Can Compressed Air be Hazardous to Operate?

Compressed air systems and air compressors are vital across a wide range of industries and applications. Compressed air is a crucial energy and power source for numerous types of machinery, tools and equipment, including inflating vehicle tyres.

However, if unsupervised, compressed air dryers and similar systems can present a variety of significant health and safety risks for operators, increasing the risk of accidents. Therefore, good working practices are needed to ensure that teams and personnel in the workplace can handle such a system properly and mitigate all known risks to them and their colleagues.

This short article outlines the common uses and dangers of commercial compressed air systems and provides guidance on operating them safely as per HSE (Health and Safety Executive) recommendations.

Common Uses of Compressed Air Systems

Compressed air dryers encompass various products, including desiccant and refrigerant dryers with pre- and after-air filters, from a collection of known brands like KAESER. The premise of air compressors is simple; they work to remove potentially hazardous contaminants from the air and distribute cleaner, dryer air in a given environment.

However, compressed air systems can also include a variety of systems that distribute air at high velocities. In such situations (such as the below examples), the air is condensed into a small, confined space, and powered through an exit point at high pressure.

So where are air compressors typically used?

Power tools and equipment