Wearing a Gas Mask Alone Does Not Guarantee Life Protection... Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency Produces 'Guide to Safe Protective Gear Use'

Be Sure to Check Before Using Respiratory Protective Equipment

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] A guidebook for the safe use of protective respiratory equipment has been released in response to the ongoing suffocation accidents.

The Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency (KOSHA) plans to produce and distribute promotional materials to inform about the safe use of respiratory protective equipment.

There have been numerous cases threatening workers' safety, such as using general gas and dust masks unsuitable for oxygen-deficient confined spaces or not using gas masks appropriate for hazardous substances.

The Industrial Safety and Health Certification Institute of KOSHA announced that it will distribute materials to industrial sites consisting of essential items users must know about the safety certification marks, usage locations, and purchase and usage guidelines for three types of respiratory protective equipment (gas masks, supplied-air respirators, and powered air-purifying respirators).

This material includes information related to the safe and proper selection of respiratory protective equipment and wearing protective gear suitable for various physical conditions.

The guidebook emphasizes that only products with safety certification must be used when wearing protective equipment. It also suggests checking the capacity and grade of the ‘safety certification mark’ to select respiratory protective equipment suitable for the user's work environment, dust, and hazardous substances.

Information on whether safety certification has been obtained and details on capacity and grade can also be checked on the Industrial Safety and Health Certification Institute’s website.

This guidebook is the third in the ‘Safe Protective Equipment Wearing Guide’ One Point Lesson series, created to encourage the safe and proper use of protective equipment products and to prevent the use of uncertified products.

It will be distributed to over 4,300 locations, including construction and manufacturing businesses with more than 100 employees and manufacturers of certified products, and can also be accessed on the agency’s website.

Kim Young-tae, head of the Industrial Safety and Health Certification Institute, said, “Wearing appropriate protective equipment is precious for saving lives,” and added, “We hope this material will help establish a culture of proper protective equipment use and compliance with safety rules in industrial sites.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.