Every day, at every hour, dust surrounds you. Whether you are on a worksite, a road, in a tunnel, an office, school, or hospital, harmful dust can be lurking everywhere.
Dust has long been a persistent issue, particularly in industries like mining, quarrying, extraction, and commerce.
Whether it originates from transfer points, roads, mining activities, quarrying, or manufacturing processes, it poses a genuine health hazard to all workers.
The primary offender in this scenario is silica, specifically respirable crystalline silica (RCS), released during activities like grinding, crushing, sawing, and drilling of silica-containing materials.
RCS can inflict permanent damage to lung tissue, potentially causing severe respiratory conditions such as silicosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, kidney disease, and lung cancer.
Even work uniforms, designed to safeguard the health of staff, can become harmful if not cleaned effectively.
One aspect of dust control that often goes unnoticed is the dusty clothing of workers. While work uniforms are intended for the well-being and protection of staff, when contaminated, they become a continual source of dust until properly cleaned, causing a tenfold increase in staff dust exposure.
Moreover, dust from these garments can be transferred to clean areas, including offices, personal vehicles, and homes, thereby extending the risk of exposure to others.
Commonly used cleaning methods, such as vacuuming or compressed air, are not only risky but also slow, inefficient, and often merely relocate dust rather than eliminating it.
Enter Mideco, an Australian-owned engineering company, offering a solution to this predicament with its flagship product – the Bat Booth.
Mideco’s Bat Booth is a personnel dust extraction device that employs the design principles of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
It can eliminate up to 80 per cent of dust in just 10 seconds using only compressed air. Unlike simply blowing dust off, it captures and contains it with the assistance of powerful filters that are effective even against the tiniest dust particles.
The Bat Booth standard is the basic model, using simple yet effective technology to rid clothing of accumulated dust in a mere 10 seconds.
Equipped with powerful HEPA (high-efficiency particulate absorbing) filters that meet the latest international standards, these filters are currently the most efficient commercially available.
One of the most valuable features of the Bat Booth is its ability to be used frequently throughout the day without causing any work disruptions, thanks to its straightforward installation and assembly, allowing it to be operational almost immediately.
The Bat Booth can be installed at any site, whether indoors or outdoors. Building on the success of the Bat Booth standard, Mideco introduced the Bat Booth premium.
This premium version combines straightforward de-dusting with body temperature monitoring, smart integrated technology, and real-time reporting. It is a smarter, sleeker, simpler, and more effective iteration of the standard model.
It features a medically calibrated infrared sensor that measures a person’s body temperature, capable of detecting early signs of heat stress. The control panel within the booth changes colour and provides instructions based on the temperature, all in less than half a second.
Holcim Australia, a prominent supplier of aggregates, ready-mix concrete, and concrete pipe products, was among the first to recognise the value of the Bat Booth at its quarries. Committed to occupational health and safety, Holcim aims for ‘zero harm’ to staff health.
Soon after the product’s launch, Holcim promptly installed Bat Booth units at its Lynwood quarry in New South Wales, its Petrie quarry in Queensland, and the Cooma quarries in NSW. Work in quarries often generates substantial dust emissions, posing a risk to staff health.
The Bat Booth units have played a pivotal role in minimising overall dust exposure. Due to its ease of use, staff can employ them multiple times a day, not limited to the end of their shifts.
Occupational dust-related diseases continue to be a significant concern worldwide, emphasising the necessity for effective and innovative dust control solutions that can reduce staff’s overall exposure without imposing a substantial financial burden.
These solutions have the potential to make a substantial impact in reducing the distressing statistics related to work-related illnesses.
Watch the Bat Booth pass-through video here.
For more information, visit the Mideco website.