The latest range of Bahco Non-Sparking (NS) tools has been designed for use in potentially explosive environments, where ‘traditional’ steel tools might create sparks in the presence of combustible or easily ignitable vapours, liquids and dust.
Bahco hand tools and specialist equipment have been synonymous with safety for almost 130 years; the global brand’s design and manufacturing teams are passionate about user safety.
Because NS tools cannot reach the hardness of conventional tools their use has to be carried out with special care. Mark Haywood, who leads the Bahco team in the UK, offers the following recommendations to users of NS tools:
- Avoid overstraining and heating; make frequent visual checks of each NS tool during use;
- Don’t use both a steel tool and an NS tool at the same time;
- Don’t use high copper content tools, such as Al-Br and Cu-Be tools, in direct contact with acetylene;
- Always take considerable care when reworking copper-beryllium (Cu-Be) tools as beryllium (Be) dust or vapour is toxic;
- Cu-Be tools should be ground only when wet;
- Do not inhale any dust and be sure to wear a face mask;
- Make sure all NS tools are kept clean and free from ferrous or other contaminants which may hamper the properties of a non-sparking tool;
- The tool’s surface temperature must not be higher than the present gases temperature;
- Ensure that no objects which could cause a spark fall or are dropped within the working environment.
Reducing risk: Non-ferrous, softer materials such as brass, bronze, copper-aluminum alloys (aluminum bronze), or copper-beryllium alloys (beryllium bronze) greatly reduce the risk of producing ignitable sparks.
Bahco NS tools are manufactured in aluminum-bronze (Al-Br) or copper-beryllium (Cu-Be), making them both safe and suitable for use in hazardous environments.
All NS tools in the range are produced according to the international DIN and ISO standards in terms of dimensions, cutting capacity, and strength, with hardness being adapted to the purpose of the tool.
Tools used for striking applications, like slogging wrenches and hammers, are manufactured in aluminum-bronze (Al-Br), while tools that require a higher torque and precision performance, such as pliers, screwdrivers and adjustable wrenches, are manufactured in copper-beryllium (Cu-Be).
Hand tools are not within the scope of the 94/9/EC directive but Bahco take safety so seriously that they have their NS range certified by the independent German laboratory BAM, the German Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing.
The Bahco range of NS tools includes hammers, pliers, screwdrivers, wrenches, grattoirs and other striking and construction tools.
Its non-sparking adjustable wrenches, manufactured in copper beryllium, are die-forged, anti-magnetic and offer high resistance to corrosion.
NS screwdrivers for use with slotted head, Phillips® or Posidriv® screws have been developed by Bahco using its scientific ERGO® process. Made from copper beryllium they are cold rolled, anti-magnetic and corrosion resistant. The range also includes NS pliers in several types, including combination, diagonal cutting, long nose and slip joint.
For more information on non-sparking tools visit www.bahco.com
