Document XkQ04kQ7Owbj36womzryMMjB

breakers, using wrong fuses, bypassing fuses, and installing equipment without authoriza tion Electrical installations and all electrical equipment should be periodically inspected and tested to assure continued satisfactory performance and to detect deficiencies Smoking Carelessly discarded cigarettes, pipe em bers, and cigars are a major source of fire Although it might be desirable to eliminate smoking completely in a plant, such a rule is difficult to enforce It is better to allow smok ing at specified times and in a safe place where supervision can be maintained than to have it done surreptitiously in out-of-theway places Smoking shofild be prohibited in wood working shops, textile mills, flour mills, grain elevators, and places where flammable liq uids or combustible products are manufac tured, stored, or used Even m these opera tions, enclosed or removed areas can be set aside to allow workmen to satisfy their smoking needs in a safe manner "No smoking" areas should be marked with conspicuous signs and their exclusive use ngidlv enforced everyone, including super visors and visitors, should adhere to the reg ulation It mav be necessary to use more than signs to draw attention to the "no smok ing" areas Lines drawn on the floor or illu minated barriers placed around areas or proc esses have been effective In manv high-hazard occupancies, smoking is permitted in special fire-safe rooms or during periods when there is no exposure In such cases, instructions or warning signs to that effect should be posted Where the exposure is severe, emplovees should even be prohibited from carrying matches, lighters, and sometimes smoking material of any kind into the danger areas In any case, the use of "safety" matches should be encouraged, and smoking should be allowed only in fire-safe areas Where carrying matches into the plant is prohibited, special lighters should be provided in smok ing rooms Even in plants where there is little fire hazard, employees should be encouraged to discard matches and smoking materials in a safe container rathei than on the floor This practice will discourage employees from throwing matches and cigarettes into places which may not be free of hazards Fnction Excessive heat generated by friction causes a very high percentage of industrial fires. A program of preventive maintenance on plant machinery can avert fires resulting from in adequate lubrication, misaligned bearings, and broken or bent equipment Fires frequently result from overheated power transmission bearings and shafting in buildings where dust and lint accumulate, such as gram elevators, cereal, textile, and woodworking mills, and plastic and metal working plants Frequent inspection should be made to see that bearings are kept well oiled and do not run hot Accumulation of flammable dust or lint on them should be held to a minimum Drip pans should be provided beneath bearings and should be cleaned frequently to prevent oil from dripping to the floor or on combustible material below Oil holes of bearings should be kept covered to prevent dust and gritty substances from entering the bearings to cause overheating Frictional heat sufficient to cause ignition can result from the jamming of process ma terial during production Another common problem, frequently overlooked, is the ten sion adjustment on belt-driven machinery If the belt is too tight or too loose, excessive fnction can cause serious overheating Foreign objects or tramp metal Eveiy precaution should be taken to keep foreign objects which might strike sparks from entering machines or processes where there are flammable dusts, gases, or vapors or combustible material such as cotton lint or metal powder Screens or magnetic sepa rators are commonly used for this puipose, as in textile mills, grain elevators, and other operations which have explosive mixtures of dusts Open flames Although open flames are probably the most obvious source of ignition for ordinary combustibles, and one would think they could be most easily avoided, they still account for a large percentage of industrial fires Heating 1057