Lab Clothing and Safety Procedure

Purpose:  

To establish the minimum requirements for appropriate, safe clothing & equipment to be worn while in applied craft and technical program labs/shops.

General:

Personnel safety is our primary concern when entering our applied craft and technical program labs/shops as part of the student learning process.  Because of the presence of hazardous, dangerous materials and equipment in these rooms, we have set requirements in place to provide the level of safety needed for our Faculty, Staff, Students, and Visitors.

Requirements:

The following are required before entering the above Labs:

• Shirt with sleeves  Can be short sleeves, but must cover all of the abdomen and back areas.  No tank tops, sleeveless shirts, etc. Jackets may be worn but must meet all GENERAL REQUIREMENTS below and not cover the head and ears.
• Long pants.  Pants should extend to the user’s shoes or boots with no exposed skin at the lower leg & foot area.  Should be cotton, denim not synthetic materials.
• Full coverage shoes or boots.  Must be of a closed design – from toe to heel.  Must be of leather or other repellant materials.  Cannot be sandals, slippers, flip-flops, Crocs®, etc., where skin is exposed.

The following are required class-by-class by Instructor requirements, before entering the above Labs.

• Hard Hat.  Should be worn whenever any overhead activities are taking place.  Please clean all hardhats with sanitizer supplied by RPCC after each use.
• Safety Glasses.  These should be clear and not darkened or shaded.  These will be provided by RPCC if needed.  You may wear contact lenses with proper safety glasses.
• Ear Protection.  These will be provided by RPCC as needed for tasks that may expose personnel to elevated noise levels.
• Gloves.  Gloves must be worn for any task in these Labs unless the wearing of gloves would make the task more difficult or unsafe.  Gloves are not required if the hands will not come into contact with Lab Equipment and/or Materials.  Glove type will depend on the material exposure and the hazard(s) associated with the task.  Gloves will be provided, as needed, by RPCC.

General Guidance

• Cell phone use is not allowed in our Labs.  Exit the Lab if cell phone use is needed.  
• Clothing should be snug-fitting so that it cannot come into accidental contact with moving/rotating equipment.
• Jewelry such as necklaces, pendants, loose-fitting bracelets must not be worn in proximity of moving/rotating equipment.
• Persons with long hair must provide a hair net or fix hair where it cannot come into contact with moving/rotating equipment.
• Food & drinks are not permitted in Labs.