Work-related illnesses exacerbate skills shortage
According to the International Labor Organization (ILO), 160 million employees worldwide suffer from work-related illnesses. The first and seemingly most conclusive measure to counteract this? – A safe and clean working environment.
Remagen, 13.07.2022 – Evo-Products, the manufacturer of industrial extraction technologies and industrial vacuum cleaners, is presenting a new, particularly compact safety vacuum cleaner using the inert process at this year’s Powtech trade fair in Nuremberg from September 26 to 28. This time, Managing Director Volker Blankenburg is focusing the presentation on extraction technology that meets special safety requirements. In addition to smooth operation, the safety of employees must also be taken into account. In view of the current concerns and problems surrounding the shortage of skilled workers, Blankenburg believes that the only consequence is that the company’s own workforce has a clean and safe working environment and is not exposed to any health risks as a result of their work. In this way, manufacturing companies secure their economic future.
Clean and safe working environment: an investment that is already paying off today
The ILO’s study illustrates the impact of work-related illnesses: Work-related illnesses and deaths account for 4 percent of GDP losses worldwide. Employee health is therefore an important factor in the economic success of any company. Depending on the industry, this problem can be countered with simple preventative measures. One often underestimated source of pollution is fine dust, which is created by being whirled up during cleaning, for example when cleaning industrial 3D printers. Depending on the printing process, plastics or metals such as aluminum are used. The latter is not only potentially explosive, but also causes serious illness if inhaled. Companies must therefore rely on professional extraction technology that has been specially designed for such critical substances. “Whenever fine dusts are produced, it is important to extract them professionally. If reactive and flammable materials are also involved, such as titanium or aluminum, you won’t get very far with an ordinary vacuum cleaner. The extracted dust could continue to react with oxygen in the vacuum cleaner and thus significantly impair the safety of the entire operation,” says Volker Blankenburg, Managing Director and expert in extraction planning at Evo-Products. “We have developed a particularly compact and robust inert vacuum cleaner to make production processes safer and make the daily work of our employees easier.
The inert process makes extraction safe
The inert process is based on the fact that potentially explosive suction material is passivated by a liquid bath. Critical fine dusts are bound to a liquid separation medium (e.g. water) in accordance with VDI 3405. In addition to binding the dust, two filters (VA filter and H14 filter) ensure clean exhaust air. An additional safety device is an integrated degassing valve. It prevents the build-up of gases in the vacuum cleaner. With an inert vacuum cleaner such as the ECODustPro 15 WB, employees can therefore carry out the necessary cleaning of metal dusts without endangering themselves or others.
Protecting the entire workforce – safety precautions are often thought of in too small a radius
The extraction technology manufacturer from Germany has a wide range of products to ensure safety in many areas of activity – including welding. The tried and tested Fume Extractor (FEX) 3000 with an H13 storage filter, which has been tested by the IFA (Institute for Occupational Safety), is suitable for extracting welding fumes in the W3 version. Welding produces particularly fine and therefore respirable particles (particle size between 0.1 and 10 µm). The health consequences of inhalation range from short-term impairments such as dizziness and headaches to long-term organ damage, particularly to the lungs, such as inflammation or cancer. The welders must of course be protected in the first instance. In addition, it is essential to protect the indirectly affected workers from emissions: The exhaust air, which can spread to other work areas, must be at least 99 percent free of particles in a W3 design. The use of H13 filters, as in the case of the FEX 3000, also achieves a separation efficiency of 99.95 percent.
To the POWTECH trade fair
POWTECH will take place in Nuremberg from September 26 to 28, 2023. The leading trade fair for process engineering, bulk solids and conveying technology is a meeting place for a wide range of industries, such as pharmaceuticals, chemicals, food and construction. Around 600 exhibitors will be presenting the latest solutions for solids and liquid processing.
About EVO-PRODUCTS Blankenburg GmbH:
Under the EVOTEC brand, the medium-sized company based in Remagen am Rhein manufactures industrial extraction technologies such as stationary gas, smoke and fine dust extraction systems, as well as mobile industrial vacuum cleaners for the removal of dust and solids as well as liquids. EVO-PRODUCTS specializes in tailoring its technologies precisely to customer requirements and their individual production processes. The internationally active company employs 40 people and has an annual turnover of around five million euros.
Press contact: Violetta Vilver, Corporate Communications EVO-PRODUCTS, kommunikation@evo-products.de, Tel.: +49(0)2642/9373-56
