100% Positive Material Identification

Editorial
ITA Committee Seeks to Develop Data
to Help Illuminate Safety Standards
The executive board of the
International Titanium Association
(ITA), Northglenn, CO, has approved
a proposal by the ITA’s Safety Committee
to proceed with a project to create data
to determine whether there should be
further updating of key safety standards
related to the flammability of titanium,
in order to more accurately reflect the
rapidly changing types of products
and manufacturing technologies being
developed by the titanium industry.
Bob Lee, the chair of the ITA’s Safety
Committee, said the thrust of the effort
is to generate accurate, up-to-date
information for regulators, not to make
recommendations. The project will
collect information from ITA members,
conduct rigorous scientific studies and
testing as appropriate and engage experts
to evaluate the data.
Lee explained that there are many
regulatory agencies, standards and
specifications that govern how buildings
and equipment must be designed and
operated, as well as address the safety
of employees, transport and disposal of
titanium if it is determined that the form
of titanium manufactured, processed,
stored or shipped is identified as a
combustible metal.
Dawne S. Hickton, president of the
ITA’s executive board, pointed out that,
as a trade organization, ITA does not
create or establish safety standards.
However, she did note that the ITA is
pro-active in developing technical data to
enhance the regulatory environment that
protects industry employees, the public
and the environment while advancing the
worldwide use of titanium.
Lee, who also serves as the president
of Accushape Inc., Albany, OR, said the
ITA’s Safety Committee will provide
data to authorities having jurisdiction
in order to help them “understand
the flammability of what the titanium
58 TITANIUMTODAY
industry is producing. The titanium
industry has expanded the way the
metal can be used in manufacturing
applications. We are developing data
to more accurately reflect titanium in a
flammable condition than previously was
known.” For example, Lee said that in
recent years there has been an accelerated
development of new types of titanium
powders dedicated to the leading-edge
technology known as 3D or additive
manufacturing.
“This is a space age metal,” he said,
underlining the expanded use of titanium
in aerospace and other industrial markets
in recent years. “The fundamental data
on regulations for titanium flammability
is old. We’re looking to modernize that
data to reflect the substantial changes in
the titanium industry, with nearly 250
members from 26 countries represented
by ITA encouraging safe practices is a
priority of the industry.”
One of the leading authorities
concerned with these issues is the NFPA,
which develops, revises and publishes
regulations related to combustible metals,
combustible dusts and others hazardous
materials. While NFPA is a nongovernmental
entity and the standards
are only recommended practices, NFPA
documents are frequently incorporated
in U.S. Building and Fire Codes and
may be cited by the U.S. Department of
Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA).
As for the potential path to change
regulations and standards, Lee said
that the study’s Phase 1 is intended to
identify more complete information of
how the current regulations and testing
protocols were established, including the
path or paths and mechanics for making
changes.
According to Lee, the titanium
industry has much to gain by assessing
the status of the regulations regarding
the production and use titanium. If
these regulations are deficient, they may
increase the risk of adverse events and
publicity. If the regulations are incorrect,
they may create unjustified cost burdens
adversely affecting the end use of
titanium.
As part of its mission, the ITA
committee will review various safety
standards, including NFPA 484, which
“applies to the production, processing,
finishing, handling, recycling, storage
and use of all metals and alloys that are
in a form that is capable of combustion
or explosion.” Many of the underlying
documents referenced in NFPA 484
concerning titanium are very old (some
dating back to the 1940s and 1950s)
and may not accurately reflect current
practices and products. It’s important
for the ITA to understand if the current
standards and practices are correct
and accurately reflect current products
and industry practices for determining
whether a certain form of titanium is a
combustible metal,” he said.
Phase 1 of this study may establish all
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