Q. What is a fume plume? A. A fume plume is the clearly visible column of fume that rises directly from the spot of welding or cutting. Welders and cutters should take precautions to avoid breathing this area directly.
General hazards of welding include impact, penetration, harmful dust, smoke, fumes, heat and light radiation. Welding “smoke” is a mixture of very fine particles (fumes) and gases. Many of the substances in the smoke can be extremely toxic.
Like other jobs or careers, welders must wear suitable protective equipment. In general, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) must protect against hazards such as burns, sparks, spatter, electric shock, and radiation.
Sparks and spatter fly off from the welding arc. Hot metal and sparks blow out from the cutting flame. The workpiece and equipment get hot. The flying sparks and hot metal, slag, spatter, hot workpiece, and hot equipment can cause burns. Additionally, arc rays can cause radiation burns.
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OSHA fines Ray Clearing Inc. more than $35K for federal violations
December 10, 2015
An OSHA inspection of a Ray Clearing Inc. worksite found that employees were using chainsaws to fell 12-inch diameter trees without the proper protection--chaps, heavy duty logging boots, eye protection and face protection. They also lacked the head protection necessary for working in woods, where there is a potential for being struck by falling limbs.
A teenaged employee who was required to operate a press break and sheer cutting machine – in violation of child labor laws – had his thumb partially amputated in a workplace accident.
For a century our nation has relied on the workers' compensation system to provide for workers injured on the job while making sure that each employer picks up his or her fair share of the costs. In theory, the system assigns the cost of workplace injuries and illnesses to employers through comp insurance premiums.
Electrical injuries are among the construction industry's “fatal four” that caused more than half of construction deaths in 2013, according to OSHA's website.
The explosion that burned six workers at Priest Rapids Dam in central Washington on October. 8 was the result of an electrical heat wave called an “arc flash,” Grant County PUD officials have confirmed.