HEALTH AND SAFETY CRITERIA FOR ABRASIVE BLAST CLEANING OPERATIONS

This article presents the basic findings of a NIOSH- sponsored study that involved an evaluation of pressure- blast cleaning operations as they presently exist. The study began with an assessment of equipment within the shops and laboratories of various manufacturers. This was followed by field surveys of operational abrasive-blast cleaning equipment at various plant locations, i.e., shipyards, foundries, steel mills, steel fabricating plants, and within a gas-distribution station. In summary, hazardous conditions were found at most locations. Many operators were breathing contaminated air, and personal protective equipment was wanting and poorly maintained, as was the abrasive-blast cleaning equipment itself. There is a need for corrective action to develop, enact, and enforce safety and health standards to effectively control the hazards present in abrasive-cleaning operations.