Technology workshop classroms with downdraft tables

[nikaso]

Do any of you have technology (woodworking) type classrooms with downdraft tables installed? These are mesh top tables that draw air through filters inside the table and output clean air for capturing dust from hand sanding etc? We've had a concern raised about dust levels in the workshops but the extraction equipment is functioning perfectly and we've traced it to dust from hand sanding and the only thing you can do about that is these expensive (£2-£4k) tables.

 

Personally I've never seen such tables in school tech workshops, fume cupboards for certain things yes but hand sanding has just taken place at wooden benches and tables with no extraction?

[deanc]

fairly certain it would be cheaper to buy a load of dust masks.

[Andrew_C]

fairly certain it would be cheaper to buy a load of dust masks.

But that fails the protocol for selecting for PPE. Design out risk (don't sand), remove the hazard in general (this is the table), then PPE (dust masks).

 

Yes we have a big one, and maybe a small one that DT want to get rid of. I'll ask if interested.

[Garacesh]

fairly certain it would be cheaper to buy a load of dust masks.

 

Probably. But you're gonna have to go with the disposable ones because hygiene.

 

Sanding and filing are pretty hefty parts of RM though. Whenever you're making something, there's going to be sanding and filing as a minimum, as well as cutting/drilling/etc that's going to fill the air with fine particles you don't really wanna breathe in.

So I guess it's either PPE, or can the syllabus

Edited November 2, 2017 by Garacesh