It is a major responsibility of OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) to enforce guidelines and regulate the practice of workplace safety to protect workers from hazards. Disposable protective clothing or PPE kits are very important for protection from hazards at work and OSHA performs strict workplace inspections regarding that.
When workers perform hazardous tasks, company employer must supply the correct disposable workwear for them and also train them on how to wear and dispose of. OSHA has set certain standards for employers to follow for minimizing their exposure to hazards and prevent health risks. The protective clothing equipment at the workplace generally includes gloves, shoe cover, eye goggles, coveralls, gowns, aprons, earplugs, hard hats, face shield, 3PLY mask, and respiratory equipment. Workers should be encouraged by their employer to use protective clothing to prevent health hazards, physical hazards, environmental hazards, and hazardous materials.
Importance of Disposable Protective Clothing
The primary goal of disposable protective clothing at work is to prevent workplace injuries and hazards. The employers should explain to the workers regarding protective equipment dos and don’ts and management, besides complying with workplace laws and regulations. From the viewpoint of the employer, wearing of PPE kit by the workers can be beneficial in the following ways:
- The reduction of workplace injuries reduces the cost of workers’ compensation premiums.
- Protected workers are more engaged and productive in the workplace.
- A safe workplace enhances corporate and community goals of social responsibility.
- Standard workflow can be a result of maintaining good safety guidelines.
Requirement of Disposable Protective Clothing
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Biohazard Control at Workplace
When workers are exposed to biohazards like bacteria, viruses, or other pathogens, employers should encourage them to wear disposable protective clothing. The infectious pathogens can enter the body of the worker through their respiratory tract, skin contact, ingestion, etc. and therefore special fabric of biohazard-specific protective clothing at healthcare facilities or clinics or laboratories, should be utilized to inhibit pathogen transmission through body fluids and blood. Partner with a manufacturer like Advancells that manufacturers cost-effective DRDO and ICMR approved PPE clothing for high-end performance. The PPE kits protect healthcare workers against biohazards in infection scenarios. Personal protective equipment is currently used for COVID-19 healthcare management and has become a major necessity in this pandemic.
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Hazardous Materials and Chemicals
If chemicals are a part of industrial processes where workers are involved, clean protective gloves, coveralls, and eyewear should be compulsorily supplied by the employer to prevent any form of skin irritation or respiratory irritation. Every chemical-based company’s safety program should provide appropriate OSHA levels of protection against the specific types of chemicals and concentration levels. Aside from OSHA 1-4 levels protection, European CE marking indicates the ability of chemical suit to protect against specific hazards and ASTM approval determines the chemical suit’s ability to transfer fluids.
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Environmental Hazards
Besides dust, airborne particles, and respiratory irritation gases, the common causes of environmental hazards faced by company workers include: Extreme conditions of temperature, waste or unsanitary conditions, bright lights or loud noise, confined spaces, and energized circuits. These environmental hazards are obviously a nuisance but being exposed to these conditions everyday could pose the fatal risk of health hazards and therefore, disposable protective clothing is very crucial to prevent or minimize health risks. Company management should always look into these hazards and determine their safety plans and regulations before beginning work as control measures can be taught to the workers and other personnel to limit the exposure to these environmental hazards. Control measure examples include disposable safety gloves, disposable uniform bins, easy access to earplugs, emergency eyewash stations etc.
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Heavy Machinery Operations
Heavy machinery operation settings at construction sites, food & beverage processing plants, wastewater treatment etc. bring the workers in close contact with heavy-duty machines that can be directly risky in terms of physical damage. These workers might be doing their daily operations at slippery places, near electrical hazards, near falling objects, or at great heights. In a more risky situation, these workers might also be exposed to explosive injury risks and hot surfaces. Therefore, a proper risk assessment is a first and foremost requirement from the viewpoint of an employer in order to ensure the safety of the workers. With proper risk assessment during normal operations, workers can be provided with disposable safety clothing like shoe cover, glasses, gloves, and coveralls to eliminate hazards due to common accidents involving industrial machine operations.
If your company is looking for disposable protective clothing and PPE Kits to ensure the safety and protection of the workers in various industrial and healthcare settings, contact [email protected] for a full range of protective kits and ensure the enhancement of your company’s productivity.
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