Classification of personal protective equipment, their storage and testing.
Classification of personal protective equipment, their storage and testing.
Personal protective equipment is a device designed to protect the skin and respiratory system from exposure to toxic substances and other harmful impurities in the air that are released as a result of any emergency or other type of emergency. The fire safety training program also includes the basic requirements for the use of protective equipment.
Classification of personal protective equipment
General classification of personal protective equipmentimplies two groups of such means: respiratory protection means (gas masks, respirators, cotton-gauze bandages) and skin protection means (protective suits). A more detailed classification of personal protective equipment is based on their purpose. There are 11 classes, which, in turn, are subdivided into types depending on the design:
- special protective clothing (sheepskin coats, coats, short coats, capes);
- hand protection (mittens, gloves, finger cots, armlets), for example, the rules for laying cables provide for the presence of such protective equipment;
- foot protection (boots, shoes, shoes, robes, slippers);
- eye and face protection (goggles, face shields);
- head protection (helmets, helmets, caps, berets);
- respiratory protection (gas masks, respirators, self-rescuers);
- insulating suits (pneumatic suits, spacesuits);
- hearing protection (plugs, earmuffs, earplugs);
- fall protection equipment (safety belts, ropes);
- dermatological protective equipment (skin cleansers, repellents);
- complex protective equipment.
Classification of personal protective equipment by operating principle: filtering and insulating equipment.
Filters purify inhaled air from harmful substances using filters, sorbents and absorbers included in their design (industrial respirators and gas masks). There are four main filtration methods: mechanical, electrostatic, mixed and chemical. In mechanical filtration, fibers retain particles that come into contact with them. Electrostatic filtration: the filter is charged to attract particles, acting like a gravitational field. Mixed filtration: respirators designed to protect against oil mists have to be «equipped» with additional layers of mechanical filter. Chemical filtration: the carbon filter layer not only mechanically retains harmful substances, but also absorbs them, that is, absorbs them. Isolating personal protective equipment protects a person's respiratory organs from the environment. Breathing air comes from a clean area or from a source of a breathing mixture, which is an integral part of the protective equipment. Isolating protective equipment is used in cases where filtering equipment cannot be used.
Testing personal protective equipment
Protective equipment may be put into use only after testing of personal protective equipment has been passed, aimed at checking their quality and safety. Protective equipment must meet the requirements of regulatory and technical documentation. After the test, a certificate of conformity must be issued. Testing of personal protective equipmentmust be carried out no later than ten days after their receipt. For the inspection, the enterprise must allocate a room with a work table, as well as the appropriate measuring devices and regulatory and technical documentation.
Storage of personal protective equipment
Storage of personal protective equipment must also be carried out according to the rules. For example, the shelf life of personal protective equipment depends not only on its quality, but also on the conditions of its storage. As for special clothing, storage of personal protective equipmentthis type implies storage in a warehouse, periodic cleaning, repair and ironing. According to the rules for providing workers and employees with special clothing, special footwear and other personal protective equipment, the employer is obliged to ensure storage, washing, drying, disinfection, degassing, decontamination and repair of the equipment issued to employees according to established standards. At the same time, storage of personal protective equipment, washing, cleaning, repair, disinfection and decontamination are carried out at the expense of the employer. Protective equipment must be stored in heated rooms. The rooms must be periodically ventilated. Clothes must be stored in securely protective containers. A comfortable storage temperature is +15°/+25° C, with a relative humidity of 40-75%. Workwear made of rubberized fabrics and rubber special footwear must be stored in darkened rooms at an air temperature of at least +5° C, with a relative humidity of 50-70% at a distance of at least 1 meter from heating systems and devices. Special footwear must be stacked on racks in pairs with straightened bootlegs, felt boots are placed on wooden platforms in stacks 1.5 m high and stored at an air temperature of +8…+16° C, relative humidity 55-65%. Personal protective equipment — protective helmets, masks, goggles, gas masks, respirators, earmuffs, rubber gloves – should be stored on shelves both as individual items and in packages.