159: Protective Clothing/Equipment Issue
Definition/Typical Issues
Did protective clothing or equipment (e.g., plastic suit, gloves, respirator) contribute to the difficulty? Did protective clothing or equipment significantly diminish any of the senses (i.e., sight, touch, smell, hearing, or taste) necessary to perform the task? Were personnel required to wear protective clothing or equipment for an excessive length of time? Were personnel required to dress in and out of protective clothing an excessive number of times?
Examples
Example 1
- An operator wearing a full-face respirator was injured when he walked into the path of a forklift. The respirator reduced his peripheral vision; therefore, he did not see the forklift coming from his left side.
Example 2
- An operator using an overhead crane allowed the load to collide with operating equipment. The protective gloves he was wearing prevented him from accurately manipulating the crane's controls.
Example 3
- An operator splashed some alkaline catalyst onto his hands, causing a severe chemical burn, while manually loading the catalyst into a vessel. The operator was wearing gloves, but the gloves were not chemically resistant.
Typical Recommendations
- Install engineering controls to eliminate or reduce the need for protective clothing or equipment.
- Ensure that protective clothing is available in different sizes so that all employees can be properly fitted.
- If several consecutive tasks require that protective clothing be worn for a long time, investigate the possibilities of using more comfortable protective clothing (e.g., looser or tighter fit) or protective clothing made with more comfortable material (e.g., "breathable" fabric, ventilated suits).
- If protective clothing diminishes senses required to complete the task, investigate altering the clothing, if possible, so that personnel can perform their duties more effectively.
Cross-References
| Version 10 Element(s) | |
|---|---|
| Node ID | Node Name |
| 151 | Protective Clothing/Equipment LTA |
| Maritime Element(s) | |
|---|---|
| Node ID | Node Name |
| 160 | Protective Clothing/Equipment Issue |