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ARTICLES
Continuity of Operations is Vital to the Success of Business and Worker Safety is of Paramount Importance
3M Norway
The 3M range of respiratory and hearing protection products and protective materials will help to safeguard the wellbeing of workers. Other products can help to protect the plant and pipelines from hazards associated with spills.

In the oil, gas and petrochemicals industry, specification approval and testing of products is of key importance. All 3M products have been rigorously tested to help ensure they meet the most stringent industry standards.

Personal Protection Equipment

There are two main directives relating to personal protective equipment (PPE):
  • Dir. 89/686/EEC the Harmonisation of PPE laws.
  • Dir. 89656/EEC use of PPE in the workplace.
The directive details the basic safety requirements that a product must satisfy, as shown by CE marking. All types of PPE have to be tested and meet the requirements in relevant European standards, such as EN149:2001 for filtering halfmasks to protect against particles.

3M offers a broad range of PPE products that all comply with the appropriate European standards. They offer products for both respiratory, head, hearing and eye protection.

Selecting Respiratory Protection

During a normal working day, many employees are exposed to hazards while at work. These may include chemical hazards such as dusts, fumes, gases and vapours.

The Respiratory Protective Equipment (RPE) Programme

If the hazards cannot be substituted or eliminated, and if after control measures have been introduced control of exposure to respiratory hazards is still not adequate, respiratory protective equipment (RPE) should be used.

The programme should include:
  • identification of the hazard and risk assessment;
  • education and training must be properly emphasised and conducted;
  • maintenance, cleaning and storage programmes must be established and routinely followed for reusable respirators; and
  • the whole programme must also be reviewed at regular intervals.
Programme Implementation

To implement an effective RPE programme, four basic steps should be followed:
  • identify the potential hazard;
  • understand the contaminant’s potential health effects;
  • select the appropriate RPE; and
  • train the wearers in the use and care of the respirator.
Step One–Identify the Potential ~ Hazard

Before any selection of RPE equipment can be made, it is important to identify the hazard against which you wish to protect. These hazards can be divided into dusts, mists, fumes, gases and vapours. Consideration may need to be given to oxygen deficiency environments and extremes of temperature.

No device is ideal for all these types of hazards. For example, respirators fitted with dust filters will not protect against gases or vapours whilst gas/vapour filters will not protect against dusts.

Types of Respiratory Hazard

Dusts, fumes and mists are often grouped together as particulates.




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