Demolition In UAE! pages: 38-40 - Pdworld.com

Words from O’Brien
Silica - Wet
versus Dry
Sawing
In 2004, the U.S. Occupational Safety and
Health Administration (OSHA) proposed new
regulations for exposure to respirable silica in
the construction industry. A reduction of the
Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) level from 1.0
to 0.25 was proposed, but many felt that this
proposal showed a lack of understanding on
the part of regulators concerning the impact this
standard would have on small businesses.
The proposed standard would have required
construction companies to initiate many
new procedures. For example, an industrial
hygienist hired by the contractor would be
required to provide sampling services on each
and every site. The contractor would also have
to designate a “competent person” to identify
and evaluate silica exposure hazards, establish
a perimeter and constantly monitor the quality
of the air. The contractor would have to
make respirators and Tyvek clothing available
to workers as well as anyone entering the
job site including trades working in adjacent
areas. Medical screening and exam costs for
employees would skyrocket. Record-keeping
costs to comply would drive administrative
expenses up.
The proposed new regulations were never
enacted by OSHA and it may have been due
to feedback they received from the OSHA
Small Business Advocacy Review (SBAR)
Panel or other feedback they received. The
panel presented documentation that showed
the estimated cost to a small business of
$12,000 would have actually been close to
$3 million and put many small businesses
out of work. CSDA was active in working with
special survey
other associations to propose an alternative
“control banding” approach. Under this proposal,
operators would arrive on the job, and
based upon the type of sawing or drilling to be
performed and whether it would be inside or
outside, they would have a simple chart to let
them know what type of filter or mask would
be required, if any.
Since that time, CSDA has continued to
collect airborne silica data on the different
cutting operations. We invited the National
Institute of Occupational Safety and Health
(NIOSH) to our training sessions to examine
the silica exposure for operators. Based upon
the fact that a typical CSDA cutting contractor
performs cutting operations wet over 95%
of the time the exposure dangers are greatly
minimized as confirmed by NIOSH. Cutting pros
have traditionally cut wet to extend the blade or
bit life of the diamond tool, but the secondary
benefit is to almost eliminate operator exposure
to respiratory silica.
However, those contractors who have
traditionally cut dry face a different challenge.
Manufacturers have been active in developing
dust collection systems to control and minimize
the exposure to crystalline silica. So whether
the contractor is cutting wet or dry, it would
appear that industry is proactively responding
to this threat to operator health even in the
absence of new government regulations. This
speaks very highly of the industry, both manufacturers
and contractors, and is a testament
to their commitment to providing a safe work
environment for their operators.
Best regards
Patrick O’Brien
Executive Director CSDA,
US Concrete Sawing
& Drilling Association
Thank you Denis!
On the afternoon of 9 July 2009, Trevi
Benne’s representative in the Caribbean
Islands Mr Denis Clément, passed away after a
long illness. Trevi Benne’s marketing manager,
Christian Tadiotto told PDi that he will leave a
big gap. “He was a very competent distributor
since for many years for Trevi Benne. Full of
spirit and energy, always eager to learn and
ask questions. And he was also a very dear
and good friend and he really loved his job,”
says Christian.
Christian adds that his spirit and passion
for his job remain within Trevi Benne and he
has made a strong footprint among his colleagues.
PDi editor Jan Hermansson had the
pleasure to meet Denis less then a year ago
and an article about him and his company was
published in PDi issue 1-2009.
New Finmac
appointment
Mr. Jaakko Lipsanen has joined Finmac
Demolition Oy to be in charge of business
development. Previously Mr Lipsanen had a
career of over 20 years with Rammer (presently
Sandvik Breakers) in Lahti, Finland.
Finmac is a Finnish company designing
and manufacturing high-quality remotely
controlled robots used primarily in demolition
and various process industry applications. The
company is based on the innovations of the
owner, Mr. Paavo Salonen. Finmac is located in
Vaasa, a town in the west coast of Finland.
www.finmac.fi
HTC appoints new
President and CEO
HTC Sweden AB has appointed Lars Landin
as the new President and CEO of HTC
Group from first of October. Lars Landin,
who in recent years has worked as Sales
and Marketing Director at HTC.
Since HTC Sweden AB began in 1987,
HTC has developed into the world’s leading
manufacturer and supplier of complete
grinding and maintenance systems for
floors. Today the group has almost 170
employees, with the vast majority employed
within the technology and product development
department, as well as manufacturing
and sales. The head office is based in
Söderköping, Sweden, and subsidiaries
operate in USA, Germany, UK and France.
The company’s products are sold mainly in
Europe, USA, Middle East and Asia.
“HTC has had remarkable growth
but there is still a huge potential for the
company to develop further and we shall
do so by continuing to offer our customers
the very best flooring solutions,” says
Lars Landin.
HTC’s resigning CEO, and also the
company’s principal owner Håkan Thysell
has chosen to focus on development and to
continue protecting HTC’s many patents.
“It is a pleasure for me to hand over
the post as President and CEO to Lars
Landin and I wish him all the best,” says
Håkan Thysell.
Background
Lars Landin is 45 years old, and since 2007
has worked as the Sales and Marketing
Director at HTC with responsibility for all
markets and product areas. Lars came to
HTC after 11 years as Sales Director of the
packaging company Rostiprimpac AB which
is a part of A.P. Möller Group.
www.htc-floorsystems.com
8 PDi • Is s u e 3 - 2009 • Au g - Se p t