HKSTP Seminar on Laboratory Safety & Conveyance of Hazardous Materials

The seminar on “Laboratory Safety & Conveyance of Hazardous Materials in Science Park” was organized by SHE team in HKSTP on 3 & 4 Aug 2016.  Safety is of paramount importance to HKSTP. With over 80 laboratories now in operation by Science Park partner companies, managing risks is vital to safeguard our health and well-being – not only of the laboratory operators, but of the Park community as a whole.  This free seminar covered our aspirations towards laboratory safety; best practice in the conveyance of hazardous materials and case sharing of laboratory incidents.  In the beginning, Mr. Morris Chan introduced Health and Safety role in the park.

We were honor to invite Mr. Yip Sung Tat (University Safety Office, CUHK) as our guest speaker and shared the Safety Guideline – On-site Conveyance of Hazardous Materials in the Hong Kong Science Park.  

The purpose of this guideline is to ensure safety during transportation of hazardous materials from one location to the other location in the park.  The following diagram demonstrated some principles included Health and Safety of Personnel and Public, Legal Requirements, etc.

Then Mr. Yip briefed some general requirements for controlling the risk to personnel, public and environment.  It related to properly identified, marked and labeled all hazardous materials and secured to prevent spillage, as well as, segregated according to compatibility.  Package must be marked with the name, UN number.  Moreover, it should safe for the worker to contact and secure from movement.  

MSDS / emergency procedures must be available.  Containers / Drums should be securely closed and in good condition.  Label should meet the requirements such as Dangerous Goods Regulations and F&I (Dangerous Substances) Regulations.

For routes, materials should be delivered directly to its final destination with no intermediate stops.  Service lifts and service area should be used for movement between floors.  Material must be ready received by receiving party.  During transportation, never use motorcycle, bicycle or bus.  Use chemical carriers or secondary containers to contain chemicals in glass bottles 

For gas cylinders, remove the regulator and close valves before move.  Install protective cover if available.  Remember that never drag, slide or roll a cylinder.  Remove cylinders from closed-bodied vehicles as soon as possible to minimize relief valve discharge. It could avoid the accident for suffocation.  For Dewars, use handcarts to move it. For radioactive materials/substances, must be packed and moved in the approved method.

For Biological Substances, it separated into Category A (UN2814 or UN2900), Category B (UN3373), Exempt substance.  It packed in primary receptacle, secondary receptacle and outer packing.  The following diagram showed the packaging for infectious substances.

Then Mr. Yip introduced the 2016 ERG Emergency Response Guidebook and it was free download.

Finally, he shared some accident stories about chemical and transportation.  At the end he concluded on safety responsibilities that take good care of yourself, your colleagues and your neighbors. 

Reference:

HKSTP - http://www.hkstp.org

Related activities in HKSTP & HKTIC:

20081211 - HKTIC Laboratory Biosafety Training - http://qualityalchemist.blogspot.hk/2008/12/laboratory-biosafety.html

20101004 - HKSP 1st Occupational Safety and Health Conference - http://qualityalchemist.blogspot.hk/2010/10/hksp-1st-occupational-safety-and-health.html

20111027 - HKSP 2nd Occupational Safety and Health Conference - http://qualityalchemist.blogspot.hk/2011/10/hksp-2nd-occupational-safety-and-health.html

20140221 - Half-day Workshop on Laboratory Safety - https://qualityalchemist.blogspot.hk/2014/02/half-day-workshop-on-laboratory-safety.html