Industrial Respirators and Respiratory Protection

Welding, grinding, metal fabrication, construction, maintenance, and other industrial operations commonly involve airborne dust, fumes, particles, gases and vapors. The right respirator helps protect workers from these contaminants and allows them to work comfortably and productively throughout the shift.

Choosing respiratory protection is more than just picking a mask or filter. Employers should consider the contaminants present, their concentrations, the work being done, the environment, the required levels of protection, worker comfort, fit and the length of time employees will wear the equipment.

Our respiratory protection specialists can assist you in evaluating these factors and selecting respirators that offer the appropriate balance of protection, comfort, durability, and productivity.

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Why Respiratory Protection Matters

Grinding, welding, cutting, sanding, painting, chemical processing, and other industrial operations can release contaminants that workers should not breathe. Depending on the application, respiratory hazards can include:

• Metal dust and fine particulates
• Welding fumes
• Silica and other mineral dust
• Smoke
• Mists
• Gases
• Chemical vapors
• Paint and coating contaminants

The choice of a respirator should be based on the specific hazard in the workplace and not upon comfort, cost or availability. NIOSH recognizes a number of different types of respiratory protection including air-purifying respirators, powered air-purifying respirators and atmosphere-supplying respirators.

There can also be consequences outside of regulation with the right equipment. Uncomfortable respirators, or respirators that are difficult to breathe through or not well suited to the task, can result in worker fatigue and interruptions. The systems are designed for the application, and respiratory systems can help keep employees protected as they spend more time on productive work.

Choosing the Right Type of Respirator

There is no single respirator that is appropriate for every industrial environment. The proper choice begins with understanding what is in the air and determining the required level of protection.

Disposable and Filtering Facepiece Respirators

Filtering facepiece respirators are commonly used for certain particulate hazards. They are lightweight, relatively simple to use, and can be an economical solution where the hazard and exposure level allow their use.

Because these respirators rely on a tight seal against the wearer's face, proper fit is essential. OSHA requires employees who use tight-fitting respirators to be fit tested before initial workplace use, when a different facepiece size, style, model, or make is introduced, and at least annually thereafter.

Reusable Air-Purifying Respirators

Reusable half-mask and full-face respirators can accept filters or cartridges selected for particular contaminants.

These systems can make sense for workers who require respiratory protection regularly and operate in environments where an air-purifying respirator provides the necessary protection. Replaceable components can also make reusable systems economical over time when they are properly maintained.

Like disposable tight-fitting respirators, these systems depend on a good face seal and generally require fit testing when used as required respiratory protection.

Powered Air-Purifying Respirators

A powered air-purifying respirator, or PAPR, uses a battery-powered blower to move contaminated workplace air through filters and deliver filtered air to the user.

For industrial welders, grinders, and fabricators, a PAPR can offer several practical advantages. The powered airflow reduces the breathing resistance associated with many negative-pressure respirators, while PAPR headtops can combine respiratory protection with eye and face protection.

Walter describes its respiratory systems as providing continuous airflow while reducing breathing resistance and operator fatigue.

NIOSH notes that PAPRs can use either tight-fitting or loose-fitting facepieces. Tight-fitting PAPRs require fit testing, while loose-fitting PAPRs generally do not. That can make certain loose-fitting PAPR systems a useful alternative for workers who cannot obtain an acceptable seal with a tight-fitting respirator.

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Supplied-Air Respirators

Some work environments call for an atmosphere-supplying solution rather than filtering the surrounding air.

Supplied-air respirators, or SARs, provide breathing air from a separate source. They can be appropriate for applications and environments where the hazards, concentrations, or working conditions make ordinary air-purifying respirators unsuitable.

Always select the respirator according to a proper hazard evaluation and the applicable respiratory protection requirements.

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PAPR Systems for Welding and Grinding

Welding and grinding present a particular respiratory protection challenge because operators may require respiratory, eye, and face protection simultaneously.

Modern PAPR systems can combine these functions into one integrated unit.

Walter's AIRPLUS® PAPR line, for example, is designed around industrial welding and grinding applications. Current configurations include welding, grinding, and combination headtops, giving users options based on the type of work being performed.

AIRPLUS® AIRSHIELD™ PAPR

The AIRPLUS AIRSHIELD PAPR Kit is intended for users who need respiratory, eye, and face protection in industrial applications.

A powered blower supplies filtered air to the helmet, helping reduce breathing resistance while allowing the operator to remain protected during demanding work.

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AIRPLUS® Flip Front PAPR

For operators who regularly switch between welding and grinding, changing PPE between operations wastes time.

Walter's AIRPLUS Flip Front PAPR Kit is designed specifically for welding and grinding applications. Its flip-front configuration allows the operator to transition between processes without completely removing the headtop.

For fabrication shops where employees repeatedly weld a joint, grind or blend it, inspect the work, and return to welding, reducing those PPE changes can make the workflow considerably more efficient.

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AIRPLUS® Vision® PAPR Systems

The AIRPLUS Vision family offers several headtop and lens configurations for welding applications.

Models such as the Vision BFFVX provide a large viewing area. At the same time, other Vision configurations allow a facility to match respiratory and welding protection more closely to the worker and application.

The Vision system also offers a quick-change face seal arrangement that allows the user to convert compatible respiratory headtops for use as a regular welding helmet when respiratory protection is not required.

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How Better Respiratory Protection Can Improve Productivity

Respiratory equipment is first and foremost safety equipment. But the way that equipment fits into a production process can also affect output and operating costs.

Reduce Worker Fatigue

Breathing resistance can become noticeable when a worker wears respiratory protection for hours at a time.

A powered system moves air through the filter for the user. NIOSH identifies the lack of breathing resistance as one advantage of PAPR systems.

For employees performing physically demanding welding, grinding, or fabrication work, improved breathing comfort can make respiratory protection easier to wear consistently throughout the shift.

Reduce PPE Changes Between Operations

A worker who welds, grinds, cleans, and inspects a part may otherwise need to stop repeatedly to change protective equipment.

Combination helmets and flip-front systems can help reduce these interruptions.

Saving a few seconds on an individual operation might appear insignificant. Repeated hundreds of times across several employees and multiple shifts, however, those interruptions add up.

Increase Uptime

Industrial respiratory equipment also needs to be selected with maintenance in mind.

Availability of replacement filters, pre-filters, face seals, batteries, breathing tubes, headgear, and other wear items can have a significant impact on long-term uptime.

If you can’t use a respirator because a relatively inexpensive replacement component is unavailable, it has no value to the operator or the production department.

Choosing an established system with serviceable components can help facilities keep equipment operating instead of routinely replacing complete assemblies.

Extend Equipment Service Life

Consumable management also affects respiratory protection costs.

Pre-filters, spark arrestors, and replaceable filter elements can help protect more expensive components when maintained according to manufacturer recommendations. Walter's AIRPLUS PAPR configurations incorporate a pre-filter and spark arrestor for welding and grinding environments.

Regular inspection, cleaning, filter replacement, and proper storage can further help facilities get the expected service life from their respiratory equipment.

Improve Standardization

Using several unrelated respirator systems throughout a plant can increase the number of filters, batteries, chargers, seals, hoses, and replacement components that must be purchased and stocked.

Standardizing compatible respiratory equipment where the hazard assessment permits it can simplify:

• Purchasing
• Inventory
• Employee training
• Replacement-parts management
• Maintenance
• Inspection
• Equipment assignment

The result can be a respiratory protection program that is easier to manage and easier for employees to use.

Where Industrial Respirators Are Used

Respiratory protection is used when employees may be exposed to hazardous airborne contaminants.

Typical markets and applications include:

• Metal Fabrication: Welding, grinding, blending, deburring, cutting and surface preparation
• Manufacturing: Fabrication, welding, machining, maintenance, finishing and repair.
• Construction: Cutting, grinding, concrete work, surface preparation, demolition and other dusty works
• Transportation: Vehicle, truck, trailer, rail, shipbuilding and heavy equipment fabrication and repair
• Energy & infrastructure: Power generation, fabrication of structures, pipelines, utilities, field maintenance
• Foundries and metalworking: Grinding, finishing, cleaning and other particulate-generating processes
• Maintenance and repair: Plant shutdowns, equipment repairs, corrosion removal, surface preparation

Fit Testing Is Part of Respirator Safety

Selecting a high-quality respirator does not automatically mean the user is protected.

For any respirator that depends on a tight face seal, fit is critical.

OSHA requires fit testing before an employee first uses a required tight-fitting respirator, whenever a different size, style, model, or make of facepiece is used, and at least once every year. Additional testing can also be necessary after physical changes such as substantial weight changes, facial scarring, dental work, or other conditions that could affect the seal.

OSHA also requires users of tight-fitting respirators to perform a user seal check each time the respirator is put on.

Fit testing can be:

• Qualitative, using the wearer's response to a test agent to determine whether leakage is occurring.
• Quantitative, using an instrument to measure respirator fit numerically.

The appropriate testing method depends on the respirator and its intended use.

Fit testing should therefore be viewed as part of a respiratory protection program rather than an optional step after purchasing equipment.

The Lowest-Cost Respirator Is Not Always the Lowest-Cost Solution

The purchase price matters, but industrial PPE needs to be evaluated on the total operating cost.

If workers routinely throw away usable parts from a lower-cost respirator, if replacement parts are hard to get, or if uncomfortable equipment reduces compliance and productivity, a lower-cost respirator can become expensive.

When evaluating respiratory equipment, consider:

• Upfront cost of equipment
• Filter and cartridge lifetime
• Battery life and cost of replacement
• Spare parts availability
• Requirements for cleaning and maintenance
• Worker’s comfort
• Training needs
• Compatibility with other PPEs
• PPE changeover downtime
• Lifetime expectancy

The objective is to match the equipment to the hazard, employee, and production process rather than force the production process to work around poorly selected PPE.

Let Us Evaluate Your Respiratory Protection Needs

Choosing the right respirator can be difficult when your facility has multiple operations, contaminants, work areas, and PPE requirements.

That is where a respirator safety study can help.

Our specialists can review your applications and discuss the respiratory equipment currently being used. From there, we can help identify opportunities to improve protection while addressing issues such as comfort, consumable usage, productivity, maintenance, service life, and overall cost.

A respirator study can help answer questions such as:

• Are employees using the appropriate respirator for the application?
• Would a PAPR improve comfort during long welding or grinding shifts?
• Could a flip-front helmet reduce time spent changing PPE?
• Are too many different respirator systems being stocked?
• Are filters and consumables being replaced efficiently?
• Could standardization simplify purchasing and maintenance?
• Are workers receiving the fit testing required for tight-fitting respirators?
• Is there a more practical respiratory solution for the way employees actually work?

The objective is to match the equipment to the hazard, employee, and production process rather than force the production process to work around poorly selected PPE.

Ask About a Respirator Safety Study Today!

Respiratory protection should protect workers without creating unnecessary obstacles to doing their jobs.

Whether you need respirators for welding, grinding, fabrication, construction, maintenance, or another industrial application, we can help evaluate the available options and recommend a solution based on your workplace.

Protect your employees. Reduce interruptions. Control consumable costs. Get more value from your respiratory protection equipment.

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