Does anyone have experience with cooling scarves in production ?
With the extreme heat, the health & safety committee suggested purchasing "cooling scarves" to be worn by production employees. The work in and area with no air conditioning and production is done near and over open containers.
My concerns are: buying enough scarves so they can be washed after each use, who would wash them (we have a washing machine onsite for emergencies but use an external uniform provider for laundry), potential foreign objects falling into our products (the scarves themselves or the "beads/crystals" inside the casing).
Does anyone have experience with either having cooling scarves in production or other cooling methods (besides fans, which we have)? Thank you in advance!
Here is a description of a random cooling scarf found online: "[...] wear cool scarves like ties around their necks, which gives them a feeling of a cool wet cloth on the back of their necks. A cool scarf is a strip of cotton woven fabric that has been filled nontoxic polyacrylamide granules (crystals) concealed in the casing of the scarf. When the scarf is soaked in water for 15-30 minutes, the granules absorb the water, expand 400 times, and turn into a crystalline gel. The cotton fabric absorbs water from the gel, and then the water evaporates for a cooling effect. Scarves stay cool and moist for hours due to the polyacrylamide's water-retaining properties. When the scarves are allowed to dry, the gel returns to crystal form. Cool scarves can cool for up to 15 hours."
Very good question, as our production facility gets very hot as well.
I would be concerned about the gel/crystals.
That said, I compete in agility with my dogs and they have cool coats made out of chamois. Same principle, but no beads. Wet, wring and wear. They stay cool for quite a while.
That would still leave the laundry question.
Something to think about.
The work over open containers would concern me. Do the cooling scarves drip water at all when hydrated? Some employees may hydrate the scarves more than they're designed for, leading to even more dripping. You would not want that sweaty liquid to get into product! Is it possible to instead set up portable water coolers just outside the production areas? During times of excessive heat, employees should be encouraged to take more breaks to reduce heat stress.
How often does it get hot in these area's?
Getting cooling scarfs doesn't seem like the best option to me. You are not taking away the heat, it probably doesn't work very well and you are introducing new risks.
It would be a lot safer for you, your employee's and your product if you would install air conditioning in these area's.
Or adjust the work schedule on those few very hot days.
Are you venting outside, or just blowing the air around
have you installed "big ass fans" that's the name of the company--proprietary blades move a ton of air more efficiently than the large floor fans
Re: cooling scarves-you could put them inside disposable plastic sleeves knotted at both ends---that will take care of the laundry and the FM
With the extreme heat, the health & safety committee suggested purchasing "cooling scarves" to be worn by production employees. The work in and area with no air conditioning and production is done near and over open containers.
...
What kind of product is it? Are frocks/smocks/sleeves/aprons worn? What kind of limits do you have on garments worn in the product handling area now?
Could the current situation be described as "hot sweaty people leaning over open containers"? That sounds like an issue that can really only be fixed with air conditioning.
:roflmao:
Could the current situation be described as "hot sweaty people leaning over open containers"?
If you do look at clothing - why don't you order just one and see how it works. Or try and get samples.