Screenprinting Today: The Basics

SAFETY IN THE SCREEN SHOP

© 2000 Andy MacDougall.

All rights reserved.
Reprinted with permission

As in any manufacturing process, be it baking cookies or building jet airplanes, there are precautions that should be taken to ensure that you, or your co-workers, or employees, as well as the environment, are not harmed by the screen printing process. By its very nature, screenprinting can be dangerous. The inks are toxic if ingested, solvents and chemicals used in clean-up can burn your skin, and presses, cutters, and equipment are capable of inflicting permanent injury or death. That's the bad news. The good news is that in general, workers in screenprinting shops enjoy low WCB (Workmen's Compensation Board) claim rates, due to diligent safe workplace attitudes, and are serviced by manufacturers, suppliers, and enlightened owners who are constantly upgrading inks, chemicals, and processes to eliminate dangers to workers and the environment.

Following are some steps you can take which will reduce risks in your shop or studio. Most are commonsense, some are mandated by WCB, OSHA, or other workplace safety agencies, but all of them will contribute to a safer, more efficient workplace. Accidents happen, but Safety is planned.

WORKPLACE CLEANLINESS

• Divide your shop into areas for artwork prep, exposure, screen making, ink mixing, printing, shipping or stock prep, and a first aid area. Maintain storage areas (a cupboard, a shelf, a pegboard wall, etc.) for the individual items used in the specific areas, and daily or between jobs, PUT YOUR TOOLS BACK IN THEIR PLACE.
• Maintain a properly stocked first aid kit, eyewash station, and fire extinguisher IN A CONSPICUOUS PLACE. The size and quantity of these items are determined by the size of your shop. In commercial operations with employees, WCB will provide minimum kit recommendations, and all 3 items are available through safety supply companies, industrial suppliers, or hardware stores. Ensure that every workers knows the location of the items and what to do in an emergency situation.
• Divide your garbage into recyclable groups, provide a container for each, and EMPTY THEM on a regular basis.
• Clean up ink spills or anything else WHEN THEY HAPPEN.
• Sweep and wetmop once per week.

A CLEAN workplace is a SAFE workplace

By keeping your workplace clean and tidy, you reduce the risk of tripping or bumping into things, which account for a large percentage of workplace mishaps.. Guess what? You will also notice you become more efficient, and your printing improves!!!

PERSONAL SAFETY EQUIPMENT

As well as the above mentioned first aid kit, eye wash station, and fire extinguisher, which are all used AFTER THE FACT, there are a number of personal safety items which should be worn while performing different tasks in the screenshop, which will PREVENT INJURIES from happening:

• Solvent resistant gloves should be worn for screen reclaiming, and any time solvents are used. The gloves will protect skin from chemical burns or irritation, and also stop absorption through the cuticles, which are an entry point in the body for toxic liquids. If you are working without gloves in low contact situations, you can still use a Barrier Cream that protects your skin and washes off easily.
• A face shield, or goggles, as well as a protective apron or coat, should be worn during screen cleaning to protect the eyes and skin from splashes. All workers should wear safety grade glasses at all times in the shop.
• An approved organic solvent respirator with disposable filters should be worn during clean-up or prolonged exposure to solvent-based inks. Each worker should have his or her own personal mask, and change the filters on a regular basis.
• Hearing protection should be worn when using a pressure washer, operating a press with a loud vacuum, or any other loud activity.
• Although it doesn't protect you from personal injury, an apron or shop coat worn at all times in the printshop can protect you from guilt and abuse caused by getting ink on that new shirt or pair of pants that your (pick one) wife/relative/friend/etc. just bought you!

SAFETY DATA SHEETS & LABELS

It's WCB law, and also a real good idea, that you maintain a binder containing safety data sheets supplied by the manufacturer, for every commercial product in your workplace. These give quick information regarding safe handling and first aid treatment, as well as the chemical make-up of the different products and inks found in your shop.

• The labels on your ink cans and other containers should contain information on the MANUFACTURER & THE NAME\CODE NUMBER OF THE INK OR SOLVENT, the FLAMMABILITY of the product, the TOXICITY, and any special handling procedures (gloves, mask, etc.,) as well as FIRST AID instructions. If you bought a product it should BE LABELLED WITH ALL THIS INFORMATION. If it doesn't, don't buy it, or tell the supplier to label it properly. Get your Safety Data Sheets from your supplier as well. They are required by law to provide this for every product they sell.
• When you mix ink in unlabeled containers, always attach a label which identifies the ink by TYPE or LINE and Manufacturer if you use more than one.
• Solvents poured out of large drums into smaller containers need labels. Never use unlabeled beverage containers for solvents or other liquids.

VENTILATION

When using organic solvents, in inks or for clean-up, it's important to have proper ventilation to remove the offending contamination from the workplace. In the case of most of the solvents used in screenprinting, they are heavier than air. Exhaust intake vents should be located at floor level near presses or racks, and using an explosion-proof fan, blown outside the building. Clean air intakes located across the room from the exhaust intakes will create a cross ventilation through the room that will carry the offending air away from the printer.

• A variable speed fan on the exhaust as well as adjustable clean air intakes (windows that open) allow control over the amount of ventilation. Too much will raise dust and cause the image on the screen to dry in.
• Most dryers are fitted with hoods which can be directly vented to the outside.
• Some presses can be fitted with covers that enclose the screen area, and reduce the amount of solvents evaporated into the air during printing.
• In solvent based printing using racks, special drying enclosures can be easily made with curtains to direct the fumes given off by the stock drying in the rack. This can be directed out of the printing area.

SAFE OPERATION OF EQUIPMENT

In the case of shops using power equipment, such as presses, power cutters, die-cutters, or even exposure frames, anyone using the equipment should be completely familiar with its operation, controls, inherent dangers, and shutdown procedures.

• NEVER disconnect safety bars or other devices supplied with machines. These are usually fitted to protect the current operator from a type of accident which has occurred in the past on a similar type of machine. An example would be a safety bar on the front and sides of a clamshell semi-automatic. If the press came down while a hand was still on the table, painful injury would result. It's happened many times. Large presses can kill, if the printer has his head and upper body under the screen for cleaning and the press is accidentally triggered to go through a print cycle. Always shut down before cleaning.
• Regular inspections and maintenance of machines will help avoid accidents caused by malfunction or breakage.

FIRE SAFETY