Many laboratories contain significant risks, and preventing laboratory accidents requires excellent care and constant vigilance. Risk factors include high voltages, high and low pressure and temperatures, corrosive or toxic chemicals and vapors, radiation, and biohazards.
What is Laboratory Safety?
Measure to protect against laboratory accidents includes safety training and enforcement of laboratory safety policies, safety review of experimental designs, and the use of protective equipment.
A lab can be filled with dangerous chemicals, radioactive substances, biological specimens, sharp instruments, breakable glassware, and flammable objects depending on scientific research. Thus, those working in labs must be keenly aware of the many dangers of these items. In addition, to maintain a safe workplace and avoid accidents, lab safety symbols, and signs need to be posted throughout the workplace.
OSHA Lab Standard
Laboratory personnel must implement appropriate control measures to ensure that exposures are as low as reasonably achievable. In general, control processes can be categorized as administrative controls, engineering controls, standard operating procedural controls, or personal protection.
Low Temperature
The low-temperature warning symbol warns staff of low-temperature or cryogenic hazards in the lab. Such temperatures are usually much lower than the freezing point. They can be found in cold storage areas of the lab or where chemicals such as liquid nitrogen are stored.
Researchers, staff, and visitors should note and understand the hazard communication information on the laboratory safety signs. However, although the signs warn of what to be aware of when working, it is easy to become involved in your work and be unaware of the dew point and lab temperatures.
Environmental Safety Warning System
PMC Therm-ALERT is a flexible and customizable sensing and alarm system intended to warn employees and management when the temperature or dew point in working areas reaches dangerous levels. The system comprises a high-performance capacitive humidity sensor with a temperature element and a display with one or more switch outputs to control functions such as warning lights. The display is mounted within a NEMA 1 enclosure for indoor use or NEMA 4 for outdoors. In addition, the sensors can be installed within the central or separate remote enclosure with or without a secondary display.
How Can You Make It Suitable for Your Lab?
The PMC Therm-ALERT system is fully configurable to user needs, including:
- Fully configurable to customer needs
- Single warning lights or multiple stack lights
- Displays and annunciates Temperature, Dew Point, RH, or any combination
- Customer-programmable set points
- Integral or remote sensors
Safety is Critical
A science lab is inherently a dangerous place. However, adhering to the lab safety rules set by laboratory standards, OSHA, and best practices can be safe. No matter how careful your lab is to be secure with PMC Therm-ALERT Environmental Safety Warning System, it will keep a watchful eye no matter who is there. Contact SRP Control Systems Ltd for more details and other safety or calibration help. They understand the importance of safety and are dedicated to helping businesses.
