S.I. No. 29/1976 - Factories (Indiarubber) Regulations 1976.

S.I. No. 29 of 1976.

FACTORIES (INDIARUBBER) REGULATIONS 1976.

I, MICHAEL O'LEARY, Minister for Labour, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by sections 6 , 8 , 20 , 53 , 57 , 59 and 71 of the Factories Act, 1955 (No. 10 of 1955) and the Labour (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order, 1966 ( S.I. No. 164 of 1966 ), after consultation with the Minister for Health and after due compliance with the provisions of the Third Schedule to that Act, hereby make the following Regulations:

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Factories (Indiarubber) Regulations, 1976, and shall come into operation on the 1st day of March, 1976.

2. The Indiarubber Regulations, 1922 (S.R. and O., No. 329 of 1922), are hereby revoked.

3. (1) In these Regulations—

"appointed doctor" as respects any factory means the certifying doctor for the district in which the factory is situated, or a registered medical practitioner specially appointed by written certificate of the Minister for the purposes of these Regulations;

"approved" means approved for the time being by the Minister;

Subject to paragraph (2) of this regulation,

"fume process" means any process in which any of the following materials, namely, carbon bisulphide (CS₂), chloride of sulphur (S₂C1₂), benzene (C₆H₆) (whether pure or in the form of commercial benzol), carbon tetrachloride (CCl₄), trichlorethylene (C₂HCl₃), or any carbon chlorine compound, or any mixture containing any of the foregoing materials is used, or the vapour of any such materials is given off;

"health register" means the register kept pursuant to Regulation 17 of these Regulations;

"lead process" means the weighing, manipulation or other treatment of any dry compound of lead, or of any dry mixture containing dry compound of lead, in processes preparatory to the incorporation of such compound or mixture with indiarubber at incorporating or mixing rolls, and if the total weight of dry compound of lead calculated as lead monoxide contained in the mixing when determined in the manner described in the Schedule to these Regulations exceeds five per cent. of the total weight of the mixture, inclusive of indiarubber and all other ingredients incorporated therewith at the mixing rolls, "lead process" shall for the purposes of these Regulations be regarded as including the process of incorporation with indiarubber;

"suspension" means suspension from employment in any lead process or in any fume process by written certificate signed by the appointed doctor and entered in the health register.

(2) For the purposes of these Regulations any process of vulcanisation of indiarubber goods which is not a cold-cure process and which is carried on in a chamber enclosed so that the vapour produced by the process does not escape from the chamber into any room in the relevant factory in which a person is employed, shall not be regarded as being a fume process.

4. These Regulations shall apply to every factory in which is carried on the manufacture of indiarubber or of articles or goods made wholly or partially of indiarubber.

5. The Minister may (subject to such conditions, if any, as may be specified therein) by certificate in writing (which in his discretion he may revoke at any time) exempt from all or any of the requirements of these Regulations any factory where he is satisfied that the requirements in respect of which the exemption is granted are not necessary for the protection of persons employed or are impracticable.

6. Neither a woman nor a young person shall be employed in a factory to which these Regulations apply in a lead process.

7. A person under 18 years of age shall not be employed in any factory to which these Regulations apply in a fume process, and a person under 16 years of age shall not be employed in any room in such a factory in which any fume process is carried on.

8. Carbon bisulphide (CS₂) shall not be used in the cold cure process of vulcanising in the proofing of cloth with rubber in a factory to which these Regulations apply.

9. (1) A person shall not be employed in a factory to which these Regulations apply in a room in which carbon bisulphide is used for more than 5 hours in all on any particular day.

(2) Where a person is so employed the person shall not be so employed for a continuous period exceeding 2½ hours and in case a person is so employed for a continuous period of 2½ hours he shall not be again so employed unless he has been given a rest from work of at least one hour.

10. A fume process shall not be carried on at a factory to which these Regulations apply in the open air or in any room the floor of which, or of any part of which, is below ground level.

11. No lead process and no fume process shall be carried on in a factory to which these Regulations apply unless—

( a ) suitable equipment is provided, maintained and used so as to produce an efficient exhaust draught effected by mechanical means and located so as to operate on the dust or vapour given off as nearly as may be to its point of origin and to prevent the dust or vapour entering the air of any room in which persons work, and

( b ) suitably placed inlets of sufficient area are provided for the supply of fresh air to the room in which either or both such processes are carried on.

12. Where in a factory to which these Regulations apply a plenum system is used for the supply of fresh air to a room in which a fume process is carried on, the air supplied by such system shall not enter the room at a velocity which exceeds 95 metres per minute.

13. (1) The cold-cure process of vulcanising waterproof cloth shall not be carried on in a factory to which these Regulations apply unless—

( a ) every vulcanising machine (including any drying cylinder or other drying plant in direct connection therewith) is enclosed and arranged so that the mechanical feeding-in and delivery of the cloth takes place outside the enclosure which shall be as complete as practicable,

( b ) the trough containing the vulcanising material is fed only by natural flow from the reservoir containing such material, such reservoir and all parts of the connecting pipes or channels for supplying the trough, which are not within the enclosure required by paragraph (a) of this regulation are seperately enclosed.

(2) The provisions of paragraph (1) of this regulation are in addition to the other provisions of these Regulations which relate to a fume process.

14. (1) There shall be provided and maintained by the occupier for the use of all persons employed in a factory to which these Regulations apply in any lead process or any fume process, and remaining on the premises during the meal intervals, a suitable mess-room, which shall be furnished with—

( a ) sufficient tables and chairs or benches with back rests, and

( b ) adequate means for warming food and boiling water.

(2) The mess-room provided pursuant to this regulation shall be placed under the charge of a responsible person, and shall be kept clean.

15. As regards a factory to which these Regulations apply, sufficient and suitable overalls shall be provided and maintained by the occupier for the use of all persons employed therein in a lead process. When not in use such overalls shall be kept in proper custody in a suitable place set apart for the purpose which shall be separate from any mess-room. Such overalls shall be washed, cleaned or renewed at least once every week.

16. (1) In relation to a factory to which these Regulations apply, washing facilities provided in accordance with section 53 of the Factories Act, 1955 (No. 10 of 1955), for the use of persons employed in any lead or fume process shall be washing facilities which are adequate and suitable for the use of all of the persons so employed in the factory.

(2) The facilities mentioned in paragraph (1) of this regulation shall be kept in a clean and orderly condition and shall be immediately accessible, or where this is not reasonably practicable, conveniently accessible from the relevant workplace. The said facilities shall include clean running hot and cold or warm water, soap, non-abrasive nail brushes and clean towels, and, in addition, either—

( a ) for every five persons at least one wash basin with a smooth impervious surface of a suitable size fitted with a waste pipe or

( b ) a trough with a smooth impervious surface of such length (or, in the case of a circular or oval trough, of such circumference) as to allow six hundred millimetres of length for every five persons making use thereof and fitted with suitable jets or sprays serving each six hundred millimetres of length or circumference (as the case may be) and with a waste pipe.

(3) Where the number of persons employed in any lead or fume process in a factory to which these Regulations apply is not a multiple of five, for the purposes of this regulation the number of persons so employed shall be regarded as being the next higher number which is a multiple of five.

17. A health register containing the names of all persons employed in lead processes or in fume processes in a factory to which these Regulations apply shall be kept at the factory in a form approved by the Minister.

18. (1) Every person employed in a factory to which these Regulations apply in any lead process or in any fume process shall be examined by the appointed doctor once in every month, and due notice of the date on which a person is to be examined pursuant to this regulation shall be given to him.

(2) The appointed doctor shall have power to order suspension of a person as regards any place or process in the relevant factory and after such suspension the person shall not be employed in such relevant factory in any lead process or any fume process without the written sanction of the appointed doctor entered in the health register.

(3) A record of every examination pursuant to this regulation and of the date thereof, signed or initialled by the appointed doctor, shall be entered in the health register.

19. It shall be the duty of a person employed in any lead process or in any fume process in a factory to which these Regulations apply to present himself at the appointed times for examination by the appointed doctor in pursuance of Regulation 18 (1) of these Regulations.

20. A person shall not work after suspension in a factory to which these Regulations apply in any lead process or in any fume process without the written sanction of the appointed doctor entered in the health register.

21. ( a ) It shall be the duty of every person employed in a factory to which these Regulations apply in a lead process to deposit in the place or places provided pursuant to section 54 of the Factories Act, 1955 (No. 10 of 1955) all clothing not worn during working hours.

( b ) It shall be the duty of every person for whose use an over-overall is provided, pursuant to Regulation 15 of these Regulations, to wear such overall when employed in any lead process and to remove it before partaking of food or leaving the factory premises, and to deposit it in the place at the relevant factory set apart for the purpose.

22. It shall be the duty of every person employed in a factory to which these Regulations apply in a lead process before partaking of food or leaving the premises to wash his face and hands.

23. A person shall neither introduce, keep, prepare or partake any food or drink, nor make use of tobacco in any place in a factory to which these Regulations apply in which any lead process is carried on.

24. A person shall not interfere in any way, without the concurrence of the occupier, with the equipment provided in pursuance of Regulation 11 of these Regulations.

SCHEDULE

MANNER OF ASCERTAINING, FOR THE PURPOSES OF THESE REGULATIONS, THE PERCENTAGE OF A DRY COMPOUND OF LEAD PRESENT IN A MIXING.

The mixing as a whole shall be weighed. The dry material of the mixing, which is to be incorporated in powder form with the indiarubber, shall be weighed likewise; thereafter and before incorporation, the weighed dry material shall be mixed to the satisfaction of an Inspector who shall take three approximately equal samples from different parts of the mixture. The three samples shall be intimately mixed together to form the test sample. A weighed quantity of the test sample shall be continuously shaken for one hour at the common temperature, with 1,000 times its weight of an aqueous solution of hydrochloric acid containing 0.2 per cent. by weight of hydrogen chloride. This solution shall thereafter be allowed to stand for one hour and shall then be filtered. The lead salt contained in an aliquot portion of the clear filtrate shall then be both precipitated and weighed as lead sulphate. The proportion of lead compound calculated as lead monoxide found in the test sample shall be used for the calculation of the amount of lead monoxide contained in the mixing as a whole.

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 6th day of February, 1976.

MICHAEL O'LEARY,

Minister for Labour.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

These regulations prescribe measures to be taken for the safety, health and welfare of persons employed in factories where indiarubber and/or articles or goods made wholly or partially of indiarubber are manufactured.