Thursday 21 July 2016

Bespoke Gas Powered Generator, a Silent Killer.



I have read with keen interest the various adverts on the street of Lagos and on social media by generator repairers about the economic advantages that an adapted gas powered generator (AGPG) offers to members of the public and end users. Surprisingly, sensitization of the public on the risks the AGPG pose to end users appears to have been ignored. I am preview of the opinion of some of my professional colleagues in both the Safety Advocates group and IOSH-Nigeria Informal Network Group on the use of AGPG, however, I wish to express my personal opinion, in support of the argument that the use of AGPG is unsafe and has high potential of causing serious injury.

Many have argued that a gas powered generator runs in open well ventilated space, and may be considered to pose relatively lower risks of fire, if the prescribed safety precautions from the sellers are followed during purchase. Some have even compared the technology to cars with CNG gas offering the advantage of cleaner fuel.  However, producers of these items do not have clear, established safe working methodologies and measurable performance standards to guarantee the safety of the AGPG.  The gas powered generators, now gradually gaining acceptance in the market are made from petrol or diesel generators not originally designed to run with gas, which means the producers of the AGPG are unable to communicate the safe operating procedure of the item to the end users via manufacturers’ instruction manual since they are locally constructed by unlicensed generator repairers with no adequate knowledge and understanding of the potential hazards of working with gas cylinders, their use, handling and transport.

It is therefore, dangerous for regulators like Standard Organization of Nigeria (SON) and any other government regulatory agencies that promotes safety in Nigeria to allow the use of AGPG as I envisage a high rate of incidents arising from its use except a thorough study and understanding of the product technology, guidelines, legislation and standards for its construction and usage are sufficiently developed to guarantee users safety.

We must not wait till a catastrophic accident happens before we take action because the gas generator is an accident waiting to happen. Our housing set up, safety culture, competency level of our present generator repairers and level of emergency response cannot accommodate the use of such unsafe mechanism. How would this generator fit into a densely populated area like Lagos Island, Mushin, Ajegunle and other areas across Nigeria with multi-tenanted housing unit arrangement, locally called “face me, I face you”. Also, considering the inexperience of most generator technicians and /or artisans, and the maintenance procedure applied by the technicians, the potential for static electricity to be generated cannot be overruled, thereby increasing the potential for fire outbreak in event of a gas leakage.

In industrial environment where gases are used, appropriate precautions are put in place such as gas detectors; alarm systems together with continuous risk assessment to guarantee the safety of the workforce and ensure gas leakages are quickly identified and rectified. This is not the case in most Nigerian homes as occupants rely on their sense of smell to detect leakages, which cannot be completely relied upon.

Also, I have pondered over the following questions which I believe the regulators should address before approving its mass production- Does the present design takes consideration of the principle of design? That is, design out significant hazards? I am not convinced this has been achieved.  In addition, why would the cylinder be external to the generator? Why not consider a system that requires no hose connection. Does the design consider how vibration, noise and usability by an average man without safety knowledge affect its safety? Is the generator design with automatic shut down system where a leakage has been detected? Can the generator be designed to enclose cylinder? Etc.

While the concept of innovation and cost saving should be appreciated, it is important that the safety of the masses is given high priority with the designer justifying that all reasonably foreseeable risks arising from the use of the generator has been designed out to guarantee a safe product including addressing all questions raised above. Moreover, these locally produced gas powered generators are adapted from the conventional petrol or diesel powered generators. Hence, do not have the requisite safety features imputed from the design stage rather people with no knowledge of the dangers involved  in the use of LPG cylinders are being used to convert the carburetor of generators  that were built to run on petrol or diesel to gas. This is unacceptable and should never be encouraged. SON in collaboration with Lagos State Safety Commission (LSSC) and other regulatory agencies with interest in this area should critically review the safety of this locally produced device before we start losing lives.

Surprisingly, some have claimed it is safe since LPG cylinders are often used in kitchens in most Nigerian homes. However, just because many Nigerians used gas cylinders in their kitchen does not mean it is safe.  The idea of using gas cylinders for cooking in kitchen is long avoided in developed countries because the use of gas cylinders at home for cooking is not safe either. In most developed countries like UK, gases are supplied into homes just like the way water is supplied to aid cooking. Thus, eliminating the risk of cylinder usage and storage. Consequently, maintenance of gas connections and pipes into homes are done by registered gas installers (CORGI) and it is unlawful to engage unlicensed gas installers to carry out maintenance or repair works at homes in developed countries like UK.

So, our present ways of using cylinders at homes is not best practice either and would not offer reassurance of the safety of an adapted gas powered generator. In fact, the petrol or diesel generators are not designed to run on gas. So, a modified item against its designed intent simply in itself sends a message that greater caution and study is required.  For instance, using a long hose connection from the LPG cylinder to the generator in a densely populated building only increases the chance of damage to the hose, access to children and unauthorized persons, exposure to adverse weather condition, contact with physical items that may cause damage etc.

More importantly, the item comes with the associated risks and hazards of handling gases such as potential  to asphyxiation, burn, fire, explosion, hose damage, uncontrolled release of gas, valve and regulator thread damage, leaking gas cylinder, inappropriate storage, toxic and corrosive attributes of gas contained in cylinder, unsecured and unrestrained gas cylinders, inappropriate connection of equipment, inexperience user and incompetent installer, incorrect hose connections, faulty flash arrestors, poor maintenance , etc. This therefore means users of items involving the use cylinders requires adequate training, guidance and understanding of relevant legislation, codes of practice and applicable standards on gas cylinder safety to reduce the potential for a catastrophic incident. This is obviously an unacceptable risk that should be eliminated now or we would be sacrificing the lives of innocent Nigerians who rely on government and HSE Practitioners for guidance and risk communication to the public.

Written by:
Engr. Kayode V.  Fowode CMIOSH,M.CSSE, MNSE
Chartered Health and Safety Practitioner
Managing Consultant
Kevron Consulting Limited
8, Olanrewaju Street, Off Kudirat Abiola Way, Oregun, Ikeja, Lagos, Nigeria
Tel: +234 13424578, +2347084152143, +2348182170991
Email: k.fowode@kevronconsultingltd.com