NEWS
The Occupation Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has announced a new standards and safety requirements for the concrete industry and general industries to improve working environments. Silica Dust is hazardous to your health because it can cause lung cancer and lung disease. When by cutting, grinding, drilling or otherwise disturbing these materials, a substance called crystalline silica particles can appear. These dust particles are very small, and are not visible to the human eye. It only takes a very small amount of airborne silica dust to create a health hazard. Therefore, OSHA updated their standards to ensure the health of construction workers. Here is a quick summary of the changes:
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New changes will take effect June 23, 2017 for the concrete industry and other general industries will take effect June 23, 2018.
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Employers have the option to follow the recommended guidelines by OSHA which include,
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Cutting wet or dry with a proper shroud and a vacuum that captures a minimum 99% of the dust and debris.
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Vacuums must be equip with a filter cleaning mechanism.
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Sweeping is not allowed. A HEPA vacuum is required to clean the floor.
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New permissible exposure limit of 50 micrograms of respirable crystalline silica per cubic meter of air (50 μg/m3) as an 8 hour time weighted average in all industries covered by the rule.
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Includes other provisions to protect employees, such as requirements for exposure assessment, methods for controlling exposure, respiratory protection, medical surveillance, hazard communication, and recordkeeping
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Written Exposure Control Plan must be developed. There is a free website that shows requirements to the plan and equipment used
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There must be a "competent person" in charge of training, implementing and enforcing the plan.
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Communication and Training must include:
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Health hazards of silica dust
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The Exposure Control Plan
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Who the "compitent person" is
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Medical Surveillance
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Medical Surveillance must be implemented if a respirator is used by a worker more than 4 hours per day, 30 hours per year.
For any additional Information visit www.osha.gov/silica.
All references in news portion are from here.
If you need any help or any questions about OSHA compliance, give us a call. Our products are up to date and compliant with the new regulations.
ACE Cares About Your Workers
At ACE, we care about your workers and their health while on the job. Our ACE Vacuum bags are OSHA compliant and will help reduce the harmful silica dust. Check out our Vacuum bags here.