other problems such as fire hazard or exposure of hazardous chemicals to humans.

Spill Kit Benefits:

It is very beneficial to have a spill kit at your workplace. They come in a variety of size bags/containers and contain specially made absorbent materials that will soak up, absorb, and contain a leak or spill. They are designed to help you comply with relevant Pollution Prevention Guidelines as well as other workplace regulations including health and safety.

The foremost benefit is the security of those who are working in the area. The spill kit contents have been designed for containing and properly cleaning up the spill while keeping those doing the cleaning safely. You never know what the hazardous stuff could do to exposed skin or the reaction thereafter.

Another benefit is in terms of finances because by acquiring the kit you will be having what will be required to contain a spill without incurring extra expenditure. You will mitigate extra costs, especially during an emergency spill.

Spill Kit Content:

• A container

The container should be labeled properly, easy to notice, and accessible. It should contain everything you need for spill control and clean-up.

• Absorbent Socks:

Absorbent Socks are used to containing the spread of the spill. It is flexible and should provide a snug fit to prevent any seepage. These socks can be used as dams and placed a around the spill area for a cover-up. It is also important to make sure that your socks are compatible with the type of spill that might occur at your workplace. 

• Absorbent Pads:

Absorbent pads are used for the cleanup of the spilled content. You can use them to absorb the spill or any runoffs. Make sure that you buy the pads that are compatible with the spilled content as there are different types available in the market such as oil-only pads, Hazchem pads, etc. 

• Absorbent pillow

Absorbent pillows are used for high-capacity absorption and localized spills or persistent leaks. You might or might not need them. Make sure to evaluate the danger at your workplace before planning. The high absorbent capacity of pillows makes them suitable for persistent leaks and spills which require high capacity.

• Disposable bag & ties

Bags are used to collect the absorbent materials. Always ensure to label these bags properly for safer handling.

 Choosing the right spill kits:

First thing you need to know is what kind of Spill Kit are right for you.

• General Purpose — General-purpose spill kits are important to have around for water-based liquids and hydrocarbons.
• Oil Only — Oil spill kits are specifically designed for the clean-up of hydrocarbons like gasoline and oil.
• Hazmat — If you work with highly corrosive acids and solvents, hazardous material kits are for you. These absorbents will easily absorb your hazardous liquids.

 Impacts of Chemical Spills:

Human Impacts

• Toxic or poisonous gases can cause severe illness and even fatalities in some cases. The greater the concentration of toxic chemicals spilled or leaked, the more potential for significant loss of life.
• Corrosive chemicals can cause severe burns when touched, damage eyesight, and cause harm to the respiratory tract.
• Some chemical spills have a delayed carcinogenic effect, such as asbestos inhalation causing lung cancer years after the initial exposure.
• Flammable chemicals can also cause obvious damage to humans through fires or explosions.

Structural Impacts

• Flammable chemicals can cause of fire and severe structural damage to buildings, and in particularly severe instances, the complete collapses of a structure due to degradation of its foundation from high temperatures.
• Certain toxic chemicals can leave buildings unusable for extended periods of time until the spilt chemical has been thoroughly removed.

Environmental Impacts

• Spilled oil and other chemicals can physically damage marine life with run-off contamination in the water.
• Spilt chemicals can also run-off into soil, causing severe ecological damage and making such areas inhabitable for flora and fauna.

Action Plan to prevent Impacts of Chemical Spills:

• Assessing Safety

An important factor in swift chemical clean-up is the ability of employees to understand the severity of a spill and assess the safety of the spill site. If an immediate threat is posed, the area in which the spill occurred should be evacuated immediately. Furthermore, fire and medical personnel should be notified as soon as possible about large spills that are too difficult to clean with standard chemical clean-up kits. For incidental spills, immediately initiate standard chemical clean up procedures.

• PPE Equipment

Anyone involved in chemical clean up should immediately put on Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) appropriate for the chemical and the hazard(s) it presents. In some instances, a respirator must be used as PPE.

• Stop the Spill

Minimizing the spread of any chemical spill is vital in mitigating the risk of further damage. The most important thing is to stop the flow of liquid—if a container with a hazardous chemical inside has fallen over, set the container upright, otherwise, put a cap or putty over the opening from which a chemical is leaking. Additionally, shut down any sources of heat or ignition for flammable chemical spills or leaks.

• Use a Spill Kit

After stopping or controlling the chemical flow, contain the spill using a spill kit, including absorbent pads and pillows. Ensure pads and other spill kit components that have soaked up chemicals are correctly disposed of in hazardous waste bags or containers. Once the site is clear of chemical spillage, clean the spill area with soap and water to remove any chemical residue. 

The importance of dealing with chemical spills quickly cannot be overstated. Any prudent contingency plan for dealing with chemical spills must not be limited to merely preventing spills from occurring accidents happen, and when they do, prompt chemical clean up can save lives.

03 Jun. 2021

Lockout Tagout

Lockout Tagout – Ensure Before Start Performing any Maintenance or Servicing Activity:

Lockout/tagout (LOTO) is the procedure necessary to prevent unwanted operation of an equipment (or part of it), preventing the release of hazardous energy during servicing and maintenance activities.

LOTO is an important safety component to your workplace. It is critical to safeguard workers and employees around the machinery and equipment they operate, service and maintain.

Critical Requirements:

• All energy sources are disconnected and LOTO is in place prior to any servicing or maintenance activity.
• Absence of residual energy must be verified before start of work.
• Lockout/Tagout must be implemented before servicing and maintenance is performed on machines and equipment, unless the works undertaken are performed using alternative measures that provide effective protection.
• Each authorized person must be issued with an individual lock with a unique key.

 Key Considerations:

When planning Lockout/Tagout make sure:

• All steps to de-energise and re-energise are defined.
• All isolating devices are identified.
• All Lockout/Tagout equipment is available.
• Persons performing Lockout/Tagout are trained and qualified.
• Persons affected by Lockout/Tagout (e.g. machine drivers) are informed.

When performing works, ensure:

• One Person, One Lock, One Key, is always applied.
• All energies are purged, dissipated or blocked.
• Absence of residual energy is properly checked.
• Lockout/Tagout procedures are followed with proper equipment.

Prior to unlock the equipment:

• Make sure all guards, interlocks and safety devices are in place.
• Inform concerned persons.

Essential Steps to Follow for LOTO Safety:

One of the biggest failures of lockout/tagout procedures is the failure to isolate all energy sources prior to beginning work on a machine. These sources include, but are not limited to:

• Thermal
• Hydraulic
• Chemical
• Electrical
• Pneumatic
• Mechanical
• Force of gravity

Without isolating all potential energy sources, workers can – and often do – experience injuries or death. That’s why following each step of a LOTO program is critical to your success. Let’s look at the individual steps in more detail.

Preparation

Before initiating the procedure, plan it out:

• What needs to happen?
• Who is responsible for each part of the process?
• What are the potential hazards?
• What energy do you need to control in order for LOTO to be effective?

Shut Down

After you have a plan, you’ll need to power down the machines for LOTO to occur. It’s a good idea to let all employees know that LOTO is about to take place, even if they aren’t a direct part of the repair or maintenance. This can help create a heightened level of safety awareness.

Isolation

Once the machine has been powered down, you should isolate the machine’s power source(s). Turning off a power breaker, unplugging it from an outlet, closing a valve – whatever you need to do to ensure no power is running to any part of the machine.

Lockout Tagout

Once the machine is “dead”, you should perform the actual lockout and tagout. This step requires standard devices that show a piece of equipment is disabled and being worked on. Employees will know not to turn power back on to the machine, try to use the machine, or otherwise tamper with the repair or maintenance site.

The lockout/tagout devices are applied to each energy source in a way that they stay in a “safe” mode and cannot be moved to an unsafe mode by anyone other than the person performing the lockout tagout. These devices typically have the name of the person performing the tasks and other information. This is the arguably the most crucial step in LOTO because it prevents tampering from occurring. Even when all prior steps have been completed, accidents can still happen if proper LOTO techniques have not been applied.

Stored Energy Check

Even after stopping the machine’s power, a machine may have stored energy that could be hazardous. Check for residual energy and relieve the machine of it prior to beginning work.

Isolation Verification

Go back and double check all your steps to ensure you’ve completed each one properly. An authorized employee should verify the completion of lockout/tagout and give the green light to begin work.

25 May. 2021

Importance and SOP for use of PPE

Importance and Safe Operating Procedure for use of personal protective equipment (PPE) when Working at Height:

Working at height remains one of the biggest causes of fatalities and major injuries. Common cases include falls from ladders, nonstandard platform and fragile roof etc. Lot of construction workers suffer mild to major injuries from falls related to working at heights.

There are many ways through which safety can be assured while working at heights. They range from proper planning and proper inspection of the site to the wearing of appropriate and properly functioning personal protective equipment.

One of the most recommended types of personal protective equipment is the full body safety harness. Unfortunately, a lot of construction workers or people who work at heights don’t usually see the importance of wearing a full body safety harness. The importance of doing so only occurs to them after they have suffered a fall – and are lucky enough to live. A safety harness is a crucial component of the personal fall arrest systems. It plays the important role of keeping users suspended upright in case of a fall. It also supports them as they await rescue. The full body safety harness is highly recommended in fall restraint systems that prevent employees from reaching points where falls are probable.

Safe Operating Procedure for use of Safety Harness:

Fall protection in the form of safety harnesses and lanyards must be used in situations where it is impracticable to provide primary systems.

• Whenever full body safety harnesses are used they must be secured to a secure anchorage point, running line or arrester device. Anchorage points must be capable of supporting 5000 pounds (2268 kg.).
• Full safety harnesses with thigh and shoulder straps shall be worn. The lanyard and anchorage point should limit the maximum drop to six (6) feet (2 meters).
• Shock absorbers must be provided with the harness system in order to reduce the shock loading in the event of a fall.
• The fall protection lanyard shall be attached to the D-ring located in the middle back of the safety harness.
• D-rings located at the waist may only be used for positioning and with rail type ladder climbing devices.
• Work positioning assemblies are to be attached to D rings at the harness belt location.

How to Inspect a Harness Before Using It

• Pick up the harness by its D-ring in the back
• Gently shake the harness to let the straps fall in to place.
• Make sure the buckles are unfastened.
• Look for any damage, such as worn, frayed or missing threads, cracked webbing, or foreign material on the harness.
• Check the metal strap fasteners and d-ring to make sure they aren’t cracked or deformed.
• If your harness uses grommets, make sure they are firmly attached and are not deformed or otherwise damaged.
• Make sure buckle tongues are firmly attached and not bent.

How to Put on a Fall Arrest Harness

• Slip the harness over your shoulders like a vest.
• Make sure the D-ring is in the middle of your back, directly between your shoulder blades.
• Pull each leg strap up and fasten the buckles together.
• Stand up straight and adjust the length of the side body straps as needed to make sure there is no slack.
• Fasten the chest strap about mid-chest high.
• Adjust the chest strap as necessary to remove any slack.
• Make sure the shoulder straps and leg straps are snug, while still allowing full range of motion.
• Eliminate any excess slack by tightening the straps in the buckle.
• Make sure the loose ends of the straps are tucked into the strap retainers.
• With your hand held flat, you should be able to fit your fingers underneath your leg straps

12 May. 2021

Hierarchy Of Risk Control

Elimination

Elimination is the highest form of risk control. Physical removal of the hazard is the most effective hazard control. By removing all hazards from a work area, employees can safely perform their work. An example includes workers performing maintenance on an overhead light run the risk of a fall hazard. To eliminate this hazard, the light must be lowered to the ground for maintenance.

Substitution

Substitution, the second most effective risk control, involves replacing something that produces a hazard with something that does not produce a hazard or produces a lesser hazard—for example, replacing lead-based paint with titanium white. To be an effective control, the new product must not produce unintended consequences. Because airborne dust can be hazardous, if a product can be purchased with a larger particle size, the smaller product may effectively be substituted with the larger product.

Engineering controls

The third most effective means of controlling risk is engineered controls. These do not eliminate hazards, but rather isolate people from hazards. Capital costs of engineered controls tend to be higher than less effective controls in the hierarchy, however they may reduce future costs. For example, a crew might build a work platform rather than purchase, replace, and maintain fall arrest equipment. “Enclosure and isolation” create a physical barrier between personnel and hazards, such as using remotely controlled equipment. Fume hoods can remove airborne contaminants as a means of engineered control.

Administrative controls

Administrative controls are changes to the way people work. Administrative controls do not remove hazards, but limit or prevent people’s exposure to the hazards, Examples of administrative controls include procedure changes, employee training, and installation of signs and warning labels (such as those in the Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System).

Personal protective equipment

Personal protective equipment (PPE) includes safety Helmets, safety shoes, hand gloves, coveralls, respirators, safety glasses and high-visibility clothing . While these do help lower the hazard risks, they are the least effective means of control as there is always the potential for the items to become damaged and ineffective. Proper maintenance and replacement of old PPE are necessary.

04 Aug. 2020

SAFE USE OF MASK TO PROTECT YOURSELF AND OTHERS FROM THE SPREAD COVID -19