Monthly Archives: September 2021

Ten places you forget to vacuum

Posted by on September 28, 2021 Comments Off on Ten places you forget to vacuum

Dust, dust, dust!  Don’t forget to clean these places in your home!

Ten places that you often forget while vacuuming

Source – https://www.tips-and-tricks.co/cleaning/ten-places-that-you-can-easily-forget-while-vacuuming/

“Do you skip these places while vacuuming?

Are you the type who quickly gets the vacuum cleaning done? Or do you make sure to vacuum every corner? With this checklist you can be sure that your entire house remains dust-free. There are a few places in the house that would like to see the vacuum cleaner more often…

Bottom of the shoe cabinet

You often bring in a lot of dirt on you shoes, which then settles at the bottom of your shoe cabinet. You’ll be storing your footwear in a clean place if you vacuum the shoe cabinet more often.

Your mattress

Mattresses are often forgotten when it comes to cleaning, even though we spend many hours on them. A vacuum cleaner ensures that fewer dust mites will accumulate on your mattress. Don’t forget to turn it over regularly and vacuum both sides when you do that.

Brooms and dusters

Do you clean up crumbs or spills a lot? Often the broom and dustpan are within reach to clean everything. But don’t forget that the dusters and brooms themselves also need to be cleaned from time to time. By placing the vacuum cleaner on the bristles of brooms, you avoid spreading more dust while sweeping.

Air and ventilation grilles

Ventilation grilles are very important for the supply of clean air in your home. They are especially indispensable in the bathroom. Due to the air displacement, these grilles attract a lot of dust. So, while you are vacuuming, vacuum the ventilation grilles from time to time to keep the air exchange really clean.

TV or PC sound boxes

Do you have a beautiful sound system next to your television or computer? The speakers of these systems can also use a freshening up every now and then. This is good for your electronic systems, and they will also last longer. Make sure that the setting on the vacuum cleaner is not too high to prevent damage.

Laptop or computer keyboards

The chances are your computer keyboard is anything but hygienic, especially if you regularly eat in front of your screen. Dust and crumbs can collect in the deep grooves. These areas are easy to clean with a vacuum cleaner. Most people seldom do this, so it’s probably time to clean your keyboard.

Cracks inside the fridge

Cracks in the fridge, the crisps drawer and the back of the refrigerator shelves can collect a lot of dust and other debris. Vacuuming the refrigerator every now and then ensures that you keep your food in a clean environment. In addition, a clean refrigerator uses less energy. Always a bonus!

Window sills and frames

Window sills are often a favorite place for pets. Many people also have plants or decorations in front of their windows. All of this contributes to the fact that window sills quickly become dusty and collect hair and other particles. Use the small brush of your vacuum cleaner to clean the window sills.

Kitchen and wardrobe drawers

Drawers are real dust catchers. To keep your items clean – from cutlery to socks – you also need to vacuum the bottoms of your drawers. This is also a good opportunity to sort the contents again.

Curtains

Use your vacuum cleaner to prevent the dust from your curtains spreading all over the rest of the house. This is a suitable method to clean almost all types of window coverings, from roller blinds to blinds. Choose the right head for the vacuum cleaner to get into every nook and cranny.

 

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Dust Monitoring Equipment – providing equipment, services and training in dust fallout management to the mining industry.

Zero Harm at Carletonville

Posted by on September 21, 2021 Comments Off on Zero Harm at Carletonville

Well done Rosond!

Rosond celebrates one year Zero Harm at Carletonville operations

Source – https://www.miningsafety.co.za/news/rosond-celebrates-one-year-zero-harm-at-carletonville-operations/

Rosond celebrates one year Zero Harm at Carletonville operations
May 27, 2021 in Safety

“Drilling technology and services provider Rosond of Midrand recently celebrated a year of Zero Harm operations in Carletonville in Gauteng. This area-specific safety record, achieved on 28 February, is the latest in a series of occupational health and safety (OHS) accolades for the company, which recorded Zero Harm across the entirety of the business on 1 October 2019.

Rosond is currently undertaking core and exploration drilling, its two main areas of expertise for the mining industry, at six different mines and 11 associated shafts. A total of 300 employees are involved, with all safety-related activities overseen by Senior Safety Officer Eugene Barnard. “I wish to congratulate all Rosond employees working in the Carletonville area on one year of Zero Harm. This is an enormous achievement that the entire company can be extremely proud of.”

The OHS culture at Rosond is underpinned by the simple mantra of “We cannot drill if we cannot do so safely”, explains Barnard. From MD Ricardo Ribeiro right down to the drill assistants, safety is lived and breathed at the company. “The fact that this is underpinned right from top management all the way to ground level is critical.”

Adding another layer of complexity to Rosond’s OHS compliance in the Carletonville area is that it works for different mining houses at a range of mines, all with their own specific requirements and procedures and policies. These are often subject to amendment, which means that Barnard and his team have to be constantly alert to any changes that might impact on OHS.

From the outset of the lockdown in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, Rosond committed itself to complying with all of the necessary government rules and regulations that were proscribed. “We also had to be cognisant that many mining houses themselves implemented additional measures, as mining is a high-risk activity with specific requirements in terms of ensuring worker safety during this difficult period,” adds Barnard.

In terms of OHS compliance in Carletonville specifically, Rosond had to carefully monitor the types of activities that needed to be undertaken in order to allocate the correct numbers of workers in accordance with social distancing protocols. The Covid-19 requirements for the mining industry also have a legal stipulation for specific OHS documentation to be completed daily, for example.

As part of its own OHS initiative, Rosond has quarterly safety drives based on a specific topic identified in the period under review. This information is then distilled into the form of safety posters and other awareness-raising to underscore essential OHS lessons and learnings.

Every site where Rosond is operational is also subject to a quarterly internal OHS audit to ensure compliance with the Mine Health and Safety Act and any other additional statutory requirements. Weekly safety meetings are conducted by site managers, supervisors and safety officers, in addition to an ongoing daily work risk assessment and hazard identification process to red-flag any OHS related issues to prevent incidents that may arise.

Barnard attributes Rosond’s significant OHS achievements to date to the fact that the safety system implemented by the company is both readily understandable to all employees, and flexible enough to take into account any contingencies. The company is also committed to constant innovation, which means that all drilling and related equipment is constantly upgraded to improve the level of risk management.”

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Dust Monitoring Equipment – providing equipment, services and training in dust fallout management to the mining industry.

 

National Day of Health and Safety in Mining

Posted by on September 14, 2021 Comments Off on National Day of Health and Safety in Mining

Read the media release from the Minerals Council South Africa as they launched the National Day of Health and Safety in Mining this year.

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Source – http://www.safetyandhealthinmining.co.za/

Media Release

“The Minerals Council South Africa today launched the National Day of Health and Safety in Mining 2021. This is the fourth annual commemoration demonstrating the mining industry’s commitment to achieving zero harm.

This year’s event was centred on a theme of Renewed Focus for our New Normal, which recognised the integration of health, safety and wellbeing, acknowledging the impacts of COVID-19 on the industry’s performance in 2020, and the consequent behaviour changes needed.”

“NATIONAL DAY OF HEALTH & SAFETY 2021:
RENEWED FOCUS FOR OUR NEW NORMAL
Johannesburg, 8 July 2021.

The Minerals Council South Africa today commemorated the
National Day of Health and Safety in Mining 2021, an event that underpins and supports the
Khumbul’ekhaya Health & Safety Strategy.

This year’s event is centred on a theme of Renewed Focus for our New Normal, which
recognises the integration of health, safety and wellbeing, acknowledging the regression in
fatalities in 2020 compared with 2019, the impacts of COVID-19 and the consequent
behaviour changes needed.

Roger Baxter, CEO of the Minerals Council noted: “The history of this day is rooted in our
Khumbul’ekhaya campaign initiated to remind us all, and particularly the leadership of our
industry, of the need to maintain an intense focus on the safety and health of our industry’s
employees. Any measure of the effectiveness and progress of our industry must look first at
progress towards ensuring that every employee returns home as healthily and safely as they
left home to head for their workplace.

“The last 18 months have confronted us with an additional and most profound health
challenge. I would like to thank everyone present for the remarkable role you have all played
in optimising lives and livelihoods – government, organised labour and industry. Together,
we have as an industry done a remarkable job of working together to protect our employees
from the ravages of COVID-19 as far as this has been possible – working hard to save lives
and livelihoods. And we will continue with this. But, the way forward for us, as an industry
and a country, is to achieve community immunity through vaccination.”

In her address, Nolitha Fakude, President of the Minerals Council noted: “COVID has been a
part of our lives for close on 18 months now, with its impacts on health, safety and wellbeing. And it is not going to leave us for some time to come. We saw in 2020 a deterioration
in mining’s safety performance in terms of fatalities. Worse still, thus far in 2021, we are
seeing a further deterioration in the fatality trend. This is not acceptable to us, as the
Minerals Council and the industry. For all these reasons, our CEO Zero Harm Forum has
decided that the theme for today, and for the year ahead, should be: Renewed Focus for our
New Normal.”

Chief Inspector of Mines David Msiza commended the Minerals Council’s initiative to hold
the event in that it gives all stakeholders “the opportunity to reflect on health and safety
issues. It was important that we worked together in dealing with COVID. We have made a
huge difference. I commend all of us – government, industry and organised labour for our
efforts,” he said.

He said that mine health and safety continues to be a government priority. “We are intent on
working to implement a culture of zero harm. We still believe zero harm is possible,” he
added.

Assessing the past year, Mr Msiza said he was pleased at the reduction in occupational
diseases. But the incidence of noise-induced hearing loss and occupational lung disease is
still a concern. There has been a 26% reduction in injuries. However, 60 fatalities, an
increase on the 51 in 2019, was very disappointing, he said.

AMCU Health and Safety chair Gabriel Nkosi reaffirmed AMCU’s commitment to the Mine
Health and Safety Council safety milestones. He said it was time to reinforce training of
safety representatives. He said he was delighted with the performance of the Masoyise
health programme’s efforts to reduce the incidence of TB and other diseases.

However, he added: “COVID-19 has interfered with efforts to address incidence of fatalities.
It worries us that the 60 lives lost in 2020 are higher than the 51 lives lost in 2019.
Operational discipline is a big concern.” On COVID, he added: “Let us adhere to nonpharmaceutical interventions until all mineworkers are vaccinated.”

NUM National Health and Safety head Mziwakhe Nhlapo spoke of the importance of culture
transformation in respect of health and safety, including the issues of risk management,
diversity management and building capacity for training. “Culture transformation needs to be
our bible. Traction needs to be re-established having been somewhat lost recently,” he said.
Mr Nhlapo applauded the Minerals Council for setting up the event. He urged all parties to
continue to engage in order to find solutions. Solidarity Deputy General Secretary, Paul Mardon commented: “Underpinning this recommitment to health and safety is our honest belief that health and safety at work is the foundation of the sustainability of mining in South Africa. In the long run, only safe production is sustainable.

“Solidary regards this event as evidence of the Minerals Council’s leadership and we
commend them for it. But we also want to recognise the leadership shown by trade unions in
mining and the DMRE with regard to health and safety.”
UASA Divisional Manager Franz Stehring said he hoped the day would lead to “a major
paradigm shift from reactive health and safety strategies and attitudes towards a
behavioural-based proactive culture among management and employees in the mining
industry.
“It is important to remember that health and safety can only be attained through teamwork,
healthy employer and employee relations in the workplace, total commitment and, most
importantly, by changing the behaviour of people to benefit themselves,” he added

Speaking in conclusion, Themba Mkhwanazi, Chair of CEO Zero Harm Forum said:
“We remain committed to our Khumbul’ekhaya strategy and the key leadership actions we
are undertaking as part of our drive to eliminate fatalities, change behaviour and transform
our safety culture, through ongoing collaboration with our tripartite stakeholders in
government and unions, in our quest for Zero Harm.””

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Dust Monitoring Equipment – providing equipment, services and training in dust fallout management to the mining industry.

National Day of Health and Safety in Mining

What Is Particulate Matter And How Does It Affect Your Health?

Posted by on September 7, 2021 Comments Off on What Is Particulate Matter And How Does It Affect Your Health?

A very interesting article from ThermoFisher.  Enjoy the read!

What Is Particulate Matter And How Does It Affect Your Health?

What Is Particulate Matter? And How Does It Affect Your Health?
By Sandra J. Nason

Source – https://www.thermofisher.com/blog/mining/what-is-particulate-matter-and-how-does-it-affect-your-health/?kui=vTfMLEZ6Mxfnki03Vqv4zA#_ts=1500409586040

“Advancing Mining often discusses air quality issues related to industries including coal mining, cement processing, and coal‐ and oil‐fired power generation. These issues can affect both workers and the nearby population who breathe in the particulate matter that results from such industrial activities.

What is a particulate, or particulate matter? How can it affect us?

The U.S. EPA defines particulate matter (PM, also called particle pollution) as a mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets found in the air. Particulate matter size is measured as PM10, inhalable particles 10 micrometers or less in diameter, and PM2.5, fine inhalable particles 2.5 micrometers or less in diameter.

Here are some facts about particulate matter from the EPA web site:

Some particulates can be seen with the naked eye while others can only be detected using an electron microscope. Some microscopic solids or liquid droplets are so small that they can be inhaled deep into the lungs, and possibly even the bloodstream, causing serious health problems.
Particulate matter can be made up of hundreds of different chemicals.
Particulate matter can be emitted directly from a source, such as construction sites, unpaved roads, fields, smokestacks, or fires.

Most particulate matter forms in the atmosphere as a result of complex reactions of chemicals such as sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, which are pollutants emitted from power plants, industries and automobiles.

Fine particles (PM2.5) are the main cause of reduced visibility (haze) in parts of the United States, including many of our treasured national parks and wilderness areas.
What preventive and protective measures have been put in place regarding particulate matter?

The EPA has issued particulate matter emissions monitoring requirements for future coal‐ and oil‐fired power plants under the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS). The MATS sets standards for all Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAPs) emitted by coal- and oil-fired Utility Steam Generating Unit (EGU) with a capacity of 25 megawatts or greater. These standards are known as the National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) or the Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT) standards. MATS covers emission limits for mercury, particulate matter, SO2, acid gases, and certain metals. The new standards affect only coal‐ and oil‐fired power plants that will be built in the future and are expected to reduce mercury emissions from power plants by 90%, acid gas emissions by 88%, and SO2 emissions by 41% beyond the reductions expected from the Cross State Air Pollution Rule.

Particulate Matter Continuous Emissions Monitoring System (PM CEMS) for wet stack particulate matter emissions enables simplified compliance with U.S. EPA regulations for utility companies, cement manufacturers and organizations with industrial and commercial boilers. PE CEMS systems continuously monitor filterable particulate matter regardless of changes in particulate characteristics and provide true mass concentration traceable to NIST-standards.

Advanced technology is also available to monitor particulates in ambient air.”

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Dust Monitoring Equipment – providing equipment, services and training in dust fallout management to the mining industry.