Technical Services
OSHA/Silica Standard Compliance
OSHA/Silica Standard Compliance
ARDEX Americas is a global leader in the development, manufacture and distribution of high-performance specialty building products for commercial and residential applications. ARDEX is committed to maintaining the highest standards for quality, performance and safety within the construction industry.
OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) has recently issued a new standard for the construction industry which requires employers to limit worker exposures to respirable crystalline silica and to take other steps to protect workers. In this ruling, OSHA has established Permissible Exposure Limits and Action Levels (the level of exposure which triggers required protection methods).
The newly established OSHA PEL and Action Level compliance schedule for Construction Industry went into effect Sept. 23, 2017. For complete details see: http://www.osha.gov/silica/SilicaConstructionRegText.pdf
Because all construction employers covered by the standard are required to establish and implement a written exposure control plan, ARDEX has conducted a series of tests with an independent outside lab to provide to our customers the exposure statistics for our different product lines as well as mixing methods.
As part of its own compliance plan, ARDEX has had exposure monitoring conducted by an Independent Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH) for both the manufacturing of its materials as well as the ultimate product application in our field and in our training centers. It has also been confirmed that all appropriate control measures are in place at all ARDEX Academy training locations to ensure the safety of our technicians and our attendees.
The results of this initial testing, intended to cover all primary products, are as follows: For products with no sand added like ARDEX FEATHER FINISH® finishing underlayment, respirable crystalline silica exposure was measured as “none-detected” and below the Action Level during mixing. Mixing ARDEX products with no sand added does not require engineering control measures like additional ventilation or dust mask to comply with OSHA Silica Standard.
For sanded products like ARDEX V 1200™ Self-Leveling Underlayment, respirable crystalline silica exposure was measured below the Action Level during mixing with an ARDEX DUSTFREE™ on mix barrel, connected to portable vacuum, with HEPA filters. Mixing under these conditions will not require dust mask to comply with OSHA Silica Standard.
Technical Update ARDEX Products and OSHA Silica Standard Housekeeping Guidelines
For all other products and mixing methods, we are currently conducting testing and will be publishing the results as they become available. For additional information regarding ARDEX objective data and compliance, please contact ARDEX Environmental Specialist, Steven Newbrough steven.newbrough@ardexamericas.com For complete information on the new OSHA regulations, visit: http://www.osha.gov/silica/