CONTROL BANDING: ISSUES AND OPPORTUNITIES

Control Banding schemes have been developed to allow users to quickly determine proper controls for worker protection based on readily available information on health hazards, exposure potential and existing controls. They are primarily intended for use by small and medium sized enterprises that lack professional industrial hygiene expertise.

In 2005, the ACGIH® Board of Directors chartered a task force of experts in toxicology and exposure assessment to review existing Control Banding schemes (i.e., COSHH Essentials and the WHO/ILO Toolkit), identify the key issues associated with their use, and offer specific recommendations for improvement in each of the main components of the schemes. The recommendations represent opportunities for industrial hygienists to apply their expertise and efforts to ensure that Control Banding is adequately developed and validated prior to its wide application as a viable and effective exposure control strategy. This document reports those findings.