Do you have EXACT, SOP's for cleaning safety equipment during COVID?

As industry ramps back up this spring, there is a focus on cleanliness and safety in shared workspaces, particularly around how to keep shared equipment clean even after the one year anniversary of the virus. The health crisis has forced many of us to rethink how we clean and maintain our facilities and our gear. By now we all know to wash our hands, but what should be done with shared PPE, such as full body harnesses and fall protection lanyards? COVID-19 is spread by primarily by respiratory droplets; when an infected person coughs or sneezes, the droplets are transmitted to hard surfaces and fabrics, where they can remain viable for days.  Industry workers are often in close quarters and areas that aren’t well-ventilated. Howard encouraged construction employers, workers and unions to partner and create a shared set of best practices to help keep workers safe and healthy.

You must also do a review to identify the potential for exposure. This includes:

·        reviewing tasks and jobs to determine who is at the greatest risk of exposure and when the exposure is most likely to happen

·        looking again at previous hazard assessments to identify areas where the risk of exposure is greatest

·        reviewing the hazard assessment, identifying new hazards, and introducing controls as needed

·        reviewing and identifying potential staff shortages and how they affect operational and critical safety activities

Unfortunately, the sanitizers used to wipe down our hands are not safe to use on many pieces of equipment, and neither are bleach and other harsh cleaning products. Fall protection equipment in particular relies on the integrity of the material in order to function, so any harsh cleaners or chemicals can’t be used to sanitize these items. So how can you clean shared safety equipment effectively? As a general rule, start by checking the manufacturer’s product instructions for care and maintenance of any safety equipment. For personal fall protection equipment, material integrity is vital to its function and there are some general guidelines you can follow to disinfect without compromising the material. The same general rules can be used to clean other PPE such as gloves, safety glasses, hard hats and visors.

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Cleaning, sanitizing and disinfecting

It’s important to understand that these three terms aren’t interchangeable when talking about precautions to prevent exposure. Wear and tear happen with anything. With PPE, however, wear and tear can mean the difference between something saving your life or not. Cleaning PPE can help it to function properly and daily inspections can allow you to identify any nicks or breaks before it’s too late.

“Cleaning is getting the dirt out,” safety said. “Sanitizing is what’s used in public health a lot to get down to a certain level of bacteria – sometimes 95% is killed. Disinfection is killing everything. That’s where you want to aim.”

When inspecting your hard hat, look for visible damage on the hard shell. This can include

·        Dullness on the surface

·        Chalky residue

·        Cracks, dents or bulges

·        Any areas that “give” when pushed on

The interior suspension or webbing inside the helmet should be free of any frays, broken or loose straps, or any other damage. It’s especially important to check the interior webbing during the summer months. Access sweating can speed up the breakdown of these materials.

All it takes to sanitize the gear is to wipe it down with soapy water using a damp cloth or sponge, and then rinse it with clean water to remove any soap residue. There is no need to soak or submerge the gear. After it’s clean, allow it to hang-dry in an open, well-ventilated area to prevent mold, but do not machine dry PPE, as this can damage it. Chemicals and cleaning products such as sanitizers, rubbing alcohol, bleach, hydrogen peroxide, naphtha, turpentine, acetone or other industrial cleaning supplies are unnecessary, and are not recommended for cleaning personal fall protection equipment of any kind, as these chemicals can damage the integrity of the material you rely on to keep you safe in the event of a fall.

It is always a good practice to keep your equipment clean, but it’s especially important in this time of heightened risk from a potentially dangerous virus. As long as the contagion is making the rounds, it’s safest to clean the equipment in between each use. Consider making regular cleaning of your gear part of your process by adding it to your inspection forms or checklists. Because of the need to let equipment dry, it may make the most sense to make your policy to clean the equipment after using it each time, ensuring that clean gear is always available to the next worker who needs it.

If workers must share communal equipment, cleaning the gear between each use before passing it on to the next employee is essential for safety during the pandemic. As strange as it may sound, treating low-cost personal safety equipment such as work gloves and safety glasses as disposable items may be another approach to minimizing the spread of germs. These items can be cleaned regularly, of course, but it may prove more cost effective to simply discard inexpensive items at the end of a shift instead of investing the time into sanitizing them after each use. 

Workers may be asked to do unfamiliar job tasks which may require job specific training. All employees with potential occupational exposure should be trained on:

·        the hazards associated with exposure, the potential ways of contracting the virus, and control measures to break the chain of infection

·        the protocols in place to isolate and report cases or reduce exposure

·        awareness of social distancing guidelines and keeping a physical distance of 2 metres (6 feet) from others

·        appropriate control measures, like cough etiquette (covering the nose and mouth while coughing or sneezing, coughing or sneezing into the bend of the elbow or into a tissue) and hand hygiene (washing hands or using alcohol-based hand sanitizer if soap and water are not available) to prevent transmission

·        use and care of personal protective equipment