1

Basic Principles of Laboratory Safety and Waste management

Presenter : Sonam Bansal

Head - Nestlé Quality Assurance Centre Moga

Nestlé India Limited

p. 2

Contents of Training Module

Chapter Chapter Title1 INTRODUCTION

2 ACCESS TO LABORATORY AND EMERGENCY EXITS

3 PERSONAL PROTECTIVE CLOTHING AND EQUIPMENT

4 GOOD WORKING PRACTICES

5 MAINTENANCE OF LABORATORY EQUIPMENT

6 WORKING WITH HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES

7 STORAGE OF CHEMICALS

8 WORKING WITH FLAMMABLE SOLVENTS

9 GAS CYLINDERS

10 FIRE PRECAUTIONS

11 EMERGENCY PROCEDURES

12 FIRST AID

13 ACCIDENT FOLLOW-UP

14 SAFETY MANUAL

15 SAFETY TRAINING

16 MANAGEMENT OF LABORATORY SAFETY AND RESPONSIBILITIES

17 WASTE MANAGEMENT

Why does laboratory safety matter ?

Safe working protects:

• You

• Other lab workers

• Cleaning staff

• Visitors

• Your work

p. 3

2 - ACCESS TO LABORATORY AND EMERGENCY EXITS

p. 4

Must be restricted to authorized persons

only.

A plan of the laboratory area must be available.

Each lab must have clearly designated emergency exits.

Access to Laboratory Areas

p. 5

Emergency exits must:

p. 6

Be clearly marked &

well lit, even during

power failure.

Be kept clear at all

times

Never be locked

Open outwards, i.e. in the

direction of escape

Be designed to only

open from the inside.

3 - PERSONAL PROTECTIVE CLOTHING AND EQUIPMENT

p. 7

Must all wear adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) when:

- present in rooms where reagents, equipment & samples are stored

- working in rooms where analytical work is done.

Safe dress within the laboratory area (PPE)

p. 8

Laboratory staff

Cleaning staff

Visitors

9

Closed shoes with good grip soles - no open shoes, high heels, flip flops, etc

Laboratory coat, clean and in good condition

Safety eye goggles

Suitable gloves appropriate for the task

Rubber or PVC aprons when handling hazardous chemicals

• Laboratory coats used in the laboratory areas must not be worn to the canteen.

Use appropriate eye, skin & hand protection

p. 9

Tie back long hair & restrain loose clothing.

Jewelry must not be worn in the lab

•(unless for special cultural/religious reasons, with permission of laboratory manager/safety officer, and must not provide any potential safety hazards e.g. loose chains or necklaces, dangling ear rings).

Use appropriate eye, skin & hand protection -2

p. 10

SCOPE

FOOD OK OK

BIOSAFETY OK OK (LABO P1, P2, P3)

RADIOACTIVITY OK

CHEMICALS OK OK

ACIDS OK OK

Material Thin nitrile (0.1 mm)

Thick nitrile (0.15 mm)

Neoprene (0.13 mm)

PE laminated film (0.06 mm)

Which Gloves to use for which task ?

p. 11

Rating Category

Best

Useable

Not useable

Safety Showers

Eye-wash stations

Must be:

• Installed close to the laboratory area

• correctly maintained

• readily accessible for all staff

For an Emergency !

p. 12

4 - GOOD WORKING PRACTICES

13p. 13

Safe handling of chemicals & equipment.

Safe working practices in the Microbiology lab, especially if working with pathogens.

Information readily available about hazardous

chemicals – Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDA).

Introduction - BASICS

p. 14

Good Housekeeping

p. 15

Keep your workplace tidy.

Clear up waste.

Make sure everything is safe before you leave your work area unattended.

A tidy laboratory avoids accidents for everyone.

Apply principles of 5S wherever possible.

The lab must be kept neat, clean & free of materials that are not pertinent to your work

Rules about Smoking, Eating and Drinking.

p. 16

Smoking is not allowed anywhere in the laboratory building

Eating & drinking must be restricted to designated areas,

never on a workbench.

Food & drink for consumption must not be placed in refrigerators

intended for chemicals.

Never suck pens or chew pencils

Always wash your hands before you leave and

especially before eating

17

Hygiene

Mouth Pipetting – is forbidden in all laboratories, including microbiology labs

Mouth Pipetting

Use a pipettor or safety bulb

p. 18

X

Chipped, cracked or broken

glassware may be dangerous.

It must not be used in the lab.

It must either be repaired or discarded.

Glassware

p. 19

Use ear plugs if grinder / mill exceeds specified noise levels

Wear dust masks if grinding creates a lot of dust.

Sample Grinding

p. 20

Use fume hoods correctly

•Set sash at correct working height

•Check that fume hood delivers correct air velocity (measured in m/s)

•Ensure fume hoods maintained correctly (service contract with supplier)

p. 21

5 - MAINTENANCE OF LABORATORY EQUIPMENT

p. 22

•Correctly installed according to manufacturers instructions

•Safe-to-operate

•Well maintained, according to a regular maintenance schedule

Equipment used within laboratories must be:

p. 23

The electrical safety of all equipment, including fume

hoods, must be checked regularly according to a defined

schedule

All equipment working under pressure or vacuum must be

regularly checked for any defects (cracks in glass,

tubing,....) leaks etc.

Maintenance

Results of a fire in a fume hood, caused by

faulty electrical cables

p. 24

For each piece of equipment written instructions for its

operation and maintenance must be readily available

A list of authorised and qualified users must be

available for each major item of equipment.

Documentation

p. 25

6 - WORKING WITH HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES

p. 26

Handling Hazardous substances

Includes Carcinogens, Toxic, Corrosive Chemicals (as well as those may provoke fire or explosions) and microbial cultures.

p. 27

Disposal of hazardous

chemicals according to local regulations

Special precautions must be taken when handling solvents, acids, alkalis, toxic chemicals. Check

the warning symbols on the

label.

Minimize any chemical hazards by good ventilation & using fume-hoods

Minimize any microbiological hazards by good

working practices and use of laminar

flow /biosafetycabinets

Special precautions must be taken when handling cultures of bacterial pathogens

7 – STORAGE OF CHEMICALS

28

Correct Storage of Chemicals

Solvents must be stored in

well-ventilated cabinets or explosion

proof-cabinets.

Highly toxic & carcinogenic

chemicals (e.g. cyanide) must be kept under lock and key.

Flammable chemical

storage area should be kept

cool, away from sources

of ignition, and well-

ventilated.

Do not store incompatible

chemicals together.

Some examples are shown below:

Chemical Incompatible with

Acetic acid Nitric acid, perchloric acid, peroxides, permanganates

Ammonia Chlorine, iodine, bromine, hydrogen fluoride, calcium hypochlorite

Solvents Hydrogen peroxide, Nitric acid, Oxidizing materials

Sulfuric acid Nitric acid

p. 29

Rules for Storage of Chemicals

Chemicals/solvents storage cupboards must be used with

suitable chemicals hazard warning labels on door.

• Only the smallest quantities

• Stored in their original containers

• Keep away from food & samples to be analysed

• Chemicals past their expiry date must be disposed of

• Maintain an up-to-date inventory of all purchased reagents and chemicals

p. 30

8 – WORKING WITH FLAMMABLE SOLVENTS

p. 31

Flammable solvents

Hazards

The vapours of some volatile

solvents, notably diethyl ether,

petroleum ether form explosive

mixtures with air

Any source of ignition may produce an explosion

A hot plate operating at > 130

°C is a source of ignition

p. 32

Precautions

Designated areas, with no

source of ignition.

Bunsen burners must not be used

when working with solvents

Good ventilation.

9 - GAS CYLINDERS

p. 33

Correct use of Gas Cylinders

Gas cylinders used in the lab are under high pressure

Examples: air, nitrogen, helium, hydrogen, argon.

p. 34

•Never use without formal training

•Minimise the number in a laboratory

•Store externally wherever possible

Cylinders should be stored, wherever

possible, outside the laboratory building under lock and key

•Ensure that they are chained when in use

•Move only with a cylinder trolley

•Wear appropriate boots.

Cylinders are heavy and can do serious damage to you if

they fall

Use regulators & control equipment suitable for the gas

concerned

10 – FIRE PRECAUTIONS

p. 35

Fire precautions

Fire alarms must be installed & tested regularly.

Fire (smoke) detectors must be installed & tested regularly.

The lab must be equipped with fire extinguishers which are checked regularly (annually).

Fire blankets must be visible & available in areas where inflammable solvents are handled.

Fire Drill – regular practice of fire drill.

p. 36

11 – EMERGENCY PROCEDURES

p. 37

Emergency Procedures must be set up for:

Various types of accidents

Spillage of hazardous substances

Fires

Emergency telephone numbers, in case of accidents or fire, must be clearly visible.

p. 38

12 – FIRST AID

p. 39

First aid

At least 2 of the laboratory staff must have received specific training in first

aid.

At least one trained first aider must always be available on site

A readily accessible, well maintained, first-aid cabinet must be available.

p. 40

13 – ACCIDENT REPORTING AND FOLLOW-UP

p. 41

Accident Reporting and follow-up

Follow-up:

Follow-up must include a root cause analysis of the accident, which will often allow weaknesses in training, procedure or

safety equipment to be recognized & corrected.

Even a small accident may point to the risk of a more serious accidents that may have been overlooked.

All accidents however minor or unimportant they may seem, must be reported & recorded.

It may also be useful to report near misses.

p. 42

p. 43

14 - SAFETY MANUAL

p. 44

All safety precautions and procedures must be collated in a Safety Manual.

Training and training records

Safety Equipment

Storage conditions for chemicals

Safe handling

Use and disposal of chemicals

Disposal of materials used in the microbiology laboratory

Emergency procedures

Documentation must include instructions on the following points:

p. 45

15 - SAFETY TRAINING

Health and safety

legislation and

respons-ibilities of employees

and company

Causes & Prevention

of fires,

Use of fire exting-uishers

Evacuation of building

and emergency

exits

First aid arrange-ments

Actions to take in the event of

spillages in the

laboratory.

Specific hazards &

risks associated with their

work activities.

Use of personal

protective equipment

(closed shoes, lab coats, eye goggles, aprons, masks,

gloves …)

Correct use of fume

hoods and weighing/ biosafety cabinets

Scope of training

All laboratory staff must receive adequate safety trainingwhich includes at least:

p. 46

• Safety training must be repeated annually.

• Records of training must be kept for each member of staff

Training records

p. 47

When in doubt – Ask !!

Do not carry out a new or unfamiliar procedure until you have been fully trained & understand the precautions necessary for safe working

p. 48

DO NOT GUESS OR ASSUME !

p. 49

16 - MANAGEMENT OF LABORATORY SAFETY AND REPONSIBILITIES

Responsibilities of Management

Laboratory head must ensure

that:

All personnel are familiar with the contents of the

laboratory safety manual

All personnel comply with all

specified precautions

p. 50

Responsibilities of the employee.

p. 51

To cooperate with other employees to prevent accidents

To study the safety

manual and all safety practices governing their work

To apply the principles of

accident prevention

in their daily work and use proper safety devices

To apply all PPE rules

(wearing lab coats, safety

googles, closed

shoes, etc…)

To maintain their

workplace in safe

condition

To maintain equipment

in good condition

To attend safety

meeting and offer

constructive suggestions

To report any health

problems to their

laboratory manager.

17 – Waste management

52p. 52

Waste management : Microbiological

53

•Microbiological waste must be decontaminated before disposal, (≥121°C for ≥20 min and in accordance with the performance studies/cycle validation) and sent for incineration to local authorized body (external party)

Disposal of Waste Materials

Part of your risk assessment will be to determine how to dispose of waste laboratory materials safely:

p. 54

•Solvents and oils must be segregated into the correct waste bottle or drum •Chlorinated solvents separated from non-chlorinated solvents

•Hazardous chemicals must not be disposed of by pouring them down the sink or by placing them in dust bins.•Local regulation must be followed for disposal of solvent / chemical waste e.g. sand pit or with authorized vendor

Disposal of Waste Materials

Part of your risk assessment will be to determine how to dispose of waste laboratory materials safely:

p. 55

• Metal Sharp waste (needles, bottle caps etc.) is stored in a

resistant box and disposed off as per local regulation

• Broken Glass collected in the waste bag meant

for broken glass.

• Empty reagent bottles collected in trolley

• Metal waste (Instrument small parts, SCM cups

etc.) are collected separately and disposed off

as per local regulation

Examples of Bad Practices

p. 56

Did you identify the problems?

p. 57

Many types of chemicals, solvents, acids, bases, gas cylinders, sprays, toxic compounds all stored together

What’s wrong here?

Incompatible

chemicals

stored

together

Have you identified them all?

Fume hood

sash too

high

Glass

chemical

containers

stored on

floor

Material

stacked in

front of fire

extinguisher

What’s wrong here?

Fume hood sash

too high

Food not allowed

in the lab

No eyewear

No lab

coat

Have you identified them all?

No eyewear

Open-toed shoes

Possible cross contamination

of cell phone

Any Questions?

p. 62