Barbara Kanegsberg - BFK Solutions LLC

August 2014

Published by Barbara Kanegsberg at August 2014

U.S. EPA Residual Risk – Trichloroethylene and Beyond

Are stronger nation-wide controls on worker exposure to trichloroethylene (TCE) likely in the near-future? Recently, the U.S. EPA held an “Expert Public Workshop on Alternatives and Risk Reduction Approaches to Trichloroethylene (TCE) Use as a Degreaser.” I participated both as an attendee and as a presenter. I suggest that you […]

July 2014

Published by Barbara Kanegsberg at July 2014

SUR/FIN on a Tsunami

There is a positive “sea change” of growing optimism in the product surface finishing industry. At the recent SUR/FIN conference, rather than the attitude “alas, there’s a whale sitting on me, I’m stuck under water, what can I do?” we heard, “oh!, there’s a whale sitting on me, so I’m […]

June 2014

Published by Barbara Kanegsberg at June 2014

How Much Does it Cost?

That “new car smell.” The power, the acceleration, those visions of eternal youth, of victory, of success. New cleaning equipment comes with similar fantasies relating to business, profits, and promotions. Then comes the nagging question, asked by either you or your boss: How much does it cost? In the previous […]

May 2014

Published by Barbara Kanegsberg at May 2014

“Have You Tried this Remarkable New Cleaning Agent?”

“It’s the best. All the big companies in aerospace, (or medical devices or telecommunications or….) use this fantastic cleaning agent.” You hear claims in advertising, from sales reps who come to your shop; from people at trade shows. Is it the right cleaning chemistry for manufacturing your product? Learn more […]

March 2014

Published by Barbara Kanegsberg at March 2014

Toxic Baby Burp

This is a call to action for all involved with US manufacturing! Cal/OSHA is proposing to set an airborne permissible worker exposure level (PEL) of 0.3 ppm time weighted average (TWA) for hydrogen chloride (HCl). If passed, this would be a lower level than 0.4 ppm recently set in California […]

March 2014

Published by Barbara Kanegsberg at March 2014

California Cleaning – A VOC Exempt Substitute for HCFC-225?

What happens in Washington does not always come to Southern California. At a February 19, 2013 meeting held at SCAQMD (South Coast Air Quality Management District), there was discussion of a proposal to add HFO-1233zd (Solstice ™, Honeywell) to the list of VOC exempt materials in Rule 102. Based on […]

February 2014

Published by Barbara Kanegsberg at February 2014

Micro Products, Macro Changes

A few weeks ago, Larry Adams asked if I’d like to comment about critical cleaning for “MicroManufacturing Magazine “ (see The Power of Knowledge Acted On section below). I replied: of course I would! His questions got me thinking; and I ended up discussing how critical cleaning impacts manufacturing, how […]

December 2013

Published by Barbara Kanegsberg at December 2013

Process Flow

29 people coming to dinner? No problem! I thought it was all under control. The apple and pumpkin pies were cooling nicely. The turkeys were out of the oven. The ovens were pretty much empty (or at least, I didn’t see billows of smoke). I placidly sipped red wine as […]

December 2013

Published by Barbara Kanegsberg at December 2013

Active California Advisory System Needed – 1 ppm PEL for NMP

The Cal/OSHA Standards Board recently adopted a Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) of 1 ppm for N-methylpyrrolidone (NMP). This PEL will be legally-enforceable throughout California. Because there is no Federal OSHA standard, the California PEL is likely to be, at the very least, inspirational throughout the United. States. Look for the […]