How to Store Chemicals in the Workplace

Storing any sort of chemical requires an extreme level of care and the correct equipment. Safely storing hazardous chemicals such as acid, petroleum, highly flammable substances and pesticides and agrochemicals should be arguably the top priority for keeping people working in the area safe. If a substance such as acid comes into contact with either a piece of equipment or even with a person, it can cause serious damage and even lead to further health concerns. That is why it is vital to have some control measures in place to limit exposure to these chemicals. COSHH (Control of Substances Hazardous to Health) is one of the best preventive measures to put in place. As is stated on the Health and Safety Executive website, “The objective of COSHH is to prevent, or to adequately control, exposure to substances hazardous to health, so as to prevent ill health”. To read more here is a link to the Health and Safety Executive website providing guidance and advice on ‘Control measures to prevent or limit exposure to hazardous substances’. In this blog post, we here at WorXmart want to explain and give some helpful advice on how to store chemicals in the workplace with different COSHH product, some of which are available on our website ready to purchase.

COSHH products can vary from local exhaust ventilation systems to storage cabinets, waste disposal cans and units and even sump flooring and spill trays. First, we will focus on COSHH storage cabinets. The standard storage unit that is versatile enough to store a variety of dangerous and or harmful chemicals. The unit can store liquids such as acid and flammable liquids and is available in multiple different sizes and dimensions to suit whatever needs and requirements you have in your workplace. With 25mm increments acting as spill trays, spillages can be contained to further secure how the chemicals can be stored. Being able to store these chemicals in such a unit ensure that employees are working in a safe environment, lessening the risks of contamination, and coming into contact with these potentially harmful chemicals. The downside of such a unit is that even though it can store a variety of harmful chemicals with powder coated yellow with Germ Guard Active Technology paint, it is not specially designed for specific types of chemicals that might have different requirements for safe storage. Although the same point can be applied to the Heavy Duty Hazardous Substance Storage Cupboards, manufactured from 0.9mm steel sheet and with the unit being manufactured entirely from metal, the spread and passage of flames can be contained, preventing the unit from melting and the chemicals inside from combusting due to the heat.

Storing specific harmful chemicals might involve using more specific items of COSHH storage. For example, storing acid might require storing the chemicals inside of Acid Storage Cabinets (ASC Range). Like the Heavy Duty Hazardous Substance Storage Cupboard been designed and manufactured to with sheet steel to comply with Flammable Liquid Storage Regulations (1972) to protect from fire penetration and distortion. However, to protect from acidic liquids being spilt, the unit comes powder coated which are impervious to most acids. Acid can be extremely harmful due to its corrosive nature, especially when coming into contact with a person’s skin or eyes, which is why there is a need for specifically designed COSHH storage for acid

Regarding petroleum, oils and general chemical waste, there are a myriad of different products and units that can be used for these purposes. With petroleum being an extremely flammable and combustible substance, the COSHH storage unit must comply with each of the regulations in place for petroleum storage. The Petroleum Storage Chests are totally compliant with both the Petroleum Consolidation Act (1928) and with the standards and requirements outlaid by the Association for Petroleum and Explosives Administration. The unit includes sump units to catch any interior spillages but is also fully welded to ensure there are no leaks and that exterior factors cannot enter the unit to cause any sort of combustion or disturbance of the chemicals. When it comes to ensuring there are no chemical leaks or waste, Sump Flooring and Oily Waste Cans can be used for containing contaminations from drum containers and then for disposing of chemical soaked rags to limit any contamination, leaks or damages.

Containing and storing chemicals in the workplace is of extreme importance as these chemicals can be extremely harmful or damaging to either equipment or even people in said workplace. Hopefully some of the solutions and explanation given in this blog post can help make your workplace a safer environment.

We hope you found this article both useful and informative. For more information on any storage and shelving products available on the WorXmart catalogue or to place an order, give our team a call on 0333 234 2344, or visit our website at worxmart.co.uk.