Smoking in the MachineShop

Greetings. This is my first time posting here but I have visited this fine group regularly for sometime. I hope this is not to much of a sensitive topic but I am having great difficulties in just how to address this issue. I just about have a war on my hands and may lose some employees over this and need some experienced help. An employee that has long been gone forced the issue and measures had to be taken. There was a smoking area provided where people can go but the non-smokers want to be able to take 5-10 minutes per hour break also. The smokers gather to takes their breaks whenever they want and the non-smokers actually are harder workers. From the beginning one senior man has always said he will quit if the shop ever became a non smoking shop. If he leaves this will cause dire consequences.Others may leave if is were to be the other way around. This has always been an easy going place to work until now. Without going into any more details about the major problems that have arisen can anyone please tell what to do?
Proto

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Why can they not smoke at the machines? You eliminate the so called *break* that way.

Anthony wrote:
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Oh nice. Cigarette butts in the chip pans. Cigarette burns on the tables of the the Bridgeports. Machines that make you stink just to touch them. Spent cigarettes floating in the coolant. Ashes and butts everywhere and not the nice kind of butts either. Why not just dump five tons of fresh cow shit in the aisles and be done with it ?

hamei wrote:
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I worked in a small shop as a machinist where there were vacuum vents that sucked up all the smoke before it got anywhere. It even removed all traces of that other brand a few smoked while on the job. I am considering the vacuum cleaner approach. The kind there were in a Mold Making shop I worked in the 80's that had a room full of units that sucked up the graphite dust. Maybe this approach would be agreeable if they took as much care as the 'other guys' in that other place not to let the smoke get around.. I always said that smokers of all types should be able to do what they want if it were in the same context as to keep it under wraps.
J.

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Mist/Smoke collection/filter units are a good investment anyway. You know that the stuff coming off the metal isn't anymore good for you than smoking. Helps keep the shop clean too (even non-smoking shops). It also may reduce your medical insurance premiums, as the employees are not exposed to toxic fumes.

Anthony wrote:
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That is someting I have on my list to consider. Thanks.
J.

Proto wrote:
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in a machine shop it's not the smoke. There's plenty of air in most shops and you don't need to get all kissy-close to other guys. It's all the other filthy stinking detritus which they will *not* take care of, guaranteed.

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Butts don't belong in the chip pan, coolant tank or anywhere else except an ashtray. And yes, I am a smoker. But I never throw butts in a machine. Ash trays are not expensive.

wrote:
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Electrostatics do work pretty well on smoke.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&categoryB912&item873740443 &rd=1&ssPageName=WD1V

Cliff wrote:
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Wow. I am glad you thought of all this. I will admit I have some work to do in all areas discussed. I am going to print out this post and a few others and bring up some new and detailed topics at a meeting at the end of the month. What would you say would be an acceptable temperature range? How low would be too low? It is really cold in the manual area but they are old Sharpe Knee mills. Not the most expensive. I will be looking towards one or two new mills I can fit the ProtoTrac onto.

Proto wrote:
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work to
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few
end of
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range?
Ok I'm in California, but my temperature range for working can vary with the seasons, and my acclimatization. I find I can work fairly wel, in daytime, between 55F in the Winter and 85F in the Summer. The closer to 72F and 78F, the better.
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Above 95F, I'm taking shade breaks, and at 100F, I'll go home. F**** it!
I have been up at a lake in late fall (November 20th), Elevation 4300 feet, and woke up at 5:00 a.m., got out of my sleeping bag, and crawled out of the tent to see 1/2 inch of ice, in the water jug and frost everywhere, in the dim morning light. I think it was down to 26F. But by 8:00a.m. with no wind and standing in the Sunshine, by the lake, fishing, it was 40F, and comfortable.
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:/
one or
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Halcitron wrote:
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Sound like my windshield just about any morning this winter. The half inch of ice anyway.
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Cliff wrote:
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I am concerned about how the machines function with in a wide range of temperatures. The people can work to get warmed up.
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Cliff wrote:
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Everyone that knows me knows I am kidding. If you read earlier post about all the guys get to do while working. They even got friends stopping in from time to time but I had to put that one.
I am looking for the photos of the shop so I can put them up. Give me a few minutes here.

Cliff wrote:
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Like I said it is a small shop.
http://home.comcast.net/~prototracer/Machines/DansHASS.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~prototracer/Machines/RoundVille.jpg

wrote:
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http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category 876&itemu00336674 &rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW
Add some sheetmetal and a 2000cfm blower.

wrote:
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4
As a point of reference, 2000 cfm equates roughly to a 5 ton residential A/C air handler.

PrecisionMachinisT wrote:
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I really have to address the insulation I am afraid. That and heat coming in from the black hot top. To bad it didn't come in other colors.

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http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category 876&itemu0033667
Nobody said you "have" to install A/C......I was just putting forth that any old 5 ton air handler would work grand as a source for your blower is all--or use the air handler and simply leave the refrigerant lines unconnected....
This would concievably pass all of the air within a 20 x 20 space having 8 ft ceiling through the filter in a time span of appx 2.5 minutes....if my numbers are correct.
I'm pretty sure that Ive found what would be your most efficient / lowest cost solution if you desire to filter the shop air....if you continue to erect barriers surrounding taking action upon it then that is entirely up to you.
Seeya....

PrecisionMachinisT wrote:
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There is A/C but the building is oddly shaped with an addition poorly insulated. Not a well constructed building to start with I'm afraid. I will just have to take my time in making the best of every modification possibly.