© Crown copyright (2005)

Harpur Hill, Buxton, Derbyshire, SK17 9JN Tel: +44 (0) 1298 218000 Fax: +44 (0) 1298 218590

Survey of Provision of Training for Welders

HSL/2005/17

Project Leader: Alan Howe Author(s): Penny Simpson and Alan Howe

Science Group: Environmental Sciences

© Crown copyright (2005)

PRIVACY MARKING: D Available to the public HSL report approval: Mr Dave Mark Date of issue: April 2005 Job number: JS2004117 Registry file: MF ST 2004 22751 Electronic filename: Excon on vinata/Reactive JS20 support/JS20.04117

welding/Report/Report

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The authors would like to thank Anna Buttrill of the Medical Unit for her help in the telephone survey of Training providers.

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CONTENTS

1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 1 2 Methods................................................................................................................................. 2

2.1 Course Search Via The Internet .................................................................................... 2 2.2 Survey ........................................................................................................................... 2

3 Results ................................................................................................................................... 3 3.1 Background ................................................................................................................... 3 3.2 British Standard............................................................................................................. 3 3.3 City and Guilds NVQ.................................................................................................... 4 3.4 Awarding Body consortium (ABC) .............................................................................. 4 3.5 EMTA Awards Limited (EAL) ..................................................................................... 5 3.6 Other Courses................................................................................................................ 5 3.7 Survey Results............................................................................................................... 5 3.8 Private Training Companies.......................................................................................... 6

4 Conclusions ........................................................................................................................... 8 5 Appendices............................................................................................................................ 9

5.1 Appendix 1 – Training Materials - Bishop Burton College .......................................... 9 5.2 Appendix 2 Training materials - COVE...................................................................... 15 5.3 Appendix 3 – Health and Safety Test - Derwentside college...................................... 24

6 References ........................................................................................................................... 30

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

OBJECTIVES This project was concerned with investigating the level of the health and safety training, especially welding fume safety training, included in welder training courses. The main aims of the study were to find:

• To identify the bodies which offer welder training in the UK and the qualifications awarded.

• To collect information on the health and safety content of the courses identified. • To assess the importance of the health and safety aspects of the course in gaining the

welding qualification. MAIN FINDINGS Training providers offering courses leading to formal qualifications from awarding bodies, including those accredited by The Welding Institute (TWI) or the Institute of Rail Welding (IoRW), are obliged to provide health and safety training on their courses and to carry out assessments of its effectiveness. For those companies training to BS EN 287-1:2004 (Qualification test of welders – Fusion welding – part 1: Steels) there is no requirement to provide health and safety training and therefore it appears that very little is provided. The provision of health and safety training to all welders is only likely to improve if it is made a legal requirement of the standard (BS EN 287-1:2004) which covers the certification scheme. RECOMMENDATIONS Training companies need to include health and safety training in their courses. As this is not a legal requirement it is necessary to find another incentive to drive this change. Educating the end users (welders and their employers) about the importance of health and safety training and prompting them to ask training providers about its inclusion on their courses is an alternative to contacting the trainers directly. This report provides an overview of health and safety training provided to welders. However, it might be useful to create a comprehensive inventory of such training, in which case the required work would need to be the subject of a much larger project. In particular, additional time would improve the level of information available on training provided by private companies.

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1 INTRODUCTION

The health and safety of welding has been of concern for many years. There are many different risks associated with welding including heat, noise, vibration and electromagnetic radiation but the focus of this study is on exposure by inhalation to welding fume and gases. The hazards arising from exposure to welding fume vary depending on the materials used and the type of welding taking place. Inhalation of welding fume is associated with a range of health effects, which include impaired pulmonary function, asthma, bronchitis and respiratory infection. Welding fume can also have non-respiratory effects including dermatological and central nervous system effects (Antonini, 2003). The provision of ventilation and personal protective equipment does not guarantee that exposure will not occur if the workers are not aware why they have been made available and how they should be used. Raising the awareness of welders to the dangers that welding fume poses to their health and how to avoid the ill effects of breathing in the fume should start as early as possible. Preferably it should be an integral part of the training given and of the assessment undertaken before qualification as a welder. Although the health and safety training relating to control of exposure to welding fume was the main concern throughout this work, it was not restricted to this as the extent of general health and safety training was also of interest. The main areas focused on throughout were:

• To identify the bodies which offer welder training in the UK and the qualifications awarded.

• To collect information on the health and safety content of the courses identified. • To assess the importance of the health and safety aspects of the course in gaining the

welding qualification.

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2 METHODS

2.1 COURSE SEARCH VIA THE INTERNET

Initially it was necessary to identify who was providing training for welders. This was done by searching two Internet sites dedicated to training courses and further education. The first site searched was www.hotcourses.com. A search for “welding” on this site found 1629 courses at 368 sites (colleges, private businesses etc) around the country. A search on an Internet search engine (Yahoo) using the term “welder training” found over 12000. This search was conducted with the “UK only” option selected. This search bought up many of the courses already found on the specialist training sites but also found some other courses, mainly run by private companies who act as contractors running internal training courses. From this search it became apparent that three awarding bodies generally moderated the courses taught at colleges around the country. The scheme handbooks for the three bodies were downloaded from the Internet. 2.2 SURVEY

A telephone survey was then carried out to establish the type of health and safety training provided by the various training providers and the scale of the health and safety training they deliver. If the trainers did not have time to complete the questionnaire on the telephone or wanted to answer in their own time a copy of the survey was sent to them via e-mail for them to complete and return. It was also important to find out if the students on the courses were required to pass a health and safety test, either written or practical, prior to gaining the qualification. The questions asked are as follows:

• If you use an examining body, which one do you use? • Is there a health and safety section to your course? • How is it taught? • Is it assessed? How? • Do students have to pass the health and safety section of the course to gain the

qualification? • How many welders do you train each year? • Do you write your own training materials? • Could you send us copies?

The replies to the survey were collated using a computer database.

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3 RESULTS

3.1 BACKGROUND

There are a number of awarding bodies that have welding as one of their assessment areas. The training itself is usually undertaken by: a) a further education college, b) in the work place by external consultants, or c) in house by colleagues. The level of general health and safety training given under any of these cases has not been established. This work looked at the courses available, the requirements for welder approval qualifications and the health and safety training given. It is not necessary for training courses to be affiliated to an awarding body. Non-affliated training is most likely to be delivered when a private contractor is providing training for a company or when training is in-house training is given on the job. The level of health and safety training given in such circumstances is probably most difficult to assess and therefore it was essential that these types of training were included in the project. From initial contacts with the three main awarding bodies and TWI it became apparent that, although there is a requirement for welders to be certificated on individual welding operations, there is no legal requirement for a formal training programme to be undertaken. Further to this, where there is a training programme, there is no requirement for health and safety to be formally taught or assessed. The level of training and assessment of health and safety (and more specifically welding fume health and safety) varies depending on the awarding body. Until around 15 years ago the majority of welders undertook a lengthy apprenticeship, during which they learnt all aspects of welding over a number of years. It is now more common for someone to train on one or two welding methods, either on college courses or on short courses taken on the job. 3.2 BRITISH STANDARD

All welders must hold a valid certificate to carry out the specific type of welding. The qualification test for welders is described in BS EN 287-1:2004 (Qualification test of welders – Fusion welding – part 1: Steels). A welder may hold certificates for more than one type of welding. Welders must undergo re-certification every two years for each of the welding certificates they hold. In order for a certificate to be valid for the first two years, BS EN 287-1 requires the employer to confirm that the welder has been “working within the initial range of the qualification”. This needs to be reconfirmed every six months. The qualification test is for the most part concerned with the quality of the weld and does not mention health and safety. However, the standard has an informative annex that covers suggested topics for a test of job knowledge, which include safety precautions. This is not a mandatory part of the qualification, but it does specifically address welding fume and gases.

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3.3 CITY AND GUILDS NVQ

The syllabus for the level 3 Fabrication and Welding Engineering course includes a unit entitled "Complying with statutory regulations and organisational safety requirements". This is the first unit in the course and includes sections on:

• The Health and Safety at Work Act • The COSHH Regulations • Risk assessment.

The following units deal with individual welding processes. The students choose which units they need to complete depending on the processes they require to learn. Each unit specifies that the students must:

• Work safely at all times, complying with Health and Safety and other relevant regulations on guidelines.

This course does not make specific mention of individual health and safety issues (with the exception of manual handling), but it is possible that the individual colleges/training centres choose to cover welding fume in one or more of the above sections. Course assessment involves the student showing a minimum of three pieces of evidence that he or she has the required knowledge and skill in 20 different areas, within the following topic areas:

• Health & Safety • Emergency requirements • Environmental Hazards/Risks • Manual lifting and carrying techniques • Safe working practices

Throughout the practical assessments, students must show awareness of health and safety aspects. In addition, students must prepare a brief report on the “hazards or difficulties associated with the work and how these are dealt with”. This could include health and safety information but the scheme handbook doesn’t specify that this is necessary. 3.4 AWARDING BODY CONSORTIUM (ABC)

The courses designed by ABC are entitled Welding and Fabrication Practice certificates 1, 2 and 3. Each certificate is made up of a number of units, each relating to a different welding technique. The students choose which units to complete, depending on which techniques they require. The first section in each unit is concerned with safety. This covers many areas of safety, but the most relevant are:

• 1.3 Identifying common welding hazards – fume, burns, radiation, hot metal and welding in confined spaces.

• 1.4 Use appropriate protective clothing, equipment and conditions including ventilation.

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The health safety knowledge of the students is assessed through a written test and observed during practical assessments. The students must pass these assessments to gain the qualification. 3.5 EMTA AWARDS LIMITED (EAL)

EAL run two courses of different levels. The intermediate course has the most in depth health and safety section. This is a mandatory section called “Engineering Environment Awareness”; it is made up of the following three learning outcomes:

• Demonstrate an understanding of the requirements of an engineering organisation in meeting health and safety legislation and regulations

• Demonstrate an understanding of the role and responsibility of the employer and employee in the continuous development of skills and working relationships

• Demonstrate an understanding of the external and internal environment associated with the operations of an engineering organisation.

The mandatory section is assessed with a combination of written tests and practical assessment. The students must pass this portion of the course in order to gain the qualification. EAL are currently working with TWI to establish an online, multiple-choice test. 3.6 OTHER COURSES

There are other courses administered by awarding bodies, for example The Edexcel Foundation, Open College Network West Midlands (ONCWM) and Engineering Consortium Industry Training Board (ECITB), but the three mentioned above appeared most frequently during the survey of training providers. Private companies providing training did not usually use an awarding body, but trained the student to pass the welder approval test certificate. From the courses identified on the various searches a short list of 119 was drawn up to use for the survey of training providers. This list was split into two groups; colleges and private training companies. 3.7 SURVEY RESULTS

3.7.1 General

The time allowed for the survey of training providers put restraints on the number of trainers that could actually be contacted. As many of the lecturers and trainers were actually teaching during the day, speaking to the correct person was often difficult. Given a longer period of time for the survey, more people could have been contacted. 3.7.2 College Courses

As most lecturers at colleges teach on site, they were generally found to be more accessible than trainers who work for private training companies. However, speaking to them between lectures was not always easy.

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The courses run by the colleges who answered the questionnaire were those administrated by the awarding bodies, as described above. In the main, courses were found to follow published syllabuses and health and safety information and training was provided as advertised. Attempts were made to contact 30 colleges. This usually required more than one call and on some occasions up to four telephone calls were necessary to reach the correct person at a time convenient for them. Out of these 30 colleges, 14 answered the questionnaire. The answers given by these were all similar so it was felt that contacting further colleges was not warranted. Of the 14 colleges questioned, only one gave different responses to the group as a whole. One of the colleges questioned ran both ABC and City and Guilds courses, but stated that their course did not have a taught health and safety section and that it was not a requirement of their qualification. This is not in accordance with the syllabuses described above and is therefore of concern. The other colleges all had health and safety as a taught part of the course and this was backed up during practical welding sessions. With the exception of the previously mentioned course, all required the students to undergo some testing on health and safety in order to gain the qualification. This took four main forms; written reports, written test papers, oral questions and observation during practical testing. Usually two forms of testing were undertaken at each college. This was a combination of the observation during practical welding tests plus one of the other three. The students were required to pass all parts of these tests to gain the qualification. The approximate number of students on the welding courses of the colleges who answered the questionnaire was 1070. This includes students on full time and part time/evening courses and those who take welding as part of a bigger course. The number of students at each college varied from 12 to 160. All the colleges who said they provided training material were asked if they would be willing to send us copies. Several colleges replied that they had all their training materials on line, which were only available to student on the courses with use of a password. Three colleges agreed to send their training materials. However, only two arrived and time was too short to chase up the other colleges. The training materials that were received are attached at appendix 1 and 2. Another college provided the questions used to test the students at the end of the health and safety portion of the course and this is attached at appendix 3. 3.8 PRIVATE TRAINING COMPANIES

Trainers for private companies generally worked away from the business address and contacting them whilst they were in the office and available to speak was problematic. The private companies were less open to talking about the courses that they ran than the colleges. It was not clear why this was, but it could to be due more to concern about details of their courses being released to competitors or not wanting to admit to a lack of a health and safety content in their course. Twenty-five private training companies were contacted, but only 2 completed the questionnaire. The private training companies were generally unhappy about answering the questions over the telephone and asked for the questionnaire to be e-mailed to them. This was done in 10 cases, but only one of these was returned. Given more time, it would have been possible to carry out follow up calls to the companies who have not replied. From informal conversations with the trainers and one of the questionnaire replies it appears that the health and safety training is generally not a part of the courses provided. This was also apparent from an examination of the Internet sites of the training companies. Health and safety training is not a requirement of the standard to which the companies are training their students, BS EN 287-1, so this is probably to be expected.

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Of the two companies that answered the questionnaire in full, one carried out training for large power generating companies. This company did not provide any specific health and safety training along with the welding training. They stated that the health and safety training was usually the responsibility of the employers rather than themselves. They did however include risk assessment with the practical training sessions. The number of people trained annually by this company was approximately 12. The second company had a different attitude. They trained welders for the rail welding industry and the courses they offered were certified by the Institute of Rail Welding (IoRW). This course involved training on health and safety, including COSHH, risk assessments, method statements and safe handling. They included health and safety in workplace assessments in their training course and this aspect had to be passed in order to gain the qualification. They did use pre-prepared notes for training purposes, but as these were provided by the IoRW they were unable to provide copies. This company trained approximately 150 welders each year. This number includes new welders and re-certification of current welders.

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4 CONCLUSIONS

It has been difficult, in the time allowed, to provide a full picture of the health and safety training given to welding students. From the survey results and informal conversations with training providers it is clear that the training in health and safety, which includes specific training on welding fume, varies greatly depending on who is providing the training. Training providers using awarding bodies including those accredited by TWI or IoRW are obliged to provide health and safety training on their courses and to carry out assessments on this. For the most part this was true for those surveyed with the one exception described above. For those companies training to BS EN 287-1:2004, there is no requirement to provide health and safety training and therefore it appears that very little is provided. The quality and level of health and safety training provided to welders needs to be greatly improved. The most effective way of doing this is to talk to the end users of the training courses (the welders and their employers) as well as the training providers. If the end users are convinced that health and safety should be included in the training courses they could be prompted to ask about health and safety content when looking for a suitable course and to request it’s inclusion. If the training providers are not legally obliged to include health and safety in their courses market forces are an alternative method of persuasion. This report provides an overview of training provided to welders. However, it might be useful to create a comprehensive inventory of such training, in which case the required work would need to be the subject of a much larger project. In particular, additional time would improve the level of information available on training provided by private companies.

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5 APPENDICES

5.1 APPENDIX 1 – TRAINING MATERIALS - BISHOP BURTON COLLEGE

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5.2 APPENDIX 2 TRAINING MATERIALS - COVE

Centre for vocational excellence- Incorporating Burton College, Plymouth College and Telford College of Arts and Technology. Unit 001 Working Effectively in an Engineering Environment Stage 1

Control of Substances Hazardous to Health & Regulations 2002 (COSHH)

These notes outline the COSHH Regulations, and the duties they impose. They also describe how fume may be measured and its significance assessed. The COSHH Regulations require, under Regulations numbered as below, that employers must:

Make an assessment of the HEALTH RISKS created by work involving substances hazardous to health: Prevent or control exposure to SUBSTANCES hazardous to health; Establish procedures to apply control measures; (A hazardous malfunction is usually a result of a breakdown of the hazardous control systems) Maintain, examine and test control measures: Provide appropriate information, instruction and TRAINING.

Regulation 2 and the associated sections of the ACOP officially define 'substances hazardous to health'. In the field covered by these notes, the main interests will be in substances covered by the following sub-paragraphs of Regulation 2: Reg2b) First, those for which a maximum exposure limit is specified in Schedule 1 of the Regulations, including cadmium and its compounds, and 1,1,1-Trichloroethane. Second, those for which the Health and Safety Commission has approved an occupational exposure standard (see below); Reg2d) In dust of any kind present at an 8-hour time-weighted average of 10 mg/m3 total inhalable or 5 mg/m3 respirable dust; Reg2e) Any other substance which creates a comparable HAZARD.

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Welding has potential hazards due to inhalation of fumes, as considered here, but the COSHH Regulations are also concerned with substances presenting a hazard by any other route, such as SKIN contact. Assessment of Health Risks The assessment of health risks is required by Regulation 6. It should start by considering which substances hazardous to health are likely to be present, and which processes and applications are likely to produce them. Using any available information, including manufacturer's information sheets and technical literature, it should be possible to estimate how any fumes will compare with the occupational exposure standard (OES). Measurements of the fumes actually present might be needed. If the fumes are likely to approach or exceed the OES, means to control exposure will be needed, and possibly continued monitoring of fume levels. The assessment should be recorded in writing, unless it is very simple, or concerns low risk work lasting only such a short time that it would take a disproportionate time to write it down. Regulation 12 calls for employees to be informed of the results of the assessment. It should be kept available in case of any query, and for review. The person making the assessment must be competent to do so; if necessary, an outside expert may be engaged. An appropriate choice may be to train someone experienced in welding, particularly where there is a variety of jobs welded by a number of different processes. An important point is that assessors must understand their own limitations, and know when to call in specialist services such as those for fume measurement or ventilation design. Measurement of Fume Concentration Air pollution by fumes arising from welding or associated processes can take two forms. The first is 'particulate fume' or smoke, discrete solid bodies suspended in the air. The second is pollutant gases which mix freely with the air. These cannot be removed by a filter of the membrane type, although charcoal filters can absorb or adsorb gases to a limited extent, and ozone is decomposed by chemical reaction with almost any filter material. The techniques of welding fume measurement are now well established, and published as a British Standard. 'Background' measurements indicate the amount of fume present in the air throughout the workshop, and therefore that to which all workers would be exposed. These should be substantially less than the OES values if possible, to allow for extra fume near welding operations. 'Breathing zone' (BZ) measurements are chosen for the majority, to indicate the welder's exposure. Particulate fume is measured by collecting it on a previously weighed filter, through which air is drawn at a known rate by a small battery-powered portable pump; after the welder has worn it for a time period of about an hour, the filter is removed for laboratory measurement. The filter is weighed on a sensitive balance; from the increase in weight above that of the clean filter, the total accumulated fume is measured.

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As skilled personnel and special equipment, backed up by appropriate laboratory facilities, are needed to make meaningful fume measurements, many employers choose to use an outside organisation providing this service. Whoever does it should be 'competent', although no precise qualifications are laid down by the Regulations. Alternatively, some laboratories operate under a quality control system inspected and approved by the 'National Measurement Accreditation Service' (NAMAS), assuring a high standard. Maximum exposure limits MEL Occupational exposure standards OES and Occupational exposure limits OEL Schedule 1 of the COSHH Regulations assigns 'Maximum exposure limits' (MEL) to about 30 substances; as noted above, cadmium and its compounds, and 1,1,1-trichoroethane are those of interest in connection with welding. The concentrations of these substances must be reduced as far as is reasonably practicable, and in any case they must be below the MEL for that substance. 'Occupational exposure standards' (OES) for many more substances, as approved by the Health and Safety Commission, are published as a HSE 'Guidance Note' listing 'Occupational Exposure Limits' (OEL) for the concentration of the substances in air which workers may breathe in. 'Occupational exposure limits', replacing the earlier 'Threshold limit values' (TLV), are estimated by medical experts on the evidence of case histories of industrial disease and the results of animal experiments. In general, a lower figure indicates a more harmful substance. If inhaled in excessive concentrations, some pollutants will have an effect immediately, but others only after years of exposure; the effects may be temporary or permanent. Individuals vary in their tolerance to pollutants, and the ease and effectiveness of treatment will vary. Factors such as these are all considered in fixing the OEL. Fume Sources These notes detail the sources of fume, with notes on those procedures which are available to reduce or remove it at source. The welder may be exposed to particulate fume and gases arising from:

surface treatment; penetrants used in NDT. MACROETCHING. action of the heat source on the PARENT metal. action of the heat source on the surface COATING of the parent metal. action of the heat source on the surrounding air. action of the heat source on the CONSUMABLES (filler, flux or shielding gas). internal combustion engines.

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Surface Treatment It is often necessary to remove DIRT, grease, PAINT, rust and scale from metal surfaces before welding, brazing, soldering and thermal spraying so that work can be carried out without defect, and to grind work after welding and cutting. Abrasive and chemical methods are available for surface preparation. Abrasive methods include grit and shot blasting, mechanical grinding, hand filing, and the manual use of steel wool and a wire brush. Protection for the eyes against flying particles must be provided when powered grinders are in use, and may be advisable with manual abrasion. Where dust is released in excessive quantities, or is toxic, local exhaust ventilation or respiratory protection will be required. Where parent metal has a surface coating, such as GALVANISING, which would produce undesirable fumes if welded, it may be acceptable to remove this coating by grinding, taking suitable precautions. Chemical methods involve the use of solvents, for instance trichloroethylene, carbon tetrachloride, benzene, toluene, white spirits and solvent naphtha, and of acid, alkali and detergent solutions. Solvent cleaning is carried out by means of hand swabs or by immersion of the workpieces in tanks. Carbon tetrachloride and benzene are such poisonous substances that their use, even in small quantities, should be AVOIDED. Commercial toluene (toluol) has in the past been found to contain up to 15% of benzene, which makes it a dangerous cleaning agent. In addition to their inherent toxic properties the chlorinated aliphatic hydrocarbons, such as carbon tetrachloride, trichloroethylene, and perchloroethylene, can be decomposed by heat or by ultraviolet radiation, with the evolution of PHOSGENE and other toxic gas. Their use in association with welding and allied processes should, therefore, be the subject of special care. Trichloroethylene, often known as ‘trike’, was reclassified as a category 2 carcinogen by the European Union (EU). It is now part of the Approved Supply List, under CHIP 3, trichloroethylene is automatically treated as a carcinogen under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations (COSHH). Although trichloroethylene is not a banned substance, where possible alternatives to trichloroethylene should be used. Degreasing operations should preferably be carried out in a workshop separated from and non-adjacent to the welding location. If such an arrangement is not possible the general ventilation should always be such that the direction of air flow is away from the welding area to the cleaning bay, and not vice versa. Where tanks are used for degreasing they should be so located that air currents from doors and windows do not cause dispersal of vapours into the workshop atmosphere. Tank covers should be used whenever possible, and workpieces should be placed into and removed from the tank at low speed to minimise displacement of which extraction takes place through slots along the side of the tank are recommended. All traces of the solvent should be removed from the workpieces by a sufficient period of drying, preferably by a hot air blast, before they are welded.

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If welders have to strip lagging from work before welding, for example from pipes, asbestos may release harmful fibres, requiring suitable protection measures. ASBESTOS blankets should not be used in heat treatment or preheating operations. Any work with asbestos is subject to stringent UK Regulations, with their Approved Code of Practice. Non-Destructive Testing by Penetrants In the penetrant methods of NDT a dye is applied to the job by spray, swab, or immersion. If there are any surface cracks in the job the dye enters them. Surplus dye is then cleaned from the surface, usually by wiping, and the final stage is to detect the dye trapped in the cracks, either by applying a chalky white powder developer into which the dye soaks to give a brightly coloured stain, or by viewing in ultraviolet light which makes the dye fluoresce. Moderate care is needed to avoid exposure of the eyes to ultraviolet light, but the intensity is much less than in arc welding. The solvents and aerosol propellants can present similar problems to those used for degreasing, and any precautions recommended by the manufacturer of such fluids should be carefully observed. Macroetching To examine test welds a macrosection may be prepared. A cross section of the weld is cut, and one of its faces polished. Then the polished face is etched heavily to reveal the crystalline structure of the metal in examination with the eye. The foremost safety requirement is suitable eye protection from the etching solution with GOGGLES. Facilities for washing the eyes should be available as close as possible in the event of an accident. Etching solutions should not be allowed to come in contact with the SKIN: tongs should be used to hold specimens and it may be advisable to wear rubber or plastic gloves. Special care is needed for solutions containing hydrofluoric acid or strong alkalis such as caustic soda. Fumes produced during etching are unpleasant and usually harmful, so a well VENTILATED place is desirable for this work. Ideally, etching should take place in a laboratory-type fume cupboard, but at the very least there should be a large deep sink with an adequate water supply. A notice should clearly state the hazards of the various etchants, the safe working procedures to be employed, and the measures to be taken in the event of an emergency. As some etching solutions will react violently if carelessly diluted they should be mixed by competent persons. Different etches should not be mixed together as a violent reaction may again occur. Safe DISPOSAL facilities for spent solutions are also required. In short, using chemicals or other hazardous substances at work can put people’s health at risk. So the law requires employers to control exposure to hazardous substances to prevent ill health. They have to protect both employees and others who may be exposed by complying with the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH).

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Unit 001 Working Effectively in an Engineering Environment Stage 2 Exposure to harmful gases and fumes If adequate precautions are not taken the WELDER may be exposed to harmful concentrations of certain gases and fumes, particularly:

CARBON MONOXIDE OXIDES OF NITROGEN OZONE PHOSGENE METAL FUMES

Carbon monoxide The effect of this gas is to diminish the oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood. It renders the individual dizzy and weak, complaining of headache and impaired mental concentration, and it may lead to a state of unconsciousness. Treatment:: remove the victim from the dangerous atmosphere to the FRESH AIR, loosen tight CLOTHING around the waist and NECK, remove any dentures, give artificial respiration and send for a doctor and an AMBULANCE. Oxides of nitrogen, ozone, phosgene These gases are being considered together because they produce similar harmful effects. Unfortunately they give little warning that they have been inhaled in excessive amounts, other than irritation of the nose and throat, but 24-28 hours later they may produce a severe inflammation of the lungs, so that the lung tissues become overloaded with water and the affected individual undergoes a state of asphyxiation (lack of OXYGEN). Treatment:: if excessive exposure is suspected the patient should be kept at absolute rest, lying down, until such time as he has been seen by a doctor. Metal fumes (including zinc) A short but acute illness (METAL FUME FEVER) occurs when fume is inhaled from a metal heated to a temperature above its melting point. Many metals can cause this condition but ZINC, copper and magnesium are the most likely to do so. Some hours after inhaling the fume the individual complains of tiredness, headache, aching pains in his muscles, thirst, a SORE THROAT, a cough and sometimes of a tight feeling of his chest. He will develop a HIGH TEMPERATURE, have shivering attacks, and sweat a

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lot. Complete recovery will normally occur in 24-48 hours, and there are not usually any permanent injurious after effects. If a worker suffers from metal fume fever, the environmental cause should be investigated and remedied. Treatment: the sick person should go to bed immediately, keep warm with blankets and a hot water bottle, have no solid food but drink plenty of FLUIDS. If symptoms continue for more than 24-48 hours, he should be seen by a DOCTOR. Ventilation And Fume Protection

Working Conditions In the open air This represents the situation in which least supplementary ventilation is required to reduce any given hazard. Exposure may be minimised if it is possible for the welder to stand UPWARD of the weld, so that the WIND carries the FUMES away from him. In the open shop The great majority of welding operations are carried out in an enclosed workshop. Usually this will be of sufficient height to allow convection currents from the welding process to carry fumes well above HEAD HEIGHT. However, unless fumes are efficiently extracted they may form a layer in the upper part of the building, or even at an intermediate height. This may expose those working above floor level to excessive fumes, for example drivers of overhead cranes or welders on tall jobs. In a semi-confined space Where the floor area of a large workshop is divided into small welding bays natural air circulation may be obstructed to a significant extent. Where it is necessary to work inside a structure large enough to allow a reasonable amount of room for the worker, the fumes from welding operations will not disperse freely. In these conditions, and in those where work is carried out in a small closed room or booth, FUME EXTRACTION equipment will normally be required. In a confined space Sometimes a weld must be made in a location where ventilation is severely restricted, for example, in a tank which has only a manhole opening, inside a casting with a bore only just large enough to allow the welder to get in, or a long way into a large structure. FUME EXTRACTION is nearly always ESSENTIAL in such circumstances. In such cases, in order to PREVENT ASPHYXIATION it is always necessary to ensure a SUPPLY OF FRESH AIR is provided. Welder position The natural tendency for a welder is to stand and bend over the work placed on a welding bench. As the hot fume laden air from the arc rises vertically it enters his

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breathing zone. Thus, if he adopts a posture so that his head is no longer directly above the arc, his exposure to fumes will be reduced. Local extraction Local extraction is here taken to mean exhaust ventilation where the major part of the airflow is confined to the immediate neighbourhood of the weld. It will normally comprise an extractor nozzle, air hose, fan unit and discharge system; the last either discharges fume-laden air to the outside atmosphere or filters and recirculates it.

Fume protection: (a) excessive fume

exposure, (b) general ventilation, (c) improvement by welder position, and (d) local extraction The extractor nozzle should be easily positioned close to the weld: for example some commercial units have magnetic clamps. Fresh air supply In combination with extractors, particularly in CONFINED SPACES, clean filtered FRESH AIR may be fed via suitable trunking to the general area of work. The fans for this duty are similar to those for extraction but usually of somewhat greater capacity. An extractor draws in air from all directions, but the air supply is more directional and should be arranged to BLOW towards the WELDER and carry fumes to any EXTRACTION vents.

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Personal Fume Protection Dust respirator If the fumes from welding operations cannot be removed from the atmosphere before it reaches the welder, an alternative is to FILTER it from the air that he breathes with a DUST RESPIRATOR. The half-mask respirator usually used in welding fits over NOSE and MOUTH, and carries a filter for air entering and a valve for air leaving. An alternative design has no valve: the complete mask is disposable. Canister or cartridge respirators relying on a chemical reaction, or on absorption, to remove specific pollutants are not generally used in welding operations. Such respirators are therefore mainly used in poisonous atmospheres. Air-fed welding helmet A welding helmet in which CLEAN AIR is fed to the welder's breathing zone combines protection against a number of hazards. A correctly designed helmet will distribute the air comfortably, and will avoid any effect which might tend to draw in fume-laden air at the edges. Cool air will improve comfort in hot surroundings. Breathing apparatus Breathing apparatus, which supplies air to the breathing zone in such a way that air cannot be drawn in from the outside, permits work in poisonous atmospheres. Air is supplied from a cylinder. However where people are working with chemicals and solvents rather than welding it is best that they use a filtering facepiece respirator for such situations.

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5.3 APPENDIX 3 – HEALTH AND SAFETY TEST - DERWENTSIDE COLLEGE

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6 REFERENCES

Antonini J M (2003) Health Effects in Welding Critical reviews in Toxicology 33(1): 61-103 BSI Qualification test of welders – Fusion welding – part 1: Steels British Standard BS EN 287-1:2004 EMTA Awards Limited Intermediate certificate in engineering and technology VRQ Unit 1: Engineering Environment Awareness, Delivery Pack (2004) EMTA Awards Limited Arc Welding Level 1 VRQ Unit 03: Understanding Safe Working Practices in Arc Welding, Delivery Pack (2004) EMTA Awards Limited Advanced Diploma I Engineering and Technology VRQ Unit 1: Engineering and Environmental Health and Safety, Delivery Pack (2004) Awarding Body Consortium Level 1, 2 and 3 Certificates in Welding and Fabrication Practice Syllabus (2004) City & Guilds Level 3 City and Guilds NVQ in Fabrication and Welding Engineering Scheme Handbook 1681. (June 2004)