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Two recent Bureau of Mines studies evaluated workers' dust exposures in automated pallet loading processes. The first study involved a Bureau-designed dust control system using a push-pull ventilation technique. The unit was shown to reduce workers' dust exposures by 76 pct during pallet loading at a ground silica operation. A hydraulic lift table was used to automate the bag stacking process; this kept the loading height constant throughout the entire pallet loading cycle. The second study evaluated different commercial automated pallet-loading systems. These systems automatically stack the bags onto pallets, shrink-wrap the pallets, and deliver the pallets to a forklift pickup location. Results from a ground silica evaluation site indicated respirable dust samples taken were below the threshold limit value as established by the Mine Safety and Health Adminstration.
| Author(s): | Cecala-AB, Covelli-A |
| Reference: | SME Annual Meeting (Salt Lake City, UT, February 26 - March 1, 1990). Preprint 90-28. Littleton, CO: Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration, Inc; 1990; :1-5 |
http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/silicacrystalline/dust/automation.html (HTML)
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