Chapter IV.  Management

(Appointment of Operations Chiefs of Organic Solvents Work)

Article 19.  The work defined by the Ministry of Labour Ordinance provided for in item (22) of Article 6 of the Enforcement Order shall be the organic solvent work (exclusive of the one specified in k) of item (6) of paragraph 1 of Article 1) other than those which are specified as follows:

(1)   Work in the cases of paragraph 1 of Article 2.

(2)   Work in the cases of paragraph 1 of Article 3.

2.  The employer shall appoint an operations chief of organic solvents work from among those who completed the skill training course for operations chiefs of organic solvents work.

(Duties of Operations Chiefs of Organic Solvents Work)

Article 19-2.   The employer shall have the operations chief of organic solvent work perform the following functions:

(1)   Decide and advise the working procedure for the workers who are to engage in the organic solvent work so that the workers will not be contaminated by the organic solvent or inhale the vapor of the organic solvent.

(2)   Inspect the local exhaust ventilation system, push-pull type ventilation system or general ventilation system at an interval of not exceeding a month.

(3)   Watch how the persanal protective equipment for the workers is being used.

(4)   Make sure that the necessary measures have been taken conforming to the provisions set forth in each item of Article 26, where workers have to engage in organic solvents work in a tank.

(Periodical Voluntary Inspection of Local Exhaust Ventilation Systems)

Article 20.  The local exhaust ventilation system designated by Ministry of Labour Ordinance on the basis of item (8) of paragraph 1, Article 15 of the Enforcement Order (restricted to those relating to the organic solvent work) shall fall under the category of those to be installed conforming to the provisions of Article 5 or 6.

2.  The employer shall conduct a voluntary inspection of the said local exhaust ventilation system periodically for example, at least once every year as to the following check points, provided that this rule shall not apply to a local exhaust ventilation system which has not been used for one year or more.

(1)   Presence of wear, corrosion, dent and other damages in a hood, a duct and a fan, and degrees of such damages (2)    Accumulation of dust in a duct and an exhaust fan (3) Condition of oil supplied to theexhaust fan.

(4)   Presence of loosened joints of a duct

(5)   Functioning of a belt connecting the motor and fan

(6)   Air intake and air exhaust capacities (7)   Other points to be checked for the maintenance of necessary performance besides those check points listed above.

3.  The employer, however, shall voluntarily inspect the unused local exhaust ventilation system set forth in the conditional clause of the preceding paragraph as to the check points listed under the same paragraph before resuming its operation.

(Voluntary Periodical Inspection of Push-Pull Type Ventilationng Systems)

Article 20-2.   The push-pull type ventilation system (restricted to those for organic solvent work) designated Ministry of Labour Ordinance on the basis of item (8) of paragraph 1, Article 15 of the Enforcement Order shall be defined as those to be installed conforming to the provisions of Article 5  or Article 6.

2.  The provisions of paragraphs 2 and 3 of the preceding Article shall be applied with necessary modification to the push-pull type ventilation systems designated in the preceding paragraph. In applying the said provisions, however, the term "exhaust fan" set forth initem (3) ofparagraph 2 of the preceding Article shall be read as "blower and exhaust fan," and the term "airintake" in item (6) of the same paragraph as "air supply and air intake."

(Records)

Article 21.  The employer, upon making the voluntary inspection stipulated in the preceding two Articles, shall keep the records of the following data for at least three years.

(1)   Date of the inspection.

(2)   Method of the inspection.

(3)   Parts of the equipment inspected.

(4)   Results of the inspection.

(5)   Name of the inspector.

(6)   Contents of repair or adjustment made according to the result of inspection, if any.

(Inspection)

Article 22.  Before using the newly installed local exhaust ventilation system designated in paragraph 1 of Article 20, or after overhauling and modifying or repairing the said ventilation system, the employer shall inspect the ventilation system as to the following checkup points:

(1)   Accumulation of dust in a duct and an exhaust fan, for accumulation of dust.

(2)   Presence of loosened joints of a duct

(3)   Air intake and air exhaust capacities.

(4)   Other points necessary for maintaining required performance.

2.  The provision of the preceding paragraph shall be applied with necessary modification to the push-pull type ventilation systems designated in paragraph 1 of Article 20-2, provided that the term "air intake" in item (3) of the preceding paragraph shall be read as "air supply and air intake."

(Repair)

Article 23.  When any abnormality is detected through the voluntary inspection conforming to the provisions of paragraphs 2 and 3 of Article 20 (inclusive of the cases of the application with necessary modification conforming to paragraph 2 of Article 20-2) or the inspection conforming to the preceding article, the employer shall make repairs immediately.

(Notification)

Article 24.  When the employer engages his/her workers in organic solvent work in an indoor workshop and the like, he/she shall post a notice at easily visible location to the workers on the following points:

(1)   Effects of organic solvents on the human body.

(2)   Precautions for handling organic solvents and the like.

(3)   First aid when poisoning is caused by organic solvents.

2.  The contents and posting method of the items stipulated in the preceding paragraph shall be separately provided for by the Minister of Labour.

(Indication of Classification of Organic Solvents and the like)

Article 25.  When the employer has workers engage in organic solvent work in an indoor workshop, he/she shall indicate to the workers the classification of the organic solvents, etc., by posting notice at easily visible location on such classification using colour codes as stipulated below:

(1)   First-class organic solvents, etc.                            Red

(2)   Second-class organic solvents, etc.                      Yellow

(3)   Third-class organic solvents, etc.                           Blue

(Work Inside of a Tank)

Article 26.  When the employer has workers engage in organic solvent work inside of a tank, he/she shall take the following measures:

(1)   Before work commencement, manholes of a tank and all other openings  which are free from the influx of organic solvents, etc., should be open.

(2)   When the body of a worker is critically contaminated by organic solvents, etc., and at the end of work, the worker shall be allowed to thoroughly wash his/her body and eliminate the contamination.

(3)   Equipment or tools for immediately rescuing workers inside of a tank when any accident occurs shall be prepared in a ready-to-use status.

(4)   In addition to the measures specified above, the employer shall take the following measures before work commencement on a tank which has once contained organic solvents, etc.:

a) Discharge organic solvents, etc., from the tank and prevent the influx of organic solvents, etc., into it from all the pipings connected toit.

b) Wash the inside walls of the tank with water, steam or the like, and discharge the water, steam or the like used for washing out of the tank.

c) Feed or exhaust air equivalent to three times the volume of the tank or more, or fill the tank with water and then discharge the water fromit.

(Emergency Evacuation at Occurrence of Accident)

Article 27.  When any one of the accidents as are described hereunder has occurred while the workers are engaging in  organic solvent work in a tank or the like, and there is the fear of poisoning by organic solvent, the employer shall immediately have the workers discontinue their work and evacuate them from the site of the accident.

(1)   Substantial decline or loss of the normal function of the local exhaust ventilation system, push-pull type ventilation system or general ventilation system installed in the site of organic solvent work due to system trouble, etc.

(2)   Occurrence of accident so as to cause the site of the work to be contaminated badly by organic solvents, etc.

2.  Should any of the accidents such as those described in the preceding paragraph occur and the work discontinue, the employer shall keep the workers away from the site of accident until the contamination due to the organic solvent, etc., is removed, except when the workers are to be engaged in rescue work or work for preventing damage due to the accident by a method in which the safety of the workers is guaranteed.