When Dust Turns Deadly:
What You Need to Know to Prevent Combustible Dust Explosions

The industrial dust that could be hiding in your machinery, in your ductwork, and even near ovens could spark a catastrophic explosion in your plant.

These disastrous tragedies aren’t limited to grain elevators or fossil fuel refineries. If you work in the industries of food (e.g., candy, starch, flour, feed), plastics, wood, rubber, furniture, textiles, pesticides, pharmaceuticals, dyes, coal, metals (e.g., aluminum, chromium, iron, magnesium, and zinc), or any place where very fine particles can accumulate, you and your workers could be at great risk.

You can prevent tragedies like the one at a North Carolina pharmaceutical plant, where six people were killed, 38 were injured, including two firemen, and a nearby school and businesses were damaged too.

In this revealing audio conference, you will not only find out what the OSHA Combustible Dust Standards are—you will discover how they affect you and how you can implement them in your own workplace, making a safer environment for your workers and for the community.

To make a plant compliant with OSHA Combustible Dust Standards, after citations, can cost well over $600,000. Don’t waste time and money and endanger yourself and others. If you work somewhere with quantities of fine dust, powder or residue, and especially if you have dust collection systems, bag houses, or dust accumulation on floors, machinery, pipes or beams, then you need to attend this session.

Questions Answered:

• What are the hazards associated with combustible dust, and what conditions can make for an almost certain explosion?
• What are the NFPA Standards that govern your specific operation?
• How important and effective are preventative housekeeping measures in reducing combustible dust hazards? When do they trigger additional OSHA and NFPA electrical requirements?
• How does employee training come into play in preventing an explosion and in dealing with the aftermath should an accident occur? Define the essential elements of employee training.
• How can you audit your operation and implement these safety standards for yourself?

Presented By:

Howard Mavity is a partner in the Atlanta office of Fisher & Phillips, LLP. He co-chairs the firm's Workplace Safety and Catastrophe Management Practice Group. He draws upon his past business experience in transportation, logistics, construction, and industrial supply to work with clients as a business partner and focuses on eliminating any need for a union by commonsense management. Howard has handled well over 200 incidents of union activity and has managed over 320 OSHA fatality cases in construction and general industry, ranging from dust explosions to building collapses. He has coordinated complex inspections involving multi-employer sites, corporate-wide compliance, and issues involving criminal referral. Howard coordinates the firm's Occupational Safety and Health Practice and Catastrophe Response. He also responds to virtually every type of day-to-day workplace inquiry and has handled cases before the EEOC, OFCCP, and numerous other state and federal agencies. Howard frequently speaks to business associations, bar groups, and professional groups. He also lectures and conducts training for numerous private and governmental employers and speaks at a national MBA program. He has been selected as a "Georgia Super Lawyer, Labor and Employment" since 2004.

Who would benefit from this program:

• Facility Managers
• Facility Directors
• Architects
• Designers

Continuing Education:

• This program has been applied for CIH & CSP Continuing Education Credits. Earn .25 CM Points for CIHs and .156 Points for CSP.

Length: 2 hours