Page 101 - Occupational Health & Safety, July 2018

and Health (NIOSH) and the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicate that roughly 10-15 percent are.
While OSHA provides the legal requirement for showers & eye- washes, the ISEA/ANSI Z358.1 Standard provides performance, safety, placement, and testing details for this equipment. The first thing to note is the name of the standard and inclusion of “ISEA,” which refers to the International Safety Equipment Association. ISEA is an organization of manufacturers that are responsible for developing and maintaining this and other safety standards, hence the dual ISEA/ANSI name.
ISEA/ANSI Z358.1 is not a law, but rather a consensus stan- dard, which means that it is developed by a group of interested par- ties. Once written or revised, it needs to be reviewed and approved by a consensus vote of interested industry parties. When I describe the standard in the industry, I refer to it as “Best practices by indus- try for industry.”
While not a law, the ISEA/ANSI Z358.1 standard has signifi- cant credibility because it is often referenced and used by OSHA inspectors to ensure compliance to shower and eyewash require- ments. Additionally the Z358.1 standard is recognized as the lead- ing global standard for shower and eyewash implementation. If an end user chooses not to follow its recommendations, then they would be on their own in ensuring the safety of their employees.
A unique feature of the ANSI/ISEA Z358.1 Standard is that it has two components, one that provides guidelines to the manufac- turer on the construction, operation, and certification of showers and eyewashes, and the other that provides guidance to end users on the proper installation and testing of equipment. These end user requirements include items such as distance from a hazard to the eyewash/shower, water temperature, and frequency of testing.
In contrast, most equipment standards simply specify the per- formance requirements of the item in question, not how it is used in the field. For instance, safety glasses need to meet the Z87.1 per- formance standard. However, once the glasses are sold, there is lit- tle guidance in the standard on how or where they should be used.
Requirements in the Z358.1 Standard
Manufacturers of emergency showers and eyewashes are required to design and build equipment to meet certain performance stan- dards. This performance then needs to be verified by a third-party certification company that inspects and tests our equipment and reports publicly that the equipment meets the requirements of Z358.1. Typical certification companies include IAPMO, CSA, and SEI. When specifying shower and eyewash equipment, make sure that it has been certified by a third-party organization.
While there are numerous details on how to construct this equipment, here are some of the more important requirements:
All equipment needs to:
■ Be activated in 1 second or less and then allow hands-free operation.
■ Be constructed of materials that will not corrode.
■ The water flows need to be non-injurious to the eyes or body.
■ Operate continuously for 15 minutes. Showers need to:
■ Provide 20 GPM of continuous flow.
■ Provide a water dispersion that will cover a person’s body
fairly evenly.
Eye & eye/face washes need to:
■ Eyewashes flow at least .4 GPM.
■ Eye/Face washes flow at least 3.0 GPM.
■ Provide flushing fluid to both eyes simultaneously.
■ Nozzles and flushing fluid are protected from airborne
contaminants.
Combination Stations need to:
■ Be capable of operating individually or simultaneously.
Measuring Travel Time to the Eyewash/Shower
The ANSI/ISEA Z358.1 Standard is unique in that it also provides guidance to end users on the proper installation and testing of equipment. The requirements include distance from a hazard to the eyewash/shower, water temperature, and testing frequency.
The Z358.1 standard requires that showers and eyewashes are located within 10 seconds travel distance from a hazard. This dis- tance is often judged by using a stopwatch, and it needs to take into consideration the potential victim’s emotional/physical state, the nature of the chemicals being used, and any potential obstacles between the hazard and the emergency shower or eyewash. Par- ticularly corrosive chemicals or the presence of physical obstacles and obstructions may require multiple pieces of equipment or that their installation be immediately adjacent to the area(s) where the chemical is being used.
While in existing facilities it is fairly easy to measure 10 seconds with a stopwatch, engineers and architects who are designing fa- cilities do not have this luxury; all that they have to work with are blueprints. To help them, the standard suggests 55 feet is a distance that most persons can travel in 10 seconds or less. The victim’s physical condition and potential obstacles must still be taken into consideration. The standard further requires that the water tem- perature that is delivered to showers and eyewashes is tepid, which is defined as 60-100 degrees F. This provides a safe flushing fluid temperature that will allow a victim to use a shower or eyewash for the required 15 minutes without being so cold that he or she will leave the equipment prematurely or so hot that it will scald the eyes or body, causing additional harm. There is no mention in the stan- dard on how to achieve tepid, and various solutions are available.
Several additional conditions need to be considered when po- sitioning emergency equipment. The shower or eyewash should be on the same level as the hazard to eliminate trips and the need to climb up or down. Doors are considered obstructions, and the equipment should be located on the same side as the hazard with which the employee is working. In limited cases where the haz- ard is not corrosive, one door is permitted, provided that it cannot be locked and opens in the same direction that a potential victim would travel to reach the shower or eyewash. The final requirement for location is that the area is well lit and identified with a highly visible sign indicating the presence of a shower and/or eyewash.
While showers and eyewashes can’t prevent exposure to haz- ardous materials, they can certainly minimize the effects when exposure to injurious corrosive materials happens. So perform a facility audit, identify where harmful chemicals are being used, and install the proper shower and eyewash equipment to help protect your employees and comply with the OSHA 1910.151 (c) law and the ANSI/ISEA Z358.1 Standard.
Imants Stiebris is vice president of products & compliance for the Speakman Company, www.speakmancompany.com.
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JULY 2018 | Occupational Health & Safety 95