On 14. and May 15, 2019, the 11th “Safety of Technical Equipment 2019” conference was held at the Wellness Hotel Chopok in Demänovská Dolina. The conference was organized by Technická inšpekcia, a.s., together with the Slovak Welding Society as a co-organizer. The conference traditionally brought together managers responsible for the safety of machinery and equipment, operators of technical equipment, occupational health and safety (OHS) specialists, safety technicians, authorized safety technicians, labor inspectors, designers, inspection technicians, manufacturers of technical equipment, entrepreneurs, service companies, and other experts in the field to expand their knowledge with current information regarding the safety of technical equipment.
The conference, attended by 160 participants from 46 different companies, was held under the auspices of the Minister of Labor, Social Affairs, and Family of the Slovak Republic, JUDr. Ján Richter, who, by granting his patronage, confirmed the significance of the conference and its benefit for increasing OHS levels nationwide.
Guests and participants were welcomed by the Director General of Technická inšpekcia, a.s., Ing. Dušan Perniš. In his opening remarks, he emphasized that the goal is to improve prevention and strengthen the culture of work, adopting protective measures that take into account scientific and technical knowledge, the aging of the working population, and technological developments, specifically smart industry. He expressed his conviction that the conference, following previous years, will contribute to improving awareness, promotion, and prevention in the field of OHS.
The Director General of the Labor Section of the Ministry of Labor, Social Affairs, and Family of the Slovak Republic, PaedDr. Danica Lehocká, PhD., conveyed the words of Minister JUDr. Ján Richter, stating that in the interest of the economic and social development of the Slovak Republic, it is necessary to help intensify the care of employers for dignified working conditions, and especially for the protection of the life and health of employees at work. She reminded the audience that the experts who take care of technical equipment to ensure it functions flawlessly and does not endanger anyone are extremely important individuals who deserve recognition and respect.
The Director General of the National Labor Inspectorate, Ing. Karol Habina, also briefly addressed those present. He noted that the conference was taking place during the 50th anniversary of labor inspection in Slovakia. He emphasized the importance of caring for the safety of technical equipment as part of the OHS management system. He noted with satisfaction that the accident rate is decreasing, as in 2018, the National Labor Inspectorate recorded the lowest number of occupational accidents resulting in serious injury in the last 25 years, to which the care for the safety of technical equipment undoubtedly contributed.
Legislation in the field of OHS was the subject of a lecture by JUDr. Romana Hurtuková, PhD., Director of the Labor Protection Department at the Ministry of Labor, Social Affairs, and Family of the Slovak Republic. She pointed out application and interpretation problems in the field of OHS and their possible solutions, whether in the form of planned necessary legislative changes or through methodical and interpretive activities. She mentioned the legislative changes that currently appear to be the most urgent.
Ing. Daniela Gecelovská from the National Labor Inspectorate discussed the changes brought by the new Act No. 56/2018 Coll. on product conformity assessment and making specified products available on the market, effective from April 1, 2018. In this context, she pointed out the specific experiences of labor inspectorates as market surveillance authorities performing supervision over specified products placed on the market and into service.
Representative of the Slovak Welding Society Ing. Ľuboš Mráz, PhD. pointed out the importance of choosing welding conditions to prevent the occurrence of defects after welding, even before the exploitation of the welded structure in operation. He presented several cases of failure of structural materials in operation, as well as potential risks of errors or defects during the welding of steel structures. He drew attention to the importance of potential sources of failure risks, whether due to environmental effects or the use of incorrect procedures during production.
The issue of equipment intended for use in potentially explosive atmospheres was the subject of a lecture by Ing. Ján Vencel from Technická inšpekcia, a.s. He stated that the selection of suitable equipment for explosive atmospheres and their integration into a functional unit must be carried out based on project documentation that guarantees the safety of the technological unit. The requirements for when equipment can be considered safe are addressed by the ATEX directive. The speaker explained in detail how to read product markings according to this directive and the differences between the ATEX II directive (intended for equipment operators) and ATEX I (intended for manufacturers).
The lecture by Ing. Ján Vencel was followed by Ing. Jaroslav Széplaky from Duslo Šaľa, a.s., with a contribution titled Implementation of ATEX Standards at the Ammonia 4 Plant. He emphasized that ammonia production is an important part of Duslo’s output. From the first ton of liquid ammonia produced in January 1964 to today, the company has produced more than 20 million tons of ammonia. Using several specific figures and examples, he illustrated how ATEX directives are applied within the company, and especially in the mentioned plant, as the basis for operational safety.
Ing. Juraj Dudáš from the Slovak Association of Unmanned Vehicles and Systems provided information on the use of drones in the inspection of technical equipment. The use of drones is versatile; as examples, he cited searching for damage on the internal structures of buildings, thermal imaging of machinery, searching for heat leaks in buildings, inspecting and searching for damage to underground pipelines, and inspections of chimneys and other vertical structures. He also provided information on legislation regarding the use of drones.
Safety on children’s playgrounds and recreational sports grounds was addressed in a contribution by Ing. Samuel Maljarčik from Technická inšpekcia, a.s. He noted that when using them, many do not realize that these are also technical devices subject to generally binding legal regulations as well as technical standards. Ing. Maljarčik mentioned several examples of risks lurking on such equipment, which serves for the entertainment and play of children and for sports and recreational activities for both children and adults.
Ing. Marián Kováčik from ABB, s.r.o. dealt in his lecture with the issue of heavy and dangerous work that should be performed by robots instead of humans, or where human-robot collaboration should take place, as a collaborative robot can easily handle such tasks. He stated that we hear about robotization more and more often, but we do not think at all about the dangers associated with the use of robots. He pointed out some dangerous situations that can arise when using robots. Dangerous properties of robots include their size, weight, and speed, creating a high risk of permanent health damage. The increasing rate of robotization in industry suggests that increased attention will need to be paid to these issues in the future.
Experience in the field of technical equipment safety at Západoslovenská distribučná, a.s. was presented by Ing. Juraj Lipták. It was clear from his presentation that the company approaches safety somewhat differently than elsewhere, in an unconventional and innovative way. He described in a detailed and interesting manner possible procedures and activities in OHS management, focusing on a value-based approach to this area and the necessary participation of the employees themselves in this process.
On the second day, the first speaker was Ing. Martin Demčák, PhD., from Slovnaft, a.s. In his lecture, he focused on preventive measures in the operation of technical equipment. He emphasized that one of the inseparable parts of a company’s life is the risk associated with its activities, which it must face. He also addressed the frequently asked question of whether a state described as safe is truly safe enough. Long-term investigation of undesirable events in the company shows a close connection with unsuitable design as a frequent cause of many events. Some of them were serious in nature and, in addition to the possible threat to life and health, led to significant property losses or damage to the company’s reputation. He stated that the company proactively addresses the elimination of these deficiencies, gradually improves unsatisfactory equipment design, and actively participates in the design of new technologies to prevent the occurrence of dangerous conditions.
Ivan Orth and Ing. Ladislav Hlinica dedicated their lecture to the identification of causes and analysis of identified deficiencies during professional inspections and testing at Eustream, a.s. They presented several examples of the most common errors and deficiencies in the field of gas equipment, pressure equipment, and during inspections and tests in low-pressure hot water boiler rooms. They emphasized that correctly classifying an identified deficiency requires the inspection technician to have very good knowledge and sufficient experience in the given field.
An interesting lecture was given by Ing. Roland Páleník from Philips Slovakia, s.r.o. In addition to information about the company’s activities, those present learned details about the preparation of such a demanding project as the lighting of the National Football Stadium in Bratislava.
In the territory of the Slovak Republic, the Fire and Rescue Service records several thousand fires every year, causing damages in the millions of euros, but more importantly, resulting in injuries and deaths. This was reported by First Lieutenant Ing. Pavol Dubaj from the Slovak Association of Fire Officers, who divided his presentation into two parts. In the first part, he focused on general fire statistics, as well as more specific statistics on the causes of fires in technical equipment and operational-technical failures as causes of fire. In the second part, he provided details from several specific fire cases.
Col. Ing. Pavol Hrdý from the Institute of Forensic Science of the Police Force of the Slovak Republic aptly titled his lecture “Causes of Technical Equipment Accidents.” He focused on methods for determining the causes of real accidents. Determining the cause of every accident is very important because knowing the cause provides a clear path to correction and prevention.
In evaluating the conference, it can be stated that the 11th year successfully followed previous years. The high professional level of the program, ensured by renowned lecturers and experts, allowed conference participants to gain a wealth of useful information. This is undoubtedly information that most participants will use in practical application in their further professional careers. The conference organizers therefore reasonably expect that this conference will also actively contribute to increasing the level of technical safety in the Slovak Republic.
In addition to the organizational team of Technická inšpekcia, a.s., thanks for the successful course of the conference also go to the partners and sponsors of the conference. We also thank the participants for their attendance and look forward to meeting at the 12th year of the conference, which will take place on April 28 and 29, 2020, at the Wellness Hotel Chopok in Demänovská Dolina.
Related pages: BTZ Conferences, Education.