In 2013, the Ministry of Labor and Social Security issued the Regulation on Combating Dust. The purpose of this regulation is to combat dust in terms of occupational health and safety and to protect employees from the harmful effects of dust in order to prevent risks arising from dust in workplaces.
According to the regulation, the enterprises have to take the following measures in order to prevent the exposure caused by dust:
- Instead of hazardous substances that produce dust, substances that are non-hazardous or less hazardous to the health and safety of employees should be used.
- In order to prevent possible risks at source, business processes should be tailored and collective protection methods should be applied.
- Appropriate engineering methods to prevent the formation of dust should be preferred.
- Adequate fresh air should be provided according to the characteristics of the work and the way it works.
- If the measures are not sufficient, personal protective equipment should be provided and used according to the quantity and quality of the powder.
- In order to ensure the effectiveness and continuity of the measures taken, necessary supervision, control and inspection works should be carried out.
- Wastes arising from the activity should be disposed of in accordance with the relevant legal regulations.
What is the Scope of the Powder Exposure Analysis?
In accordance with the Regulation on Health and Safety Conditions in the Use of Work Equipment issued by the Ministry of Labor and Social Security in 2013, enterprises are obliged to have their work environments tested and inspected by authorized persons and institutions in certain intervals and in accordance with certain methods.
In addition, in accordance with the provisions of the Occupational Health and Safety Law and the Occupational Health and Safety Risk Assessment Regulation issued by the Ministry of Labor and Social Security in the same year, enterprises are obliged to carry out risk assessments accordingly.
Particular attention should be paid to the following issues in the risk assessment studies for dust-causing activities:
- Type of dust in the working environment
- Potential hazards and harms of dust in the working environment in terms of health and safety of employees
- Level, duration and frequency of exposure to dust
- Occupational exposure limits described in the annex to the Regulation
- Results of dust measurement
- What preventive measures will be taken
- Results of previous measurements and analyzes
The enterprises are obliged to carry out dust measurements in the periodic periods determined according to the results of the risk assessment. If there is a change in the conditions in which the workers are exposed to dust, these measurements need to be repeated. The measurement results must be within the exposure limit values described in the annex. In addition, dust measurements must be carried out by organizations that have proficiency certificates.
Some of the national and international standards considered in these analysis studies are as follows:
- TS EN 50632-1 Electric motor-powered tools - Dust measurement - Part 1: General requirements
- TS 2360 Air pollution measurement methods - Determination of sulfur dioxide content
- TS 2361 Air Pollution measurement methods - Determination of the amount of substances suspended in the air
- HSE / MDHS 14 / 3 General methods for sampling and gravimetric analysis of respirable and inhalable dust
- NIOSH NMAM 0500 Particulates not otherwise regulated, Total
- NIOSH NMAM 0600 Particulates not otherwise regulated, Respirable
- ASTM D 4532 Standard test method for cyclone samplers
our organization TÜRCERT Technical Control and Certification Inc.provides measurement services in accordance with national and international standards and with an impartial approach and complies with the standards of TS EN ISO / IEC 17020 General Criteria for the Operation of Various Types of Inspection Organizations. More detailed information about dust exposure analysis between workplace environment measurements can be requested from our employees.