Industrial Fire Prevention

From Manufacturing & Technology eJournal http://www.mfrtech.com And Gary W. Auman, Esq. Pending OSHA legislation makes the employer responsible to make sure employees comply.  It does not place any responsibility on the employees for utilizing their training and equipment. Without such a change the pending legislation will make it almost impossible for a company to avoid OSHA enforcement, no matter how conscientious and safe it is. OSHA Regulatory Update is Not Good News for Employers Pending Legislation Does Not Place Any Responsibility on the Employees for Utilizing Their Training and Equipment In an effort to pass OSHA legislation in 2010, the House recently attached portions of the Protecting America’s Workers Act to the Robert C. Byrd Miner Safety and Health Act of 2010. This action got the OSHA legislation out of committee and ready for a vote on the floor of the House. This legislation is not good news for employers. Other key points in this article: ...

Good article from American Express Small Business. Here are some of the highlights: Risk is an inherent part of being in business.  It can be managed and its adverse outcomes can be mitigated.  The greatest challenge for small business owners is to find the proper balance between peace of mind and profitability. Take these steps to put an initial risk management plan into place at your company: First: identify risks Some risks are common to most or all businesses.  Others are very specific to your business and only you as the owner can know them.  The best way to approach this is to use a standard risks checklist as a start and then add to it based on your specific expertise.  The Small Business Administration provides a Small Business Insurance and Risk Management guide which addresses potential risks.  Second: determine your company’s vulnerability for each risk Vulnerability is a function of probability – what are the odds that a partic...

This is another type of question we hear frequently.  Related to a previous post about how to upgrade and protect older dust collectors.  "If my dust collector is small enough can I keep it inside?" From our friends at Powder Bulk Solids, the "Ask the Expert" Blog, and Shawn McCorkle with Oseco, a question about keeping smaller dust collectors inside and avoiding mitigation: Explosion Venting/Suppression Q&A   If I keep the air/material separator under 8 ft. 3 in., can I avoid explosive mitigation? Answered July 26th, 2010 by Expert: Shawn McCorkle This is a tricky question. NFPA 654 (7.13.1.2) requires that protection be provided for air material separators that have an explosion hazard. Section 7.13.1.1 requires that air-material separators shall be located outdoors unless it is has explosion protection per 7.1.2.1 (venting through duct, suppression, innerting, containment, flameless venting...

From our friends at Powder Bulk Solids, and the "Ask the Expert" blog, and Rob Williamson at Dantherm, a question about the potential hazards or airborne contaminants and dust collection. Dust Collection & Pollution Control Q&A   Question: What are the potential hazards of the airborne contaminants that are removed by dust collection? Answered August 31st, 2010 by Expert: Rob Williamson Dust collection removes airborne contaminants, such as dust, mist and fumes from the work environment. The airborne particles created by cutting, shaping and grinding are more than a nuisance, they can be a serious health hazard to both health and safety if not properly controlled. Here are some of the potential problems of which you should be concerned: Respiratory effects are the primary health concern. Inhaling ...

Another good article from our friends at Farr on OSHA REQUIREMENTS and MANUFACTURERS RESPONSIBILITIES for COMBUSTIBLE DUST , DUST COLLECTORS and dust collection systems. The biggest misconception among manufacturers is that OSHA is just presenting them with a guideline, not with something they have to do. The fact is, OSHA is beefing up enforcement of safety measures on several fronts, and combustible dust has become one of the top priorities since the agency re-issued its National Emphasis Program (NEP) on this topic in March 2008. Under the OSHA NEP, manufacturers are required to follow applicable NFPA standards including the revamped NFPA 68 Standard on Explosion Protection by Deflagration Venting , which provides mandatory requirements for dust collection applications involving explosive dusts. Sometimes other safety standards such as Factory Mutual may be applied instead, but these are no less stringent than NFPA and all are treated as legal code by nearly every town ...

From Chemical Info, and author Mike Collins, comes a good piece on innovation. Here are a few hints: Leadership, Change and Creativity R&D and Experimentation Procedures and Processes Culture and Environment Problems, Trends and Opportunities He also has a few warning signs for you. Can you say "Outsourcing"?   BLOG: Just What Is Innovation? If the innovation process goes offshore, America will lose much of its capacity to generate wealth, and that decline in long-term economic growth is assured …  continue

This is a question, we hear frequently.  From our friends at Powder & Bulk Solids "Ask The Experts Blog", an article by Dr. Mayer with Rembe answering the question about what the requirements are for old dust collectors: Explosion Venting/Suppression Q&A   We are a food processing company with an old but still functioning dust collector that needs to be upgraded and currently has no vent panels. We have been told that we need to move the dust collector outside in order to be in compliance with NFPA standards. Kst is somewhere around 150 bar m/sec or less. Is that our only option? Answered September 9th, 2010 by Expert: Dr. Gerd Mayer Not necessarily. You really have a number of options. Depending on distances, Preds and such, you might be able to duct and vent the collector to the outside with an explosion panel if your collector is close to an exterior wall. But you need to pay attention ...

OSHA Issues Stern Warning to Grain Handling Facilities (Combustible Dust) From Our friends at Nilfisk Industrial Vacuum Blog: OSHA Issues Stern Warning to Grain Handling Facilities (Combustible Dust) Following several safety violations in August , OSHA is sternly reminding grain handling facilities to comply with the proper safety and maintenance procedures, outlined in the Grain Handling Facility Standard . At a recent press conference, David Michael, OSHA Administrator stated, “I am appalled at the outrageously reckless behavior of some operators of grain storage facilities. OSHA has investigated several cases involving worker entry into grain storage bins or elevators where we have found that the employer was aware of the hazard and OSHA standards but has failed to train or protect their workers. OSHA has aggressively pursued these cases and will continue to use our enforcement authority to the fullest extent possible…We will not tolerate noncompliance with our Grain ...