SEAS/Physics/EPS Safety Committee

Meeting Minutes

Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Noon-1:00PM

1. Video - "Carpal Tunnel Syndrome" (14 minutes)

2. Lab Inspection Reports:

A. McKay 1st Floor - John Budney (inspected 3/12 & 3/13/2007)

• McKay 106 A-J E - PI, David Bell, Microscopy Lab
  • Emergency contact sheets were dated 2004.  There is no need for updates according to the safety officer.
  • One of the scanning electron microscopes did not have an emergency shut off switch.  All of the others did.  Not sure if this is necessary for these instruments.
  • Fume hood failed inspection and is used only as a satellite accumulation are for  waste chemicals.  Signage makes this clear.
• McKay 117 - PI, Golovchenko, Advanced Sensors Lab
  • Note: This lab is still under construction/renovation and is not a full functioning lab and should be inspected again when renovations are completed.
• There was no emergency contact info on the door to lab.
• McKay 121 - PI, Frederico Capasso, Quantum Electronics Lab
  • No safety violations were observed.
• McKay 122 - PI, Markus, Low Temperature Physics
  • Emergency contact info was dated 2004.
  • Satellite accumulation area was in a less than optimal place at the bases of a rack of shelves which was difficult to access and without proper signage.

B. McKay 2nd Floor - Anthony O'Brien - not present at meeting, but he submitted the following report after the meeting:

• Rm 202 – Leaky oil pump sitting on the floor; unsecured argon tank on mobile lab cart with no cap
• Rm 212 – Lecture bottles unsecured: several bottles are laid across a shelf at shoulder height
• Rm 209 – Hallway cabinet for chemical storage: latex glove covering photoresist in place of cap
• Rm 213 – Hallway cabinet containing large vacuum pump for Tinkham group has a variavac inside an exposed chassis (wood)
• Rm 214 – Old waste bottles being used as sharps container
• Rm 225A – General clutter

C. Lyman Lab - Robert Graham

• Lyman 21 and 23 - PI: Professor Lene Hau ( Safety Representative: David Kaz)
  • Summary. There were no immediate safety concerns in these laboratories.
  • Comments. The level of cleanliness for the laboratories and organization is commendable.
  • Door signage was also within the year, though as summer approaches it might be a good time to update for any new laboratory personnel.
  • Satellite accumulation area was well maintained. The fume hood is due for EH&S inspection in May 2007.
• Lyman 24 (A-D), 27, 29, 30 and 31 - PI: Professor John Doyle (Safety Representative: Edem Tsikata)
  • Summary. There were no immediate safety concerns in these laboratories.
  • Comments. There were a few gallon containers on the floor near the optics tables in Room 24 and some housekeeping issues with electrical wiring on the floor. Coffee cups were near the corner computer station in Room 24, also. There were some extensions from the optics tables that made negotiating around the tables a little delicate.
  • Door signage was also within the year, though as summer approaches it might be a good time to update for any new laboratory personnel.
  • Eyewash station was working and laser signage was good with goggles available in proximity to the laboratory entrances.
• Lyman 126 & 128 - PI: Professor Paul Horowitz (Safety Representative: Curtis Mead)
  • Summary. There were no immediate safety concerns in these laboratories.
  • Comments. A question was raised in earlier safety visits regarding a second egress. Stuart McNeil noted at the Safety Meeting on March 14, 2007 that the architect had approved the laboratory design. Michael Labosky from Harvard’s EH&S suggested that appropriate signage be posted (door to room 126) noting that it was not meant as an egress.
  • The satellite accumulation area (SAA) for chemicals was well organized and tags properly completed.
• Lyman 127, 130, 131, and 132 - PI: Professor Isaac F. Silvera (Safety Representative: Jieping Fang)
  • Summary. We recommend a call to Lance Schumacher (6-3332) to pick up the waste chemicals in your satellite accumulation area (SAA) in Room 130. As Professor Silvera mentioned this morning, it is possible to also have the electric discharge machine oil removed (if described to Lance). In previous safety visits to the laboratories, access to the electrical panel was noted. There was a cyrostat housing in front of the electrical panel during our visit. Understandably, space is tight in the laboratories, but we recommend keeping access to the panel clear.
  • Comments. The hood is due for inspection by October 2006. Door signage was also within the year, though as summer approaches it might be a good time to update for any new laboratory personnel.

D. High Energy Physics - Carl Gottlieb

• The High Energy Physics lab is very well organized and very well maintained, so there is very little to report.
• The only things worth noting were:
1. The emergency response guide was not posted in Rooms 101, 204, and 208.
2. We did not recall seeing a list of contact people.

E. Jefferson - Kasey Russell (Team 9)

• J150a: Prentiss: Nothing egregious. The "Laser In Use" indicator light is outside J150f, while the entrance to that group of labs is through J150a, so perhaps that could get moved.
• J158: Golovchenco: Not much going on in here from the looks of things.
• J164: Golovchenco: Several small glass bottles are sitting open and unlabeled on various counters, and you'd probably knock one of them over if you were in a rush to use the eyewash.
• J162: Gabrielse: Locked, no answer, Laser light on.
• J160: Gabrielse: Main entrance to their labs; I might have gotten into J162 through here, but I'm not sure. They have a couple of unlabeled or ambiguously labeled glass beakers 1/2 full and covered in foil. They have a couple holes in the floor where their cryostats live; one has a nice guard rail, while one doesn't. The stairs for the emergency exit at the West end are a little cluttered; maybe move the stuff to the empty shelf opposite the exit?
• J167: Golovchenco: According to various signs posted on equipment here, they beat people with a rubber hose and sock full of nickles if they fail to sign the log books. Possible safety hazard?

F. McKay Lab 6th Floor - Liz Main - not present at meeting.

G. Hoffman 3rd Floor & Museum - Dave Vader

• Museum Basement
  rock cutting room: no emergency shut-off button on 2nd saw
• Hoffman 3rd floor, Pearson lab:
  - "no food in fridge" label on incubator
  - no biolevel safety sign
  - coffee mug sitting out in the lab space
  - no label or date on biohazard waste box outside of lab room
  - unlabeled filled plastic containers by sink
  - a few unlabeled samples
  - Unlabeled or insufficiently labeled containers present
  - Chemical fume hood to crowded (waste containers too close to hood sash)
  - Solvents in squirt bottles hanging from apparatus in fume hood
  - Reagent storage (acetic acid) requires better (deeper) secondary containment
  - Unorganized storage of reagents in solvent cabinet under fume hood (misc. solvents & reagents sitting on a small tray)
• Hoffman 3rd floor, Schrag lab:
  - eyewash in hallway not run in a while (brown water + LOTS of air)
  - coffee cups on sink
  - syringes in glass waste box
  - a couple of chemical bottles (bleach?) in office room
  - boxes overhanging from shelves
  - large amounts of samples stacked in cabinets
  - hazardous waste area in 337 not properly separated
  - gloves on hot plates and next to tubing
  - samll sample labeled "waste" in acids cabinet, doesn't seem to belong
  - food containers used for storing lab stuff
  - loose power cord on floor in 336 and in 333
  - lamp in laminar flow hood OK?
  - gas tank not secured in 333
  - eye wash hidden and pressure bad in 333
  - 333 doorway exit obstructed by large liquid gas tank
  - Unlabeled or insufficiently labeled containers present
  - Could add "No food" signs on the fridges
  - Shelves are cluttered, freezers overstuffed (vials resting on vials, not particularly safe)
  - Solvent storage requires better (larger & deeper) secondary containment

H. ESL Floors 3 & 4 - Nick Guise

• Mitchell Lab - Room 309, 301 
  • Lab is moving into new space
• Needs initial inspections: hood, safety shower, eyewash
• Hansel Lab - Room 305 
  • Also a new lab space
  • Hood, shower, fire extinguishers need inspection
  • Needs eyewash tags
  • One freezer needs labeling  (food/non-food)
• Martin Lab
  • General
    • Update emergency contact info on doors
    • Have goggles in each room where they would be needed (currently all goggles are stored outside a single room)
  • Room 322
    • Fire door outside is propped open (labeled “keep shut at all times”)
    • One compressed nitrogen cylinder needs a cap
  • Room 323 - Eyewash looks particularly old, untested
  • Room 325 - Some compressed gas cylinders unsecured [already fixed by safety officer] Cap the cylinders if not in use (rather than leaving with heavy flow regulators attached)
  • Room 326
    • Sulfuric acid out on counter (in a jar)—recommend secondary containment here
    • General clutter (more than other rooms)
  • Room 328
    • Some unlabeled glassware
    • Glassware dangerously close to table edges
    • Outlets dangling from ceiling … perhaps there is a better way to run extension cords
• Edwards Lab
  • Room 406
    • Fire extinguisher blocked by flammables cabinet [fixed by safety officer, but still a tight clearance]
    • Some glassware near edge of tables
    • Double-check the BL2 hood inspection date [we didn’t see a sticker, but a lab member told us later that it was there]
    • Eyewash/Shower are in the next lab … would have to go through a door to reach them
• Parker Lab
  • Room 405
    • Satellite Accumulation Area not clearly marked [fixed by safety officer]
    • Label the goggle drawer
    • Half of the compressed gas cylinders are empty—might as well return them
    • Could not inspect room 404 (darkened for experiment)
• Mooney Lab
  • Room 415
    • Label the Satellite Accumulation Area (needs the standard big green sign)
    • Some confusion on how to record percentages on hazardous waste labels.  Technically (we think) the percentages should always add to 100, e.g.  a 4% solution should be labeled explicitly as 4% chemical and 96% water.
      
    • Recommend secondary containment for reagents
      
    • One hood (above SAA) particularly cluttered—flow might be an issue
      
    • Recommend a background monitor for radiation, near the waste area and radioactive hoods (radioactive materials are well-segregated in this lab, but perhaps they should also have a badge or active Geiger counter running as a constant monitor, in case of any leaks)
      
    • Glassware near shelf edges—started to install plexiglass barriers, but unfinished
  • Room 419
    • Recommend UV goggles and/or some indicator to make clear when UV is on

3. Follow-Up Reports (responses to previous lab inspections)

A. McKay 3rd Floor - ROOMS 329A - 330 - Eric Diebold

• ROOM 329A [ -Laser setup did not have a curtain barrier around setup.] - None of their lasers have curtains. This needs to be fixed!
• ROOM 329  [-Emergency Access Sheet needs to be updated. Last done 2/03.] - All issues fixed or cleaned-up.
  
• ROOM 328  -[No Emergency Access Sheet on door.] The sheet has been updated.
• ROOM 330  [ -Laser goggles need to be placed in a central location. Scattered over lab area.] They will build a box for this near the door.

B. Cruft/Maxwell Dworkin - Brocket Lab: Jason Adaska - Jason was not present to give a follow-up report

1. Maxwell Dworkin
   • MD-315
     There is a class IIIb Cascade Microtech Microchamber laser in the Lab, but no sign on the door and no curtain. The same issue was raised during our past inspection.
   • MD-316
     There was some paper on the desk touching the oven in. A sign on the oven says "beware hot surfaces." This potential fire hazard was also noticed and mentioned in the past inspection.
   • MD-B133
     It is a lab that is currently being set up. Should have MSDS sheets clearly available for hazardous materials used in the room.
2. Cruft
   • Cruft 109
     There is a class 4 laser at use in this room. The class 4 laser should be automatically interlocked to the "laser on" light at the door. At the time of the inspection team was there, the laser was on but the "laser on" light at door was not on.
   • Cruft 116
     The Chemical Preparation Room, wasn’t tidy. A bottle of flammable and skin irritant Pyralin was left on a countertop without secondary containment.
   • Cruft 312
     The Fire extinguisher in the lab was marked last inspected in 2003.
     Question: What class should "home-made" lasers (50 to 100 mw) be classified to? (according to its power told by the people working in the lab at the time of inspection -- range 50-100mw, it should be classified as class IIIb). Is there a standard procedure to register and official classification of these devices? Should they be interlocked to the "laser on" light at the door?

4. EH&S Report - Chuck Lichtenwalner

• There was a Rhodamine spill in a shared lab. However made the spill did not clean it up or deal with it, so it wasn't long before the rhodamine was all over the place. No ne admitted to spilling the substance. The cleaning staff tried cleaning it up which spread the rhodamine even further. A note of caution: when you see something like this, stop and think about how it should be dealt with.
• As warmer weather approaches, EH&S will be conducting fire drill and extinguisher training.
• An area in the Science Center had a problem with a powersupply burning out. They have both a wet and dry fire prevention system. Some areas may have similar old fire prevention systems that perhaps should be reconsidered in light of the contents of the rooms. For example, is it appropriate to have a wet system in rooms with expensive electrical or computer equipment?

5. Hazardous Waste Training Report - Rob Stanhope

Rob reported on several people needing retraining.

6. Old Business

• Lenny said most people have sent him a list of their lab alarms. If you haven't done this yet, please contact him immediately.
• Broken web links - Lenny fixed the URL links on the safety glove page of our website.

7. New Business - none

Next Meeting: Wednesday, April 11, 2007, 12:00 noon, Maxwell/Dworkin 119