More Work Places Offering Employees Personal Protection Kits |
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The ongoing "War on Terror" has impacted corporate security and workforces across the country. Companies that never thought about chemical and biological attacks are now stocking up on personal protection equipment for their staff and training their security teams to deal with chemical and biological attacks. Mike Reimer and John Molenda of Safety Solutions, Inc. in Boyton Beach, Florida, see more inquiries from companies seeking personal protection kits for staff and employees."There is definitely an increase in inquiries from the security standpoint, all referencing a chemical or biological attack post 9-11," says Molenda. Safety Solutions, Inc., has a staff of over 100 subject matter experts with regards to emergency response, hazard mitigation, chemistry, safety engineering, construction, laws and standards, technology, industrial hygiene, grant writing as well as many other fields. This consultation allows for subject matter experts to assist with many different roles improving existing operations. It provides 24-hour Hazardous Materials Emergency Response; 24-hour Biological Testing / Clean up / Response; Expert witnessing, Subject Matter Expert Consultation; Counter-Terrorism Response; Emergency Response Team Development and Facilitation; Domestic Preparedness and vulnerability studies. The company began in 1996 and now has annual sales in excess of $3 million. "The training requests now come in two forms - those that are required to perform training under mandates and those that lack the expertise and want to begin," says Molenda. Many police and fire entities, Molenda reports, are now ordering personal protection kits for special events [Nascar, fireworks, large crowds, sporting events, etc.]. Now there are requests for terrorism training for employees, security, and even requests for training to deal with attacks initiated by disgruntled employees. Reimer and Molenda's company gained international fame in 2003, when Reimer jotted a million dollar idea on a napkin for a cost effective way to warn fireman, and other emergency responders about hazardous chemicals. He took the napkin to the National Technology Transfer Center at Wheeling Jesuit University. Thanks to the NTTC's Emergency Response Technology Program, a $19 strip of vinyl and paper -- the HazMat Smart-Strip -- that changes colors when exposed to nerve gas, cyanide and other chemicals may protect police, firefighters and others who rush unprotected into the heart of a disaster. Most emergency responders currently rely on a combination of luck and a keen sense of smell to warn them of exposure to dangerous chemicals. The Smart-Strip, inspired by decades-old military technology is in production at a West Virginia print shop, thanks to technology transfer between the federal government and the commercial sector. The baseball card-sized Smart-Strip can detect chlorine, pH, fluoride, nerve agents, oxidizers, arsenic, sulfides and cyanide in liquid or aerosol form. A change in color in any of the eight categories alerts emergency crews to get additional gear, decontaminate or evacuate. Fire departments, law enforcement officers, branches of the military, Olympic Committees, consumers, and even towns near chemical plants have ordered thousands. Mike got the idea after years of watching his t colleagues tape pieces of pH paper and a military litmus paper called M-8 to their uniforms. M-8 and a newer version, M-9, detect nerve and blister agents, but not chemical vapors. For decades, soldiers have wrapped the papers around their arms, wrists and ankles to warn when they brush up against a liquid nerve agent. The Smart-Strip puts all of them on one paper. The M-8 paper has undergone a redesign thanks to Reimer, and some of the world's militaries are upgrading their troops' abilities to detect hazardous chemicals. Instead of paper taped to their uniforms, military units use a baseball card-sized device that clips to their uniforms. Reimer reports that hospitals, fire rescue agencies, and military agencies are ordering the Smart M-8. Safety Solutions commercialized the Bio-Containment System, an easy-to-use, self-contained kit containing all the equipment and procedures necessary for proper sample collection and transportation. The system is the brainchild of other HazMat technicians for a kit that is as simple as possible for a responder to use at the scene to collect, package, decontaminate and send for testing a sample of a potential biological agent. The firm is now offering two new Personal Protection Kits for emergency responders and others who would encounter hazardous materials. Two of the kits are PPE Kits [Tychem F and Tychem SL]. They offer two different levels of protection with F being the higher level. The kits both come in a backpack with the following inventory:Tychem F:
Tychem SL:
Most of the time the kits are stored in a location readily accessible. On occasion the kits are worn [backpack style] for use when responders are on foot [events, details, large crowds, high profile functions, etc.]. Law enforcement, military, fire-rescue, HazMat, EMS, hospitals, corporations, and many other entities use the kit. "An important consideration when purchasing kits is the tape provided. The tape should be a chemical resistant type tape, not duct tape offered by many other vendors to cut corners on pricing," says Molenda. For more information, contact Mike Reimer or John Molenda at 561-738.7086 or 866-248-1050, or via e-mail at mreimer @ safetysolutions.us or jmolenda @ safetysolutions.us. The company has two websites: www.safetysolutions.us or www.smart-strip.com For additional information, or to arrange interviews, contact Steven Infanti of the NTTC Public Affairs Office at 304-243-2308 or sinfanti @ nttc.edu.
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Copyright 2004 AScribe Inc. AScribe Newswire March 23, 2004 Tuesday |
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