Spec Finish

Health & Safety InMarch last year, an All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) report highlighted the dangers and lack of awareness around silica dust. Here, H&S practitioner, David Cant , of Veritas Consulting, explains the steps architects and designers can take to remove the risk of exposure to silica dust on site. SILICA DUST IS A BREATH OF BAD AIR . DESIGNERS NEED TO PLAY THEIR PART 26 www.thefis.org I N the 1970s, the use of asbestos – once considered a miracle construction material – nosedived when its potentially fatal effects were revealed. Widely used in multiple applications thanks to its tensile strength and impressive insulating effects, the material was banned in the UK in 1999 for its tendency to cause lung diseases and cancers when inhaled. Though existing asbestos remains a threat during refurbishment and demolition projects, more than 20 years on from its ban in the UK, designers and architects are now able to specify much safer materials, with the awareness of asbestos dramatically reducing exposure. But asbestos is not the only worry for those who specify materials and take responsibility for project planning. Recently, concerns have been raised about another threat to the health and safety of those working in construction: silica dust. What is silica? Silica is a naturally occurring substance in common building materials such as concrete, bricks, tiles and mortar. When left alone it is perfectly safe, but when these materials are drilled into, cut, or otherwise fractured, the naturally occurring silica becomes respirable crystalline silica (RCS). Workers near to the materials when this fracturing take place can inhale the airborne dust and, over time, potentially Silicosis occurs over several years of exposure to silica dust, which puts construction workers at extremely high risk David Cant, H&S practitioner