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1 in the Chemical laboratory I '2 '
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Edited by N O R M A N V. STEERE, 140 Melbourne Ave., S.E. Minneapolis, Minn. 5541 4
LXXXVI. Hazardous Chemicals Handling in the Pharmaceutical Chemical Industry* ROBERT J. DILLE, Manager, Maferiols Operations, Tippecanoe Laboratories, Eli Lilly a n d Company, Box 685, Lafayefie, Indiana 47902 Hmdling alpervisors and opemlms heThe pm.pose c,f this article is to discuss emne very f;tmilinr with (,he of iirrmo of tho pn,blems in the plnlrllirrgand prarfiro of hnom.drnm chemirnls handling in the phil~~rnncoulienl chemical i n d ~ ~ i t ~ y . The author is not speaking nbonl (his pmhlem as n slat? safety cunsnllnnt or slnR chemical engineer, b n i ns s line manager directly responsible for the d o t y of employees, the prntection of plnnl. facilities ond prnperly, and, of course, operating nn efficient mnlerinls mnnngemerit fonrt,ion. T h e handling af hnnnrdoos chemicnls presents serious pn,blcms in all industries. However, w m e p:n.ticulw aspects of the pharmaceutical chemical indirstly present, unique situ:it,ions resulting in problems that, differ from those in t,he hcavy ehemieal ind~~sbry.I n speaking of the phm-
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the mat,erisls they nre handling day nfter day. I n the t,ypicnl phat.mnceuticnl chemiral induslry plnnt, however, the siiuntion is quilo dilTerent. Generally, this plxnt. ia n r;mall bnteh producer mther than a largo v o h m o emtinuous producer of its prorlnrts. The variety of ' products mmmfnct,wcd is usunlly very broad involving i~ wide r m g c of chemical processes. The
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medieinsl ehemicols into phermnceulical dosage forms. The lypienl chemicnl indust,ry plnnt pnjd~teinglarge cnnlinnaos qimniilies of basic ehemicala, plastics, resins, &r., certainly has prnhlem in hm~dlingvast qunnlilies of hazardous ohcmicnls, b u t geuerally these ehemicds are being hardled in bulk systems by highly trained pe~.simnelskilled in handling n rulativcly small variety of chemicnls. Tomorrow, and the next dxy, and the next day, these operators will be hnlrdling the s;tme ehemirnls by the stme enrefdly cheeked-out pl.accdures that they h:we been following fur many m m t h s or even yeala. I t is not n significnnt problem to establish safe hnrrdliltg pxxeduww in the first. place. Mnnagement.'~ r e d pmblem in llrese plants is fighling operator complscenry. hlnnagement must be rertxin bhe pmcedrwev are being fdlowed. I n the t,ypicnl chemical industry plant the warehouse will contain the same chemicnl raw mnterinls month nfter mmrth, always in tho same area, with only t,he qwntitios varying from time t,u t,ime ns the inventot.y floct,untes. The I\?nlel.inls
*Presented before t,he Filat Symposium on 1Iao:wdou.i Chemicnls Handling and I)isposnl, April, 1070, organised by T h e Instil.ole of Advanced Sanilation Research, Iot,ernnbiond. J
