Angela Chouaib of Green Air Monitoring takes a timely look at face fitting of masks.

What is Face Fit Testing?
Face Fit Testing is the method used for checking that a tight fitting facepiece matches the persons’ facial features and seals adequately to the wearers’ face. It also helps to ensure that poorly fitting facepieces are not selected for use. An inadequate fit will significantly reduce the protection provided to the wearer. Face Fit Testing can also be used to ensure that an individual knows how to properly put on and wear the respirator.

If a fit test is not performed, then an unsatisfactory seal/barrier may excessive leakage of airborne contaminants into the wearer’s breathing zone, even though the user is wearing a respirator correctly selected for the application.

The requirements for Face Fit testing are described in the Approved Code of Practices (ACoP’s) supporting:
COSHH Regulations 2002
The Control of Lead at Work Regulations 2002
The Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations 2002

The HSE have produced a guidance document ‘Fit Testing of Respiratory Protective Equipment Facepieces’ (HSE OC 282/28). The HSE strongly recommend that fit testing is included as an integral part of any Respiratory Protective Equipment program
Tight fitting facepieces are:
Filtering facepieces
Half Masks
Full-face masks

When should Fit Testing be performed?
Face fit testing should be carried out:
As part of the initial selection of RPE
When an un-tested face piece is already in use.
If an employee wears more than one type of tight fitting facepiece then each facepiece should be tested.
A repeat test should be carried out when the wearer:
Loses or gains weight
Undergoes any substantial dental surgery
Develops any facial changes (scars, moles etc) around the face seal area

How is Fit Testing performed?
There are two basic types of fit testing, these are:
Qualitative – method based on tasting or smelling a bitter, sweet or odorous compound.
Quantitative – provides a numerical calculation of the effectiveness of fit. This is called a Fit Factor. This is usually carried out using a particle counting device or a controlled negative pressure device.

Green Air Monitoring provide Quantitative Fit Testing using the TSI Portacount which is a particle counting device. This is suitable for testing the following mask types:
Filtering facepieces (P1, P2, P3 types)
Half mask respirators
Full face mask respirators
Power assisted respirators with full face mask or half mask
Breathing apparatus

How does the quantitative test work?
Quantitative fit testing involves a direct numerical measurement of the respirator face seal performance. Using a probe into the mask, the particle counting device counts the number of ambient particles leaking into the facepiece and compares this with the particle number challenging the facepiece. The particles within the facepiece are assumed to have entered through a leak in the face seal. This calculation is known as Fit Factor.

Fit Factors
A quantitative fit test gives a number that is referred to as the Fit Factor (FF). A high FF number means the facepiece achieved a good contact between the face seal and the face during the test.

Does each employee need to have their own facepiece?
No. However, you should ensure that the type of facepiece worn during the fit test is the same size, make and model that is available to the employee.

What do I need to do before the fit testing is performed?
Subjects should refrain from eating, chewing gum, drinking or smoking for at least 30 minutes prior to the test. Candidates must also be clean shaven within the region of the face/mask seal.

Why do I have to do exercises when I am being fit tested?
This is to simulate the work you would normally be carrying out – this will test the fit of the facepiece better than if you were sitting down or just standing still.

I have passed a fit test but do I need to check and maintain my facepiece?
Yes. The fit test does not assess the quality of the maintenance of the facepiece – it must be checked regularly.

I have failed my fit test, what do I do next?
Manufacturers make lots of different sizes of facepieces so you may obtain a better fit by wearing an alternative type or size of mask. If an adequate fit is not achieved then it may be necessary to wear a respirator that doesn’t rely on a tight face seal.

How long do I have to keep records?
The employer should keep fit test records for a minimum of five years.

How long does the fit testing take?
About 20 minutes per person.

How much does it cost?
This depends on the service you require, the number of people and number of masks to be tested. The most cost effective solution is to come to your site, or alternatively, you can arrange for your staff to be tested at our premises in Manchester or Kent.

What is the difference between Qualitative and Quantitative Fit Testing?
Both methods have advantages and disadvantages, see below:

Qualitative Fit Testing:
√ Inexpensive
√ Low maintenance
X Imprecise
X Easy to do wrong
X No documentation of results
X Subject to deception,
X Wearer’s have different abilities to taste the solutions; some can’t taste them at all!
X Limited to Fit Factor of 100 (half masks or filtering facepieces – P1, P2, P3), not suitable for full-face masks.
X Uncomfortable, people do not like wearing the hood
X Slow to perform

Quantitative Fit Testing:
√ No fit factor limit
√ Precise
√ Fast to do
√ Hard copy of results,
√ No chance of deception
√ Easy to perform
√ Wide range of facepieces can be tested
√ Useful tool for employee respirator training
X Cost of buying and maintaining a suitable fit testing device, training personnel to perform the tests

Green Air Monitoring can take the hassle out of it for you – less lost work time, reduced costs, no maintenance and the fit testing is carried out by fully trained personnel.

Angela Chouaib
Green Air Monitoring Ltd
11 Kent House
Old Bexley Business Park
Bourne Road
Bexley, Kent, DA5 1LR.
Office: 01322 555 556
Mobile: 07855 577 820
Email: AngelaC@greenairmonitoring.co.uk
Website: www.greenairmonitoring.co.uk
Twitter: AirQualityQueen
LinkedIn: Angela Chouaib

Elderly woman assaulted as demolition continues under police protection.

Opponents of a multi-billion-euro rebuilding of the Stuttgart rail system in Germany rejected talks with the government of the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg Monday, saying they would not negotiate unless demolition of the city’s central train station was suspended. The announcement came ont he day a YouTube video was released that showed an elderly female protestor apparently being punched by a police officer (see below).

Last month, at least 30,000 people demonstrated in the city against the project. Some 60 kilometres of tunnels and an underground main station are intended to free up surface land for buildings and parks.

‘We won’t be attending the talks because the demolition is still going on,’ said Gangolf Stocker, a spokesman, after the protest leaders had conferred.

Read the full story here and see the alleged assault video below:

Undercover demolition man left out in the cold after bringing corrupt officials to book.

Sidney Johnson’s modest home is surrounded by a mountain of junk. He feels most comfortable under a hot Texas sun with a bandana tied around his head using a bulldozer to collect scrap.

Yet the “junk man,” as he jokingly refers to himself, became the most unlikely of spies to come in from the heat and enter the cold, calculating world of the greedy politician.

His undercover work for the FBI over the last five years helped bust a string of public officials across Waller County who previously had evaded other probes, authorities said.

To date, a mayor, justice of the peace, public works director and two aldermen have pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud taxpayers by soliciting kickbacks. Many believe more heads will roll as investigators try to end an apparent systemic culture of corruption that had infected this rural county west of Houston.

“Now I just want my life back,” said Johnson, 47, who said he’s lost nearly everything since taking his stand against corruption.

Speaking publicly for the first time, Johnson said he’s been blackballed by local governments who have canceled contracts and avoided hiring his once-thriving recycling and demolition company. He also faces foreclosure on his main property for $23,882 owed in back taxes, and all his heavy equipment has been repossessed.

In addition, he’s embarrassed that he cannot provide properly for his children or his wife, Judy, who suffers from an autoimmune disorder and requires a caretaker.

Read the full story here.

Experts warn citizens against DIY demolition.

The New Zealand cabinet on Monday made an initial 5 million NZ dollars (3.5 million U.S. dollars) contribution to the mayoral fund set up to help those affected by the earthquake in New Zealand’s South Island.

The welfare fund is to assist people not covered by other agencies such as Work and Income.

Prime Minister John Key said Cabinet will make 94 million NZ dollars from the emergency works budget available immediately so work can start on fixing roads.

He said the 5 million NZ dollars marked just the start of the government’s financial contribution, and the cost of restoring infrastructure will run into hundreds of millions of dollars.

Demolition work has got under way in central Christchurch to remove buildings devastated by Saturday’s 7.1 magnitude earthquake.

Heavy machinery began pulling down condemned buildings to make the city safer earlier on Monday afternoon.

Lines company Orion said people are putting themselves at risk by demolishing quake-damaged houses before they have been completely removed from the power network.

Read more here.

Sioux Falls mayor brings pressure to bear on dilapidated hotel owner.

Sioux Falls mayor Mike Huether is on the verge of delivering on his promise to rid his city of dilapidated buildings by taking over responsibility to demolish the Oaks Hotel.

In June, Oaks Hotel owner David Graham said the demolition of the hotel would start in mid-July and that construction on a new hotel would take about nine months. But as of today, the hotel remains standing.

Huether says he believes Graham had good intentions. “If it doesn’t get done in a more timely fashion, the city has no other choice, we’ll tear it down ourselves and then we’ll bill the owner for that,” says Huether. “But now not to hit the goals and not to meet the expectations and yes to over promise and to underdeliver, it’s disappointing to say the least,” said Huether.

Read more and watch a KDLT video, click here.

demolition-jobs.co.uk will have a new job board, thanks to Humres Recruitment

A few weeks ago, we put out an appeal to assist with the development of a new job board for the demolition-jobs.co.uk website. As regular readers will recall, we were looking for £500 to allow us to develop this important website to allow UK demolition contractors to advertise vacant positions within their company to a willing audience of thousands of known demolition professionals.

Well our pleas have been answered by Humres Recruitment which has generously donated the full amount. Based in London, Humres Recruitment provides expert technical recruitment consulting services for the construction industry. The company offers a contemporary and fresh approach to the recruitment process. They understand that key human capital within demolition are not easy to find and will only deal with a company that they can trust and know. It is through many years of networking and building relationships with candidates high and low that Humres are the number one choice to many key players within the demolition sector today.

Humres has been operating in the demolition sector for seven years but earlier this year, realising the demolition sector is like no other, Humres Managing Director Paul Seth put together a specialist division solely concentrating on the demolition sector. The division is headed up by divisional manager Anthony Robbins and senior consultant Alan Fines. Members of the team are continually trained and pride themselves on their knowledge of the demolition industry.

“We are delighted to welcome Humres Recruitment on board as our business partners in the ongoing development of the demolition-jobs.co.uk website. We simply cannot thank them enough for their generosity,” says demolition-jobs.co.uk founder Mark Anthony. “And we look forward to announcing further updates within the next few weeks when the new-look job board goes live.”

The pick of the speeches from the NFDC’s business meeting in Sardinia.

This time last week, the cream of the UK’s demolition industry gathered in Sardinia for the National Federation of Demolition Contractors’ 2010 Annual Convention.

In addition to enjoying all that the famous Forte Village has to offer, they also met for the Federation’s traditional half yearly business meeting where the likes of Mike Taylor – CEO of the US’ National Demolition Association – and Howard Button – CEO of the NFDC – provided a “state of the nation” address for both sides of the Atlantic.

Although the lighting was hardly conducive to video recording, we have gathered together the pick of the non-sponsor footage for you below:

2010 Convention Presentations from Mark Anthony on Vimeo.

Australian blasters put stranded animal out of its misery.

Question. There is a large humpback whale beached on a sandbank for two weeks and it is clear that the animal is no longer able to help itself and is, as a result, suffering. Do you (a) attempt to tow it into the water? (b) Deploy a marine crane to help free the beast? Or (c) call a team of blasters o put the animal out of its misery using something called a “cranial implosion”.

Well, if you’re an animal-loving Australian, option (c) is apparently the way to go, as evidenced by this story from the Vancouver Sun.

And there was us thinking a cranial implosion was that feeling we get in our head whenever we receive news of a blast gone awry or another excavator winding up in a basement.

Check out what just arrived at Demolition News Towers.

Here at Demolition News, it has long been our belief that we don’t receive enough free stuff. Sure, we have a few baseball caps kicking about the place, one or two excavator models, and maybe a few high visibility jackets which, ironically, we can’t spot right now; but nothing particularly original or unique.

Until today that is. Our post arrived, as usual, and as usual it contained a familiar collection of final demands, letters of complaint, threats of legal action for one slander or another. But there, lurking at the bottom of this unwelcome pile, was an envelope that had clearly started its journey in the US or A.

Setting aside any fear that it might contain a vengeful explosive device from a slighted US contractor, we tore open the package to find what we believe to be a unique item on these shores: A Demo Diva t-shirt.

Thankfully, our editor and founder Mark Anthony has been on (and remains on) a pretty severe (and long overdue) diet of late and that has allowed him to slip unaided into the medium-sized garment to model it for us. Setting aside the slightly smug look on his face, we grudgingly have to admit that the t-shirt does look rather good – Just as well as he assures us that he’s taking it to the EDA Conference in Sweden next week. (And our thanks to Demo Diva Simone Bruni for finally getting him to change his shirt!!)

D-Drill’s Julie White ascends to board of DSA.

Julie White, managing director of Shilton-based diamond drilling and sawing specialists D-Drill, has accepted a position on the board of directors of The Drilling and Sawing Association.

Julie says she feels that she can make a difference in an industry that continues to be male dominated. “It needs new people on the board and younger members who are rare in The Drilling and Sawing Association,” she says. “We need to prove to people that are not members that it is worth their while being part of the organisation.

Joel Vinsant, secretary of The Drilling and Sawing Association, says Julie fully deserves her position on the board. “Julie has been pro-active in the industry for a number of years and fully deserves her place on the board. We want the association to have new blood with people who have fresh ideas to take the association forward with different approaches and with Julie’s involvement we can only go from strength to strength,” he says. “She has been really enthusiastic about encouraging the two-year apprenticeship scheme we started six years ago which is vital to train the next generation in this specialist industry.

“It is important for people coming into this sphere to gain vocational and practical training and D-Drill has had 20 apprentices complete the course which highlights Julie’s commitment to providing her workforce with the best possible skills.”