IRONWORKERS: STRUCTURAL STEEL 38 IRONWORKERS: STRUCTURAL STEEL Contents - Personal protective equipment (PPE) - Cold stress and heat stress - Lead exposure - Tools of the trade - Site preparation and steel erection - Safe access and fall protection - Mobile welding rigs Personal protective Figure 1. Ironworkers at work equipment (PPE) require the use of a full face shield to reduce the risk of injury from flying objects and particles. At Clothing: Many injuries can be prevented by some jobsites, eye protection is mandatory. choosing the right clothing. Don’t have cuffs on Always wear eye protection as required. For your pants or sleeves because they can get further information, refer to the chapter on PPE caught on something and cause you to fall. in this manual for a list of activities with Cuffs can also catch sparks and cause a burn. recommended eye and face protection. Hearing protection: Hearing protection is a Skin protection: Ironworkers must protect must for today’s ironworker. Hammering, their skin against burns from hot metal, reaming, and equipment all produce noise at ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun, welding levels that can harm your hearing. Wear radiation, and other hazards. Skin protection appropriate hearing protection. It should filter includes out noise above 85 decibels but still allow you to communicate with your co-workers and hear • clothing that is flame-resistant and provides any alarms or warnings. Reduce the risk of UV protection infection: Make sure that your hands are clean • long sleeved shirts before using expanding foam hearing protection. • full-length pants Eye protection: Wear proper eye protection • leather-faced gloves when reaming drilling, grinding, burning, • sunscreen with a sun protection factor welding—or whenever hazards require it. The (SPF) of 15 or higher. right eye protection can be different for different activities. For example, it’s common for Leather-faced gloves provide protection from ironworkers to perform activities such as gas hot steel and resistance to abrasion. cutting and stud welding. These activities would Head protection: A hard hat complying with require the use of Class 2C goggles for radiation the Construction Regulation (Ontario Regulation protection. It is also common for ironworkers to 213/91) is required on construction projects at be grinding and cutting. These activities would 38 –1 IRONWORKERS: STRUCTURAL STEEL all times. A CSA Type 2 Class E or equivalent Heat Stress hat with chinstrap is recommended because Heat stress can occur wherever construction ironworkers operations take place in hot, humid • work at elevations in windy conditions environments. The locations may be indoors or outdoors. • have increased risk of a lateral impact due to the specific nature of their work. Works that requires you to wear semi-permeable or impermeable protective clothing can Please note that hard hats must be worn with contribute significantly to heat stress. Heat stress the brim forward unless the hat has been tested causes the body's core temperature to rise and and the manufacturer confirms that it can be could lead to confusion, irrational behaviour, worn with the brim pointing backwards. (The loss of consciousness and even death. hard hat will have an embossed symbol indicating that it has been certified as safe to be For further information please see the chapter worn backwards.) on Heat Stress in this manual. Foot protection: Workers must wear CSA certified Grade 1 boots. Boots should also be Lead exposure resistant to electric shock (certified by a white This section supplements the chapter on label with the Greek letter omega Ω). Occupational Health in this manual with Ironworkers should wear boots with slip material of particular importance to ironworkers. resistant soles because of the time spent The fumes from welding and cutting are the walking on smooth beams. greatest health hazards for ironworkers. Hand protection: Gloves are an essential part Exposure to welding by-products such as fumes, of everyday PPE. Select your gloves based on radiation, noise, or vibration is covered in the site conditions such as temperature, the work chapter on Occupational Health. The risk to being performed, the chance of getting cuts and your health is worse when there is a lead-based abrasions, and the dexterity required. paint on the metal being cut or welded. For more information, see the chapter on PPE in The following sections deal with the hazard of this manual. lead exposure during welding and cutting processes. For further information refer to the Cold Stress and Ministry of Labour’s guideline Lead on Construction Projects. We have excerpted a Heat Stress chart from that guideline at the end of this section. Cold Stress Working in cold environments presents health HOW CAN I GET LEAD POISONING? risks. The cold can be caused naturally by the Lead poisoning can occur when you inhale or weather or be created artificially, as in ingest lead dust and fumes during burning or refrigerated environments. You can get serious welding of steel structures coated with lead- cold-related illnesses and injuries, leading to containing paints. permanent tissue damage and even death. Exposure to cold causes two major health WHAT ARE THE HEALTH EFFECTS? problems: hypothermia and frostbite. Common symptoms of acute lead poisoning are loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, stomach For more information, see the chapter on Cold cramps, constipation, difficulty in sleeping, Stress in this manual. 38 –2 IRONWORKERS: STRUCTURAL STEEL fatigue, moodiness, headache, joint or muscle reasonable in the circumstances for the aches, anaemia, and decreased sexual drive. protection of a worker.” Severe health effects include damage to the nervous system, including wrist or foot drop, WELDING, CUTTING, OR BURNING tremors, and convulsions or seizures. Before welding, cutting, or burning any metal The frequency and severity of medical coated with lead-containing materials, remove symptoms increase with the concentration of the coating to a point at least four inches from lead in the blood. the area where heat will be applied. When removal of lead-containing paint is not feasible, Chronic lead poisoning may result after lead has use engineering controls (e.g., local exhaust accumulated in the body over time, mostly in ventilation) to protect workers. The controls the bone. Long after exposure has ceased, some physiological event such as illness or pregnancy may release this stored lead from the bone and produce health problems such as impaired blood synthesis, alteration in the nervous system, high blood pressure, effects on male and female reproductive systems, and damage to the developing fetus. APPLICABLE REGULATIONS Regarding regulations governing lead exposure on construction projects, the Ministry of Labour references Designated Substances—Lead (Regulation 843) and makes it relevant for Figure 2. Portable fume extractor construction projects with section 25(2)(h) of should remove fumes and smoke at the source the Occupational Health and Safety Act, The and keep the concentration of lead in the following excerpt regarding lead exposure was breathing zone below the exposure limit. taken from the Ministry of Labour’s guideline Lead on Construction Projects: REMOVAL OF LEAD PAINT “The Ministry’s designated substance regulation Lead-based paint can be removed by a variety (DSR) for lead, Regulation 843, specifies of methods, including occupational exposure limits (OELs) for lead, and requires assessment and a control program • chemical stripping (do not use chlorinated to ensure compliance with these OELs. The OEL solvents for stripping paint because they for inorganic lead is 0.05 milligrams per cubic can lead to toxic fumes being produced metre (mg/m3) of air as an 8-hour daily or during welding) 40-hour weekly time-weighted average.” • wet scraping using a paint scraper “Measures and procedures that ensure • mechanical stripping if the sander or construction workers receive the same standard grinder is equipped with a High Efficiency of protection as workers covered by Regulation Particulate Air (HEPA) filter. 843 should therefore be implemented on construction projects where exposure to lead is • heat stripping if the temperature is below a hazard. Such measures and procedures are 600°C. Above 600°C lead fumes become deemed to be in compliance with section airborne creating a significant inhalation 25(2)(h) of the OHS, as taking “every precaution hazard. 38 –3 IRONWORKERS: STRUCTURAL STEEL Use protective sheeting to collect debris that has area provided by the employer. Separate lockers been sanded, grinded, or stripped away. or storage facilities should be provided so that work clothing and shoes do not contaminate Do not do any of the following activities when clean clothing. working in areas that might contain lead-based paint because they can create dangerous levels Workers should change back into their street of lead dust or fumes. clothes after washing or showering and before leaving the jobsite. Doing so will prevent the • Open flame burning or torching (including accumulation of lead dust in workers' cars and propane-fuelled heat grids) and heat guns homes and protect their family members from operating above 600°C. These activities exposure to lead. Separate laundering of release toxic fumes. washable coveralls can help prevent take-home • Machine sanding or grinding without a exposures. HEPA filter. These activities create lead dust. WARNING SIGNS • Uncontained hydroblasting, high-pressure Post warning signs to mark the boundaries of lead-contaminated work areas. These signs washing or abrasive blasting, or sandblasting. should indicate that there is a lead hazard and These activities create lead dust. prohibit eating and drinking in the area. • Using methylene chloride paint removal products. These products release toxic PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT fumes. (PPE) • Extensive dry scraping creates lead dust. Use engineering controls and good work practices to minimize worker exposure to lead. PERSONAL HYGIENE PPE should supplement the engineering controls Personal hygiene is an important element of any and good work practices.