Every day, thousands of individuals wake up and prepare for work at the shop or on the jobsite. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) have identified exposure to silica as a health hazard to workers involved in finishing and installing natural and manufactured stone countertop products, both in fabrication shops and during in-home finishing/installation. This hazard can be mitigated with simple and effective dust controls in most countertop operations¹.
Professionals serious about OSHA compliance, site contamination and employee safety know how important it is to enforce strict standards relative to airborne hazards like silica or other harmful airborne materials like asbestos. The safest of jobsites are those where every employee is looking out for each other by reporting accidents, maintaining equipment and following regulations.