Dust collectors for combustible dust will have a deflagration vent(s).  These vents are like weak-seam welded roofs in that they are large surface area vent covers that relieve the pressure inside the dust collector should there be an explosion inside the collector.  As one can imagine, someone standing in the path of these vent covers can be severely injured or killed if they strike them. ...

Many facilities have security requirements due to their handling, storage, and/or processing of certain hazardous materials.  These facilities will use perimeter security barriers such as fencing and personnel turnstiles.  And one of the top egress questions we get during audits is regarding the security turnstiles that are also part of the emergency egress path.  OSHA’s 1910.36...

If the means of egress bothers you, look no further than your state’s fire code for a beefed-up standard on egress.  OSHA standards are outdated and only intended to establish a “floor” that every employer has to work above.  Even OSHA will tell you that complying with their standards will NOT help a business achieve world-class safety.  Yet, the majority of businesses...

Respondent is the owner and operator of a facility that produces olefins, ethylene oxide, propylene oxide, Methyl tertiary-butyl ether (MTBE), ethylene glycols, propylene glycols, ethanolamines, morpholine/Diglycolamine (DGA) surfactants. The facility is divided into nine process areas. The first area contains the propylene glycol unit G2. The second area contains the morpholine/DGA unit E7. The third...

NOTE:  I usually do not post RMP citations with this small of an amount, but this was a rare Program 1 citation, so I felt there was some learning to this. Respondent operates a polyurethane manufacturing facility with over 10,000 pounds of methyl formate in a process at the Facility. Methyl formate is a “regulated substance” pursuant to 40 C.F.R. § 68.3. The threshold quantity for methyl formate,...

 This is a real event – not a training event.  PPE matters when dealing with a flammable liquids fire (even the potential for)… Flammable Liquid Fire Footage from Orange County Fire Authority on Vimeo.

The Phoenix Fire Department has issued a nice SOP for their responses to flammable liquids.  It would make a really nice start for a facility’s Emergency Response Plan where a response to a flammable liquid(s) spill/release.  CLICK HERE

Relief systems include, but are not limited to, relief valves, relief headers, relief drums, and rupture disks. Design basis means documenting how the loads and sizes of the relief system and inlet and outlet sizes were determined. This includes: … HomeRead More »

I have probably posted more than two dozen reports and videos showing the hazards associated with Intermediate Bulk Containers (IBC), almost all associated with flammable liquids.  In September 2019, a facility in Rouen, France, experienced a catastrophic event involving IBCs containing flammable liquids.  It was just a reminder of the hazards and level of risks these containers can pose...

An employee, 49, of a paint manufacturing company spent eight days in intensive care on life support and has been left with all-over body scarring, partial blindness to one eye, hearing damage, and damage to a knee and shoulder.  He was off work for 16 months.  The explosion at the company’s premises on August 4, 2020, also caused significant damage to the building.  The employee was...

We have discussed this before; there is a significant difference between Recognized and Generally Accepted Good Engineering Practices (RAGAGEPs) and OSHA’s minimum performance compliance standards.  OSHA standards may be adequate when quantities of the hazardous material(s) are managed at a lower inventory level; however, once those inventory levels exceed the PSM/RMP threshold, the old...

Last month I posted Exhaust Ventilation for Flammable Atmospheres and “Safe Locations” to explain the hazards of not controlling our flammable vapors associated with the required exhaust ventilation.  I received several comments and questions on that article regarding the normal process of venting hazardous materials and how to best define a “safe location” for these process...