Trade Schools Are Struggling. Why?

by Imperial Systems | Aug 4, 2016 | Uncategorized

Trade Schools Matter and This is Why They’re Struggling

Employers are looking for people with technical and vocational skills and training. Many blue-collar employees make more money than a lot of college graduates. So why are so many trade schools seeing funding cuts and falling enrollment?

Learning a skilled trade is a solid investment in a future career, and it allows many people to pursue jobs that they love. But in the United States, the importance of these careers is often overlooked. Many programs focus on preparing students for college. Some people will enjoy and achieve success in college. Others are looking for a different kind of education, want to start a career more quickly, or just want to pursue something they enjoy doing.

Trade schools prepare students for a future where there’s a need and they are valuable. Skilled employees with quality training continue to be in demand. Trade schools provide an option for people who want to jump-start a technical career. They offer job choices for individuals who might otherwise fall into in low-paying, unskilled work.

Targets for Budget Cuts

Unfortunately, education is always on the chopping block for budget cuts. Vocational programs and trade schools are often hit with these cuts since they are not considered “necessary.” (How many times have you ever used anything that you learned in most of your “necessary” high school classes?). Not everyone excels at typical college prep education, and they need and deserve other options.

In many countries, skilled trades are a valid career option and schools encourage interested students with educational programs and training. In the United States, however, attending college is often the definition of “success”, and many people treat vocational education as less valuable or only for people who can’t handle college. Neither of those things is true. The social status conferred by a college degree may not be worth the cost and time invested when there are so many opportunities in skilled trades. Many people invest money in a college education only to find that they can’t afford it, don’t enjoy it, or want to start a career sooner rather than later.

Hitting trade schools and vocational programs with budget cuts takes away the opportunity for many students to find careers, and also takes away skilled employees that businesses need. And while these programs have their budgets chopped, students struggle to find financial aid to help them afford them.

Our Perspective on Trade Schools

At Imperial Systems, we know that the success of our company depends on the hard work of our team, and nobody would be sitting in the offices if there weren’t skilled people working in the shop to make the products our reputation is built on. How many other companies in the United States rely on people with technical and vocational skills? If you’re reading this, there’s an excellent chance that your company probably does. If you want to make sure there’s a supply of well-trained employees for your company when you need them, the future of trade schools matters to you.

References:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/why-we-need-vocational-education/2012/06/04/gJQA8jHbEV_blog.html

http://www.jff.org/blog/2014/02/26/importance-career-and-technical-education-expanding-opportunities

http://edlab.tc.columbia.edu/index.php?q=node/11936

The Air You Breathe At Work: Ask Questions

by Imperial Systems | Jul 22, 2016 | Uncategorized

Asking Questions About the Air You Breathe at Work

OSHA rules mandate that you have a right to know about any safety hazards that are present in your workplace, including the air you breathe. Most managers, supervisors, and owners certainly want their employees to be safe and want to avoid putting their employees in danger. But there may be workplace hazards they don’t know about. In addition, sometimes an employee’s questions can help them become aware of a situation.

For managers, supervisors, and other bosses, an employee’s concern about a safety issue is an opportunity. That is to say, it’s a chance for you to work on resolving the problem as a team. Consequently, the biggest OSHA fines go to employers who ignore safety issues. But employers who are working in good faith to resolve safety issues may receive recommendations from OSHA. But employers who have shown that they don’t care about fixing safety issues often receive gigantic fines.

Team Communication

The best way to avoid safety issues at work is for employees and bosses to communicate in a cooperative way. This benefits everyone. An employer who listens to and works to resolve the concerns of their workers will find that a reputation for being proactive and concerned about employee safety is good for business.

Since industrial dust and fume control is our business, making sure that workers are breathing clean, safe air is the aspect of safety we’re most concerned with. Many workplaces don’t know they need a dust or fume collector or don’t know when their collector isn’t working efficiently. Employees are sometimes concerned about what they might be breathing or exposed to in the air. A good employer should listen to those concerns and find answers to them.

Workers can be proactive in protecting their health. That’s by learning some important information about the materials they work with and what risks they might involve. For example, workers who are involved in cutting, welding, or otherwise producing fumes from stainless steel should have some awareness of hexavalent chromium. Further, workers who manufacture plastic products need to know about toxic elements like cadmium. Intended as stabilizers, they can also be hazards from the plastic itself. You may be uncertain about what hazards might be in your workplace. If so, you have a right to ask for more information about the air you breathe.

If employees have questions, OSHA has many options for safety training and awareness. An employer may be able to make concerned workers feel empowered and more knowledgeable by answering their questions and making sure they get the training they need. Employers must provide their employees with information about any hazards in their workplace. But sometimes those hazards may not be recognized until an employee asks a question.

Effective Discussions About the Air You Breathe

You have a right to ask your employer if you’re not sure what’s in the air you breathe at work. As an employer, it’s your job to check out your employee’s concerns. Then you can determine whether there is a health hazard to address. Proactively dealing with an employee’s concern shows respect for their needs and also a meaningful interest in employee safety and health.

If you feel that there’s a health risk in your workplace that you need to talk to your supervisor or employer about, you should know that OSHA regulations protect you from punishment or from any kind of retaliation, and your employer probably knows this.

The discussion will be more productive if a few points are kept in mind:

• The discussion is not an accusation. It is a question or issue that you would like more information about or are concerned about.
• The focus should be on making sure you and your coworkers are healthy and safe, because this is good for everyone and for the company.
• You have a right to ask for more information, more training, better protective equipment, or whatever you feel like you need to be safer. Being specific about how the problem could be solved helps people move forward with solutions.
• Be specific about your concerns and ask questions. If you feel like you don’t have enough information, talk to someone who can help you find what you need or look up some general information on the topic.
• Approach the discussion with the attitude that you and your employer have a mutual problem that you can work together to solve.

An example of how you might start a positive conversation:

1) I have a question about the welding fumes in the shop. It seems like some of the stations have a lot of fumes around them sometimes. Is there something we could do about that?

Or:

2) Some of us noticed that even though we do a lot of sweeping and cleaning up, there’s dust getting stuck up in places where we can’t reach it. What’s the safest way for us to deal with that?

Or:

3) I noticed there’s a sign up about (safety hazard), but I’m not sure we all know as much about it as we should. Is that something we could get some more information about?

Good ways for a supervisor or employer to respond to these might be:

1) We can definitely look at those stations and see if something needs to be done about the welding fumes. Are there places in the shop that are the biggest problem?

Or:

2) That’s a good question. We’ll have to figure it out. Does anybody out in the plant have any ideas for how to handle it?

Or:

3) Let me check out the OSHA website and see what they’ve got. I want to make sure you have all the information you need.

Of course, these things only matter if you follow up. Ignoring an employee’s safety concerns isn’t just disrespectful. It’s also a violation of OSHA regulations. And employees who aren’t comfortable talking to their supervisors about safety issues always have the right to contact OSHA for assistance. An employer who retaliates against, punishes, or fires an employee for reporting a safety concern to OSHA can face lawsuits and very large fines. Keeping the lines of communication open benefits everyone if a company can work as a team to identify and solve safety issues.

Wet Dust Collector vs. Dry: Which is Better?

by Imperial Systems | Jul 19, 2016 | Uncategorized

We manufacture dust control systems that use filters (bags or cartridges). So, we obviously have a preference for dry systems.  But what about a wet dust collector?

Wet Dust Collector Pros and Cons

Both wet and dry systems have their advantages and disadvantages. Many of them depend on your process, the type of dust you produce, and your individual needs. Baghouse and cartridge filter dust collectors work safely and efficiently for many years and in many different applications.  However, as the concern of combustible dust issues grows, some companies are considering a wet dust collector. This system “scrubs” the air stream with water for dust control. Read on for some points to think about.

Type of Dust

Industrial wet dust collector design systems are often used where there is a concern about combustible dust.  This is especially true for metal dust, which has a high likelihood of sparks coming into contact with the dust. You can also use dry systems in this application.  But if there is a risk of deflagration, the system should include safety devices. This includes spark traps and fire-retardant filters that will not fuel a fire. Our DeltaMAXX™ nanofiber fire-retardant filters are rated to safely control a deflagration inside the collector.

Wet systems (often called wet scrubbers) can decrease the risk of fire or explosion as well. Water “scrubs” the air traveling through the collector, mixing with dust and forming sludge. This ensures that even if there is an ignition source, there’s no dust cloud or dry dust to ignite. At the same time, you can use dry collectors with proper maintenance and housekeeping safely for many years. They also can collect almost every type of dust imaginable.

Particulate Size

The filters in dry systems are more efficient at collecting and removing very fine particulate. Nanofiber filters are 99.9% efficient in capturing particulate down to .3 microns. Some cutting and grinding produce larger particulate. But applications like welding, plasma and laser cutting, and other processes produce very fine particulate metal fumes. A dry collector system can more efficiently capture these particles. In a wet system, it may be difficult to get very small particulate to settle out of the water to collect them. However, some wet system designs will handle this. Overall, a dry collector is more efficient for smaller particulate, smoke, and welding fumes.

Wed Dust Collector Operation Costs

To make a wet dust collector efficient at removing smaller particles, the system requires higher water pressure and a lot of energy. This increases cost. For larger particles, the energy costs are lower because it’s easier to get these particles to drop out. A dry collector requires compressed air to periodically clean the filters. Adjust the frequency of pulsing to suit individual needs. Filter media like DeltaMAXX nanofiber that pulse-clean more efficiently can further decrease the frequency. Both types of systems require appropriate equipment to maintain the correct airflow.

System Setup

Individual workstations such as downdraft tables often use a wet dust collector. With a central dust collection system, the requirements for ductwork and proper system CFM may be similar for wet and dry types. Because a dry system is more efficient at capturing smaller particles, you can use these where there are multiple locations in a facility producing welding or cutting fumes. Since dry systems are more effective in collecting smoke and fumes, they may be able to operate at a lower CFM.  As a result, this saves energy and decreases the noise produced by the system.

On equipment like a downdraft table where sparks and metal dust are in close proximity, one can use a wet collector. However, many downdraft tables use a dry collector because they produce small particulates, smoke, or fumes. A full assessment of your company’s needs will help determine which type of system would be most beneficial for you. The assessment will consider both safety and long-term operating/maintenance costs.

Maintenance and Disposal

Maintaining a dry dust control system usually means changing the filters regularly and monitoring differential pressure. You must dispose of the filters which contain dust according to the standards for that material. You must dispose of the collected dust as well. Maintaining a wet dust collector system includes making sure the water remains clean, without too much material dissolved in it. Dispose of the contaminated wastewater. A wet collector requires the removal and disposal of sludge. The sludge may also need to be mixed with other materials or dried to make it safer or more easily disposable. Both system types will require proper housekeeping and maintenance of the ductwork and work areas to make sure dust doesn’t accumulate.

Depending on your type of dust, there may be regulations for how your material needs to be disposed of. With a dry system, bags or cartridge filters usually filter the dust into a container for disposal. With a wet system, the accumulated dust settles out of the water and the sludge must be collected and disposed of. Since the sludge will eventually dry, it is often mixed with an inert substance like sand to make it safer to handle. Many waste management facilities have different regulations for dry and wet materials.

Conclusion: Consult a Pro Before Buying a Wet Dust Collector

Contact the professional staff at Imperial Systems today to learn more about solutions to your dust control concerns. Fill out our contact form or give us a call at 800-918-3013.