Emergency Eye Wash Station and ANSI Requirements

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Providing a safe and well protected working environment for staff is a key responsibility of any business, and there are numerous legal requirements that must be taken into consideration with regard to safety equipment. Ensuring that all regulations are kept to is important in minimizing any exposure to claims of negligence, so whenever you purchase any safety equipment such as an emergency eye wash station, its compliance with the relevant laws must be checked and confirmed.

Most of the safety standards that a business should adhere to are set out by ANSI – the American National Standards Institute. This not for profit organization was set up in 1918 in order to promote business competitiveness in an ethical and understanding way, so that quality of life for staff was improved at the same time as profitability. One of the key areas where ANSI has had an impact is in pushing through a number of requirements for employers, such as the responsibility of having an emergency eye wash station on hand in dangerous environments in order to protect staff in the event of an accident,

The ANSI requirements for emergency eye wash stations are straightforward, and designed to make their use as efficient as possible, as well as ensuring that their use is properly monitored. They state that the emergency eye wash station must be within a 10 second walk of wherever the hazard is, and that they are present in all areas where caustic or hazardous substances such as acid, solvents and other chemicals are present. The location of the unit should be clearly marked with an easily visible sign, and access should be simple.

In terms of the actual operation of the emergency eye wash station, the unit needs to be capable of delivering a continuous flow of eyewash at a rate of 0.4 gallons per minute for a minimum of 15 minutes and be able to be started in one second by an injured person. The injured person must be able to operate the device “hands free” so that they are able to hold both of their eyes open as they flush out their eyes using the emergency eye wash station.

With both fixed and portable emergency eye wash stations available, choosing the right one can be a difficult issue, as both have their own specific advantages and disadvantages. Plumbed in systems need to be regularly checked, and weekly cleaning must take place in order to prevent bacteria that could potentially infect the eyes of an injured person from developing.

In large, modern environments, where there is a heightened risk of exposure to harmful materials, having plumbed in emergency eye wash stations installed at the time of building is normal. This means that the system can be tailored to the exact nature of the building, and provide the maximum amount of protection for staff. The stations can be enhanced with showers if necessary in order to provide the option to flush the entire body if contamination has occurred.

With portable units, the emergency eye wash station can simply be moved from one location to another as required. This reduces the initial outlay on a fully installed system, and is extremely convenient, although it is vitally important that the units are properly placed and accessible to staff as laid out in the ANSI guidelines.

Most emergency eye wash stations use a mixture of concentrated eyewash and water which are mixed together before being used. The benefits of this are in a reduced risk of infection developing after the injury. The maintenance schedule of all emergency eye wash stations should include appropriate checks of the cleanliness of the water supply, and the expiry date of any solutions used.

The ANSI requirements regarding the use and situation of emergency eye wash stations have been set out in regulation number ANSI Z358.1-2004, which includes full details of both the location and maintenance schedules of both portable and plumbed in versions.