Hazardous spill kits provide an effective, viable solution to enable you to contain and clean up unknown chemical spills. They contain absorbents that are specially treated to absorb acids, caustics and other oil- and water-based liquids, even those with high concentrations like 98% sulphuric acid and 30% sodium hydroxide. As well as these types of liquids they also prove effective in situations where the identity of the spilt chemical is unknown.
A hazardous spill kit contains everything that is needed to safely and efficiently deal with spillages of chemicals and acids. This includes absorbents, gloves and disposal bags. Though you may think that you could save money by buying these items separately, doing so is not a good idea. If you buy these items individually from, say, a supermarket, they will not be suited to cleaning up chemicals and acids. You are actually putting your employees at more risk if you do this.
Even if you are not using highly toxic materials in the workplace, it is advisable to still use hazardous spill kits. It really is a risk not worth taking, as by not having appropriate clean up kits available you are endangering your employees and risking large fines. As always with workplace health and safety, it is better to be safe than sorry. In addition to actually buying the spill kits, you are also responsible for making sure that employees know where they are and how to use them. You will have to train them so that they know about the different types of spillages and how to deal with them.
Training that you give employees in relation to how to deal with spillages of chemicals and acids should be organized and thorough. Simply telling an existing employee to spend ten minutes explaining the procedure to a new employee will not suffice. You should designate an experienced member of staff to conduct the training for all new employees and then test the employees afterwards. Training should not be a one off event either. At least once a year you should run refresher courses to ensure that everyone knows what to do in the event of hazardous materials being spilt.
Purchasing hazardous spill kits that are color coded is advisable so that they are easily identifiable in an emergency. If you need to have a range of different spill kits because you deal with a wide range of chemicals and acids then be sure to use an appropriate coding system. This is something that you should put some serious thought into and not just assume that employee will be able to ‘work it out’ when the time comes.
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