Specific Industry Warnings
COSHH and beauticians
Some ingredients in beauty and cleaning products can irritate the skin leading to dermatitis (eg solvents in nail varnish removers).
Some ingredients can cause skin allergies and asthma (eg liquids and powders in acrylic systems for artificial nails).
Dust filings from artificial nails can cause wheezing, chest tightness and asthma.
Acrylic fumes can cause headaches, dizziness and nausea.
Widespread Solutions offers a number of filtration systems specfically for the beauty industry to mitigate fumes and aerosols associated with nail art, body art, spray tanning and cosmetics.
The HSE website provides specific information for beauty. Also please see our page on Beauty Applications.
COSHH and engineering and electronics
Substances hazardous to health in engineering include:
dusts from mechanical cutting, shaping and abrasive blasting;
gases and fumes from welding, soldering, and cutting;
mists and germs in metalworking fluids;
lubricants, adhesives, paints, degreasing and stripping fluids;
plating and pickling fluids, and molten salt baths;
fluid treatment products.
Widespread Solutions offers a number of extraction and filtration systems specfically for engineering and electronics applications. Please visit our Industry & Electronic Applications Page for more comprehensive descriptions.
COSHH and arts, graphics and spray painting
There are many health risks associated with spraying polyurethane paints. The liquid paint, which comes out of a spray gun, is in a fine mist called an aerosol. If you inhale this aerosol, the liquid isocyanate is absorbed into your lungs, and this is when health problems can start.
Breathing the aerosol of isocyanate-containing paint causes irritation of the nose, throat and lungs. This can happen either immediately on exposure or, more often, later. The symptoms are a dry or sore throat, coughing, wheezing, chest tightness and/or asthma.
Eye contact causes irritation; it may also cause severe chemical conjunctivitis.
Skin contact causes mild irritations which can lead to dermatitis.
Widespread Solutions offers desk top fume cabinets and aerosol spray booths specfically for arts and graphics applications. Our Graphics, Hobbies and Art page is a useful start in your investigation.
COSHH and woodworking
Substances hazardous to health in woodworking include:
hardwood and softwood dust;
dusts from hardboard, plywood, MDF, timber laminates etc;
adhesives, paints, stains, varnishes, stripping fluids etc;
lubricants;
disinfectants to treat water systems.
Cleaning can give rise to high levels of wood dust in air. Control measures include dust extraction, respirators and skin checks.
Wood dust can cause asthma when breathed in. Western red cedar dust is the most dangerous for asthma. Hardwood dust can cause nasal cancer. Dermatitis may result from work with some types of wood.
You must reduce exposures to all types of wood dust as far below the WEL of 5 mg/m3 as is reasonably practicable. You normally need to use health surveillance, i.e. check employees health for any adverse effects related to work.
The HSE website provides specific information and pamphlets about woodworking. Widespread Solutions offers desk top fume cabinets and aerosol spray booths specfically for removing dust and fumes associated with woodworking.
For more information about COSHH requirements for your industry please contact us or call the WS team on 01423 522836.
