WORK FATIGUE POLICY & HEAT STRESS PREVENTION PROCEDURE

• Heavy sweating.
• Paleness of Skin. Skin may be cool and moist.
• Muscle cramps.
• Tiredness.
• Weakness. Pulse rate may be fast but weak. Breathing may be fast but Shallow.
• Dizziness.
• Headache.
• Nausea or vomiting.
• Fainting.

Treatment

• Immediately call for emergency medical assistance.
• Move the worker suffering from heat exhaustion to a cool and shady
area. Do not leave the person alone.
• Cool the person rapidly with running water, cold compresses and/or
rapid fanning, if possible.
• Provide cool drinking water, or electrolyte / ion replacement drinks, if
they are alert. Avoid caffeine and alcohol.
• Remove extra clothing when necessary and continue to cool their body
temperature until medical assistance arrives.
Heat Cramps
Heat cramps are painful spasms of the muscles generally thought to be
caused by an imbalance of electrolytes (e.g. essential minerals, such as
sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium) in the body. This may occur
when a person carries out strenuous physical activity, drinks large quantities
of water, but fails to replace salts / electrolytes lost through sweating.
Cramps can occur during or after working hours, and may be relieved by
drinking saline / electrolyte solutions. In more serious cases, and if,
determined necessary by a doctor, a saline solution should be administered
intravenously for quicker relief.

Symptoms

Muscle pains or spasm usually in the abdomen, arms or legs.

Treatment

• Immediately call for emergency medical assistance.
• Stop all activity and sit quietly in a cool and shady area. Inform nearby
workers of the problems encountered.
• Drink clear juice or a liquid containing salt (e.g. electrolyte / ion
replacement drinks)
• Do not returns to strenuous activity for at least a few hours after the
cramps subside. It should be noted that further exertion might lead to
heat exhaustion and/or heat stroke.
• Seek medical attention if heat cramps do not subside within 1 hour.

Heat Rash

Hear rash, also known as prickly heat, may occur in hot and humid
environments where sweat is not easily removed from the surface of the skin
by evaporation. When extensive, or complicated by infection, heat rash
can be so uncomfortable that in inhibits sleep and impedes a worker’s
performance or even results in temporary total disability. In most cases, heat
rashes will disappear when the affected individual returns to a cooler
environment.

Causes of Thermal Stress illnesses / injuries

Individual Susceptibility

It is difficult to predict just who will be affected by thermal stress, and when,
because individual susceptibility varies. In addition, environmental factors
causing thermal stress are not restricted to ambient air temperature, as
radiant heat, air movement, conduction and relative humidity all affect an
individual’s response to heat.
Age, weight, degree of physical fitness, degree of acclimatization,
metabolism, use of alcohol or drugs, and a variety of medical conditions,
such as hypertension, also affect a person’s sensitivity to heat. Even the type
of clothing worn must be considered.
All ITC and subcontractor employees will undergo a pre-employment health
assessment, performed by a health practitioner to ensure that they are
physically fit and do not have a serious pre-existing medical condition prior
to being assigned to the project.

Temperature

The higher the air temperature, the less heat the body can lose by
convection, conduction and radiation. If the temperature of the
environment increases above skin temperature, the body will actually gain
heat from the environment instead of losing heat to it.

Air Humidity

The amount of moisture present in the air determines whether moisture
(sweat) in vapour form flows from the skin to the environment, or vice versa.
In general, the moisture concentration at the skin will be higher than in the
environment, making evaporative heat loss from the skin possible.

Wind Speed

Convective and evaporative heat losses increase with increasing wind
speed.

Clothing Insulation

Clothing functions as a barrier to heat and moisture transfer between the
skin and the environment. In this way it can protect against extreme heat
and cold but, at the same time, it hampers the loss of excessive body heat
generated during physical activity / effort.

THERMAL STRESS PREVENTION & CONTROL MEASURES

Engineering Controls

ITC shall consider the implementation of either or all of the following
engineering control measures during the construction Phase to minimize the
potential to expose workers to conditions that may cause thermal stress.

Convection Methods

General Ventilation
General ventilation to dilute hot air with cooler air (generally cooler air that
is brought in from the outside), such control measures will be considered for
the workshops and confined spaces.

Conduction & Radiation Methods

Insulation

Insulating hot surfaces that generate heat, to reduce the amount of heat to
which a worker may be exposed.

Shield

Shields can be used to reduce radiant heat, i.e. heat coming from hot
surfaces within the worker’s line of sight. Surface that exceed 35*C are
sources of infrared radiation that can add to the worker’s heat load.
Shields should be located so that they do not interface with airflow, unless
they are also being used to reduce convective heating. The reflective
surface of the shield should be kept clean to maintain its effectiveness.

Refrigerative Methods
All buildings at site, particularly offices and accommodation / camp
buildings, shall be cooled using air-conditioning units.

Shade

Canopies of awnings shall be provided over sections of the site where work
is being carried out to shield workers from the U/V rays of the sun, as well as
from the direct heat of the sun. Canopies, awnings or tents will also be
erected to provide shade of workers taking their predetermined rest breaks,
to minimize their exposure to the direct sun (refer to section 5.2 below).

Limiting Exposure Time and/or Temperature (Work-Rest Regime)

The following measures will be implemented to minimize the exposure of
workers to conditions that may cause thermal stress.
When possible during the hot summer season, schedule strenuous or hot
jobs for the cooler part of the day (early morning, late afternoon, or night
shift)
Add extra personnel to reduce exposure time for each member of the
crew.
Permit freedom to interrupt work when a worker feels extreme heat
discomfort.
Adjust schedule when possible so that hot operations are not performed at
the same time and place as other operations that require the presence of
workers.
Provide regular rest breaks during hot weather to allow the body to cool
down, especially where the work is hard, physical. The following table
provides guidance as to the minimum rest breaks to be provided every hour
for outside work during temperatures.
Provision of a thermometer to monitor ambient shade temperature.

Fluid Replacement

Each worker is issued with a personal 1ltr water flask (refer to 5.5) cool water
shall be readily available in close proximity to replenish these, workers are
advised to drink adequate amounts of water frequently (preferably every
20-30 minutes) to replace the water lost through sweating.
Each worker is advised to drink at least 4 liters of water during an 8 hour shift
and 6 liters during a 10 hour shift.
It is recommended that workers do not take salt tablets (or large amounts of
salt on their food), as more water will be required by the body to remove
excess salt, which increases the amount of work for the kidneys and further
increases the risk of dehydration. Salts tablets (or excess salt) also increase
the risk of high blood pressure.

Health Assessment / Monitoring.

Only fit, healthy workers will be allowed to work in conditions where severe
thermal stress is a possibility. All employees are required to undergo a health
assessment prior to their employment, or deployment to site.

Protective Clothing /PPE
Workers on site are required to wear Personal Protective Equipment (PPE),
such as safety helmets, safety shoes / boots, coveralls and safety glasses
(tinted for the sun or bright conditions). This PPE provides some protection
from the sun’s harmful U/V rays, but does not prevent thermal stress. In
addition each employee is issued with a personal 1ltr water flask this is
considered as part of the mandatory PPE requirements; employees are
responsible for ensuring that the flask is replenished as and when emptied.

Inspections

The Project HSE Officer, will perform routine informal and formal inspections
on site to check that the requirements of this procedure are being
implemented. Formal inspection will be recorded on the Thermal Stress
Prevention Checklist provided as Appendix 1.
The findings of these inspections will be reported to the project and
corporate HSE Managers.

Risk Assessment

Prior to any work being undertaken, a risk assessment is prepared in
accordance with the Hazard identification and Risk Analysis Procedure ITCHSE-
002. During a job specific risk assessment, issues such as thermal stress
will be included and appropriate protection and mitigation measures

ADDITIONAL PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES
In addition to the Thermal Stress Prevention and Control Measures provided
in section 5, the following precautionary measures shall also be observed:
• Provide accurate verbal and written instructions, (refer to self check
urine colors dehydration indicator chart appendix 3, this chart is
displayed in all toilet facilities), frequent training programs, and other
information about thermal stress related conditions.
• Assure co-worker observation to detect signs and symptoms of
thermal stress.
• Pay extra attention to those who take medications that compromise
normal cardiovascular, blood pressure, body temperature
regulation, renal, or sweat gland functions.
• Ensure that first aiders are properly trained in the recognition of
thermal stress symptoms and required treatment.
• Ensure that temperature and humidity are measured and recorded
regularly (at least twice daily).

TRANING & EDUCATION
Training is the key to good work practices. Unless all employees understand
the reasons for using new, or changing old work practices, the chances of
such a program succeeding are greatly reduced.
The HSE induction / Orientation provided to all employees will explain the
causes and symptoms of thermal stress related illnesses and injuries,
minimum PPE requirements, the need to take regular rest breaks in the
shade, and the need to drink plenty of water (to replace body fluids lost
through sweating) when working in hot climates and conditions.
Specific Thermal Stress Prevention training will be provided to all Managers,
Superintendents and Supervisors and will include, but not be limited to, the
following components:
• Knowledge of the hazards of thermal stress.
• Recognition of predisposing factors, danger signs, symptoms and potential
effects of thermal stress related illnesses and injuries.
• Awareness of firs-aid procedures for treatment of thermal stress related
illnesses and injuries, including heat stroke, heat exhaustion and heat
cramps.
• Employee responsibilities in avoiding thermal stress.
• Dangers of using drugs, including therapeutic ones, and alcohol in hot work
environments.
• Use of protective clothing and equipment.
• Planning of strenuous / physical activities and hot operations for cooler
periods, wherever possible, e.g. early morning or evening / night.
• Importance of regular rest breaks in the shade or air-conditioning during hot
periods as per the requirements of section 5.2 of this procedure.
• Requirement to regularly drink water or electrolyte drinks to replace body
fluids lost through sweating. Personnel should be made aware of the
requirement to drink at least 4 liters of water during an 8 hours shift and 6
liters during a 10 hour shift.
• Use of relief workers where possible.

REVIEW & IMPROVEMENT

This Thermal Stress Prevention Procedure will be subjected to audit by HSE
Department in accordance with the internal Audit Procedure. ITC-HSE-02