The speaker Prof. Dr. Bernd Scheel with Hans-Joachim Ritz, head of the South Baden region of the VDSI and Prof. Dr. Arno Weber, HFU
Prof. Dr. Scheel lectures on “Fires and explosions” in safety and security programmes
Together with the South Baden regional group of the Association for Safety, Health and Environmental Protection at Work (VDSI), a joint training event on two important occupational safety topics was held on St. Nicholas Day − Fires and Explosions and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).
The experimental lecture on the subject of fires and explosions was particularly spectacular. The speaker, Prof. Dr. Bernd Scheel, went into detail about the fire triangle and the explosion square (this refers to ignitable mixtures of flammable substances with air in a dangerous volume, known in technical jargon as a hazardous explosive atmosphere). In addition to the theoretical background and humorous interludes, various experiments were performed to demonstrate the ignition sources, combustible dusts, vapours and gases as well as the selection of suitable extinguishing agents. With reports from actual accidents, the former employee of the German Social Accident Insurance Institution for the raw materials and chemical industry vividly underlined how necessary it is to take protective measures.
The programme continued in the afternoon with further presentations on personal protective equipment (PPE). First, Arno Weber reported on the status of the draft PPE usage ordinance. Fabian Kratzke from the Tübingen Regional Council addressed the difficulties of market surveillance, particularly in the context of PPE. He criticised, for example, the inadequate standardisation of FFP2 and FFP3 masks, which still show too much leakage in actual use despite passing the test. Jürgen Schmidt, head of the PPE Department at the VDSI, presented the publication on the scope of training and instruction and Sebastian Martin reported from practice on what must be observed when using PPE against falls from a height. In particular, rescuing an accident victim from a suspended rope poses enormous challenges for the accompanying training and organisation.
The cooperation between the VDSI and the Security & Safety Engineering bachelor's and the Risk, Reliability and Safety Engineering at Furtwangen University master's has been taking place for many years. In addition to the purely technical content, these events supplement the curriculum and are also intended to promote the exchange between experts who are active in occupational safety and the prospective safety engineers. Among other things, the partnership has already resulted in several final theses.
The curriculum of the Security & Safety Engineering and Risk, Reliability and Safety Engineering degrees is unique in Germany. HFU graduates successfully find jobs in industry, administration, the fire department and aid organisations. With around 5600 members, the VDSI is the largest professional association for safety and health at work in Germany and one of the largest in Europe.
