When engineering control measures aren’t possible or sufficient to reduce exposure to harmful contaminants such as dusts, fogs, fumes, mists, gases, smokes, sprays, or vapors, OSHA requires – through its 1910.134 standard1 – that workers be provided with respiratory protection.
It’s not enough for a company to simply hand out respirators. In the standard, companies must develop and implement a written respiratory protection program with worksite-specific procedures. Additionally, the program must be administered by a suitably trained program administrator.