By Jon A. Barrett – Business Development Specialist, Interior Maintenance Company, Inc

Combustible Dust, (or Explosive Dust), cleaning, is a required preventative maintenance program, in manufacturing and production facilities, to prevent safety hazards, possible fires and explosions, and for proper Indoor Air Quality.  Combustible dust is fine particulate dust, which is generated from products such as wood, metals, grains, agricultural, chemicals, plastics, paper, and carbonaceous products.

The manufacturing and production facilities equipment and machinery, pulverize, mill, grind, crush, macerate, and cut the bulk product.  In return, dust is generated, and accumulates on all equipment and facility structure surfaces.  The fine powder dust, which is suspended on the higher, inaccessible and unnoticeable surfaces, is the most problematic, for combustible dust.

Health Effects of Dust
Combustible Dust, can impact and affect, the facility workers health, leading to illnesses, and injuries.  “The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that 6.1 percent of private-sector employees suffered 5.7 million workplace injuries and illnesses in 2000. Forty-six percent of those injury cases required days away from work for recuperation or restricted work activity.

Welcome to the debut of the Combustible Dust-ATEX topic page on the Bulk-Blog. The complex issue of combustible dust related explosions and fires generated from combustible particulate solids in the manufacturing process is a global problem that can be minimized through administrative preventive measures in addition to mitigative engineering best practices. Global trading partners spanning the globe have their own unique regulatory framework in the prevention and mitigation of combustible dust incidents.

The Combustible Dust Policy Institute located in Santa Fe, Texas is actively seeking solutions through in-depth research of incidents and interviews with stakeholders where combustible dust explosions and fires have recently occurred in the process technology and manufacturing sectors. Locally in the United States a comprehensive combustible dust regulatory framework is absent in the protection of the workforce or workplace.