County Mike
06-14-2010, 12:00 PM
Following is an email I received at work. On one hand, I'm glad they're taking care of the problem. On the other hand, I'm sure they're spending a ton on the overkill approach.
While replacing 10 computer air conditioning (CAC) units in building 300 laboratories, mold was discovered. Immediate action was taken to isolate the initial area (B300, 3rd Floor, H19 lab area) in order to mitigate the effects of mold. Mold was later discovered and isolated in four more locations within the laboratories. The locations are B300, 3rd floor B19, B300 3rd floor D18, B300 3rd floor F18 and B300 2nd floor E29.
FAA Headquarters Environment Occupational Safety and Health Services office (EOSH) was consulted and the full extent of the situation and the actions necessary for remediation are being ascertained. An environmental services contractor is expected to be on-site within two weeks. So far the actions taken have been extremely effective in mitigating the situation.
The following includes some of our actions to date:
· Met with the impacted managers, unions, HR and Safety Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) to review the sampling results and to plan initial and future solutions
· Collected two sets of air samples from the second and third floor building 300 labs with those results indicating mold presence
· Informed and relocated employees in the known affected areas
· Shut down the affected CAC unit on the 2nd floor and isolated the area having mold
· Monitored temperature and humidity levels at the second floor location and will continue to monitor until remediation is complete
· Planned to place temporary cooling units as needed
· Established a work plan to remediate the five areas known to have mold contamination
We are planning the following additional actions:
· HEPA filtration units will be deployed for filtering any airborne mold spores within a week
· Air samples are planned for Bldg. 316 labs and an inspection of the CAC units located there
· Continue inspection of all CAC units in Bldg. 300 laboratories for mold growth
· Continue to sample weekly in affected areas until remediation is completed
· Continue to meet with all parties until remediation is completed
· Revisit WJHTC maintenance procedures to incorporate lessons learned
My approach would have been.
While replacing air conditioning units, mold was discovered.
Mold was removed.
While replacing 10 computer air conditioning (CAC) units in building 300 laboratories, mold was discovered. Immediate action was taken to isolate the initial area (B300, 3rd Floor, H19 lab area) in order to mitigate the effects of mold. Mold was later discovered and isolated in four more locations within the laboratories. The locations are B300, 3rd floor B19, B300 3rd floor D18, B300 3rd floor F18 and B300 2nd floor E29.
FAA Headquarters Environment Occupational Safety and Health Services office (EOSH) was consulted and the full extent of the situation and the actions necessary for remediation are being ascertained. An environmental services contractor is expected to be on-site within two weeks. So far the actions taken have been extremely effective in mitigating the situation.
The following includes some of our actions to date:
· Met with the impacted managers, unions, HR and Safety Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) to review the sampling results and to plan initial and future solutions
· Collected two sets of air samples from the second and third floor building 300 labs with those results indicating mold presence
· Informed and relocated employees in the known affected areas
· Shut down the affected CAC unit on the 2nd floor and isolated the area having mold
· Monitored temperature and humidity levels at the second floor location and will continue to monitor until remediation is complete
· Planned to place temporary cooling units as needed
· Established a work plan to remediate the five areas known to have mold contamination
We are planning the following additional actions:
· HEPA filtration units will be deployed for filtering any airborne mold spores within a week
· Air samples are planned for Bldg. 316 labs and an inspection of the CAC units located there
· Continue inspection of all CAC units in Bldg. 300 laboratories for mold growth
· Continue to sample weekly in affected areas until remediation is completed
· Continue to meet with all parties until remediation is completed
· Revisit WJHTC maintenance procedures to incorporate lessons learned
My approach would have been.
While replacing air conditioning units, mold was discovered.
Mold was removed.