Builders guide to decontamination solutions

With industrial accident and injury claims on the increase, any construction site not providing suitable decontamination facilities is taking huge risks in the long run.

Don't be a drip - a builders' guide to decontamination solutions.

'Decontamination' conjures up images of people encased head to foot in white suits, working in vast plants, handling extremely hazardous materials.

However in the building industry, even apparently harmless substances like cement can cause some serious skin problems.

"When working on a building site there is a strong possibility of being exposed to cement, brick and construction dust, wood dust and industrial cleaning chemicals," says Allen Yates of St Helens-based Showers and Eyebaths Services.

"Many of these can be harmful if they aren't thoroughly washed off".

"They can get into cuts and grazes and in some cases be absorbed into the skin, so builders often run the risk of developing some quite unpleasant skin conditions as a direct result of what they might consider as harmless exposure to these substances".

"With industrial accident and injury claims on the increase, any construction site not providing suitable decontamination facilities is taking huge risks in the long run".

Cement dust, for example, is strongly alkaline which is as irritating to the skin as acid, and can result in severe sensitisation and allergic dermatitis.

Sensitisation occurs when the skin repeatedly comes into contact with the same irritant, causing the immune system to respond with symptoms such as swelling or a rash, even if a person is not already allergic to the substance.

The irritant eventually becomes committed to the immune systems 'memory'.

This means that the person literally becomes allergic, (or sensitised), over time.

The time it takes for sensitisation to occur varies from person to person from a few days up to several years.

Allergic dermatitis is a form of eczema.

The effects are extremely uncomfortable and can be very painful for the sufferer.

The skin becomes inflamed with redness, swelling, cracking, weeping, scaling and crusting".

""The thing is, all of this is easily avoidable if you have a safety shower or an industrial eyebath on hand to deal with the problem straight away," says Allen".

"It doesn't have to be expensive either, since much of the equipment needed can be portable, moved from site to site, and is designed to be extremely low maintenance, but it's worth taking the time to get the right unit for the task".

A portable shower facility, or industrial eyebath, can be put into action wherever and whenever it is needed.

The shower folds down to the size of a small case so storage is easy.

The practicality of having a shower or eyebath that can be taken to different jobs, rather than having to install one every time a new contract is started, is highly beneficial and cost effective.

Due to the corrosive properties of cement, it can damage equipment, and thus damage the shower unit.

This means that the shower should have a corrosive resistant base plate to prevent corrosion damage occurring.

As a guide, here are a few points for site managers to consider:.

* Identify the hazard and the seriousness of the risk.

* Will you need a shower facility or just an eye wash?.

* Are you likely to be moving around a lot? If so portability will be an issue.

* How big is the site and how many workers are employed? This will affect the number of facilities there will need to be provided.

* If a unit needs to be sited outside, identify the extremes of temperature and wind chill effect in which the unit will have to function.

* Can the unit drain onto the ground or will the water need to be contained?.

* Will the water supply be uninterrupted or intermittent? Where is the supply to the mains? This is an important consideration to determine which shower you will need.

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