Instrument Safety
This page contains the safety requirements to those who fabricate and bring astronomical instrument into Subaru Telescope premises and those who work for the instrument in the Subaru Telescope premises.
Analyzing the instrument
First of all, instrument builders must analyze safety and hazards of the instrument they are working with. The analysis should be performed in every step of reviews - starting from the Conceptual Design Review and the Preliminary Design Review to the Final Acceptance Review.
Refer to the Subaru Telescope Hazard List for possible hazards which may exist in the instrument or in activities related to the instrumentation.
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Subaru Telescope Hazard List in pdf
Analyzing the job safety
The next step is to analyze jobs, tasks or work procedures related to the instrument. To proceed with this step, the instrument builders must visit Subaru Telescope facilities where the instrument will be located and installed, survey work environment such as available tools or machines, and discuss Subaru Telescope staff members who will help load/unload/move/install the instrument and those who will do these jobs after the instrument is handed over to the observatory.
Again, refer to the Subaru Telescope Hazard List for possible hazards which may exist in the instrument or in activities related to the instrumentation.
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Subaru Telescope Hazard List in pdf
Training requirements
- Summit Safety
- Portable power tools
- Ladder (Subpart D Walking-working surfaces)
- Emergency Plan (Subpart E—Exit routes, emergency action plans, and fire prevention plans)
- Manlift (Subpart F—Powered platforms, manlifts, and vehicle-mounted work platforms)
- Hearing protection (Subpart G—Occupational health and environmental control)
- Hazardous Materials and Hazardous Waste (Subpart H—Hazardous Materials)
- PPE (Subpart I—Personal protective equipment)
- Confined spaces (Subpart J—General environmental controls)
- Lockout/Tagout (Subpart J—General environmental controls)
- Compressed gas (Subpart M—Compressed gas and compressed air equipment)
- Forklift and motored pallet jack (Subpart N—Materials handling and storage)
- Crane and rigging (Subpart N—Materials handling and storage)
- Shop machine (Subpart O—Machinery and machine guarding)
- Electrical Safety (Subpart S—Electrical)
- Hazard communication (Subpart Z—Toxic and hazardous substances)
Prior planning requirements
- Plan storage area for all items and get an approval by the site manager and the safety officer before they are brought to Subaru Telescope facilities. If wiring is necessary, plan the wiring schedule and get an approval by the site manager and the safety officer before wiring takes place.
- Make the Hearing Conservation Program if the project plans to use equipment that makes noise
of which level exceeds OSHA regulations.
Prepare the necessary shield if the equipment emits electro-magnetic wave of which intensity exceeds OSHA regulations. - Wear goggles to use power tools. Wear steel-toe shoes and a hard hat in the dome. Wear goggles and gloves when you handle hazardous material. PPE must meet or exceed OSHA’s standard.
- All lifting jigs including slings, eye bolts and shackles must have load capacity printed in English and legible. The load capacity must be certified and documented by a company or by a mechanical engineer. Written instructions are required if Subaru Telescope staff is asked to assist to move instrument.
- Contact the safety officer if welding at the summit is necessary well ahead of time. Welding at Hilo base facility is not permitted.
- The instrument must be grounded. If it cannot be grounded. The measure to prevent
electrocution must be documented and signed by an electrical engineer.
A monitoring device for voltage leak may be necessary.
The instrument must be designed so that safety measures to prevent electrocution are considered. The safety design must be documented and signed by an electrical engineer. The area where electrocution may occur, a proper sign must be posted. The sign must be written at least in English. - Electrical and electronics equipment must be used according to the owner’s manual. For example, an equipment which is designed for 100V AC may not be used for 115V AC.
- A safety manual must be made for the instrument and must have cautions, alerts and warnings for unsafe condition and usage.
- You must obtain a permit from Subaru Telescope prior to bringing hazardous material including solvent or adhesive. Decide the person in charge of the material, quantity and the place of storage.
- The label of the material and SDS(MSDS) must be written in English with other languages as optional.Bringing radioactive material into the Subaru Telescope premises is prohibited.The person in charge of the material must give a training to those who will use it and who have a risk of exposure. The training record must be submitted to Subaru Telescope.
- DOT HMR (49CFR100-185): Used hazardous material must be properly disposed by the person in charge of the material. Never leave it in the Subaru Telescope premises without a consent of the observatory.Shipping of hazardous material from Subaru Telescope is possible only when a trained staff exists.
- Laser Safety (21 CFR 1010, 1040, ANSI Z136.1): You must obtain a prior permit by the laser safety officer if you plan to bring Class 3b and 4 laser equipment. Laser operator must complete either a briefing or a training which the laser safety officer requires.
- Electric parts such as conductors and equipment
- All electrical equipment including instrument, peripheral machines and control computers used in Subaru Telescope premises should be approved by a Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory (NRTL) such as Underwriters Laboratories, Inc. (UL). If electric equipment not approved by (NRTL) must be used, make sure the equipment meets OSHA standards and submit document supporting the determination that the equipment is safe.
- Visit OSHA web site for details https://www.osha.gov/dts/otpca/nrtl/1910refs.html
- OSHA discusses the use of coffee maker in the workplace https://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=INTERPRETATIONS&p_id=25006
- OSHA also discusses the use of custom-made electrical equipment https://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=INTERPRETATIONS&p_id=21240
- ANSI-NETA Standard for Maintenance Testing Specifications for Electrical Power Equipment and Systems 2011;http://www.iemworldwide.com/pdf/ansi-neta-mts-2011.pdf
- The instrument should be designed so that the trip to the dome is not necessary for a regular operation purpose during the evening except for troubleshooting or unforeseen reasons.
Disclaimer
The contents of this page, all pages, forms and documents in the Safety section may be modified without notice. Readers are encouraged to visit pages of their interest occasionally to keep themselves updated.
Created on November 26, 2014
Updated on February 13, 2015
- Subaru Telescope Product/Equipment/Instrument Hazard Analysis Form has been updated.
- A link to ANSI/NETA MTS-2011 has been added.
- No trip to the dome during the evening has been added to the prior planning requirements.