Cutting yourself, breathing nasty dust, burning yourself, ingesting or breathing poisonous chemicals, things hitting you in the head, getting stuff in your eyes, explosions, loud noises, getting run over by forklifts…
There’s a lot of ways for bad stuff to happen to your body when you’re building things. Working with composites adds a few new wrinkles to the already-scary list of bad stuff you can let happen to you. I’m going to briefly outline some of the things to be aware of with composites manufacturing.
Poisons
Most of the resins, paints, release systems, and solvents typically used in composites manufacturing are bad for you. Some are deadly poisons, some will burn your skin, and some will cause respiratory or skin irritation. Always read the MSDS (Safety Data Sheet) for new materials and when in doubt, wear protective gear. Gloves, respirators and eye protection are very important!
Fire
Those same materials that are poisons are also often super-flammable. Fire is scary and it can kill you, burn you and destroy all your stuff. It is really important to be mindful of solvent-soaked rags, catalyzed resin, flammable dust and storage of flammable materials. Make sure you have a fire-safety plan in your workplace and a clear way to dispose of flammable things in a safe way.
Bodily Damage
People are really soft and squishy compared to knives, scissors, grinders, spinning cutters, forklifts, presses, gantry cranes… the list goes on and on! Pretty much all of your tools can mess you up if you have a slip-up or aren’t paying attention. If you are an employer or manager, it is your responsibility to train people to work safely and to be vigilant about potential dangers. If you are an employee or hobbyist it is essential to always be aware of how things could go wrong when using equipment or working with others to handle heavy objects. Be careful!
Topics
- Respirators and Breathing Safely
- Epoxy Sensitization and You
- Health Impacts of Styrene Exposure
- Not Cutting Yourself
- How to Read MSDS
- Dust Control