Funding Scheme 2002-2003

Smaller firms often have inadequate knowledge and awareness of the hazards that arise from the handling, storage and transport of dangerous chemicals. These are commonly used as raw material during production processes or for secondary purposes such as lubricating or cleaning. So the team set out to alert small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), especially in the craft industries, to the occupational safety and health (OSH) issues involved in their production and use, and to promote to employers and employees the idea of a safe and healthy workplace.

A questionnaire was developed by OSH experts and was distributed to a large number of small firms through their associations. Data obtained from the responses was supplemented by visits and interviews with managers and staff. The results were analysed to identify shortcomings in how they produced and used dangerous chemicals.

Who organised this project?

Hellenic Institute for Occupational Health and Safety

Hellenic Institute for Occupational Health and Safety

Type of organisation

Independent non-profit institution

Sector

General

Activity

Research
Training

Outputs

Questionnaires
Checklists
Support material

Total budget: € 84,798

Agency support: € 49,861

What was it called?

Hazardous chemical substances

What was the project about?

The project was about raising the level of knowledge and awareness of hazardous chemicals among SMEs. Incorrect use of chemicals in the workplace routinely causes injury and damage to health. As a result a great deal of attention has been paid in recent years to insuring that information on all types of hazardous chemicals is available and that certain procedures have to be followed when dealing with them. Nevertheless it is clear that the level of understanding of the issues among small businesses in general is low. The team analysed questionnaires, visited sites, produced chemical checklists and ran seminars on all aspects of dealing with chemicals.

What did they do?

They began by developing a user-friendly questionnaire that could be answered easily and briefly by safety engineers in each industry. These were distributed to about 320 SMEs by the project holders and through Greek labour unions and the Federation of Greek Industries. The team visited sites, interviewed staff and in many cases assessed themselves how hazardous agents were managed and used in the workplace. They collected some 820 questionnaires, each one referring to a specific chemical substance. These provided valuable data about the handling of chemicals in Greek industries and contributed to the production of chemical checklists. The checklists, included in a booklet, were sent to all participating SMEs and posted on the project holder’s website.

The project team held four seminars, in Ioannina, Athens, Tripoli and Thessaloniki respectively. These lasted about six hours each and covered a wide range of subjects including: European and international legislation and regulations, occupational risk assessment, threshold limit values, transport, storage and handling of hazardous chemicals, warning signs and labelling, and methodology for measuring various chemical agents. They also presented the data originating from the collected questionnaires. About 1,000 people attended these seminars and were given support materials.

What was produced?

The questionnaire consisted of 20 questions related to the information contained in a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS). These are usually provided by the suppliers of chemical products on delivery. The questionnaire asks whether an MSDS contains all the appropriate information, essential for the safe handling, storing and transporting of the respective chemical agent.

They also produced a checklist, suitable for exploring chemical hazards at the workplace. This consisted of seven separate multiple-choice checklists, each one corresponding to a specific group of chemical substances categorised as toxic, flammable, explosive, corrosive, oxidising, hazardous to the environment and harmful/irritating.

Each had eight parts: information appearing on the product label, physical and chemical properties, handling, storing, transporting, dealing with leaks, special dangers and properties and first aid measures in case of exposure. All seven checklists were incorporated in a single 20-page booklet including a table outlining the meanings of different ‘risk phrases’ and ‘safety phrases’ (giving standard information on hazards and safety precautions), illustrations of hazard symbols and an example of a product label. The checklists were sent to all participating SMEs and published along with the questionnaires on the website.

Training material including the checklists and lecture notes was produced for the four seminars. The project’s products are available through the Institute’s website ( www.elinyae.gr new window ).