Industrial degreasers are applied to remove oil, dirt, and grease from machine parts or the surfaces residing around equipment. These contaminants continuously accumulate throughout daily operations, affect machinery performance, and create safety hazards. A variety of industrial degreasers are available to meet usage requirements with applications occurring frequently in these areas:

• Restaurants
• Warehouses
• Factories
• Automotive
• Commercial

The organic compounds applied to facilitate contaminant removal are extremely volatile meaning they evaporate at room temperature. Inhalation or release into the atmosphere poses a significant threat to the well-being of people, animals, and plant life. Companies using industrial degreasers for these processes have to follow strict standards set by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to ensure safety. Even with these regulations in place, spills remain to occur quite frequently thus allowing soil, water, and air sources to be contaminated. Businesses requiring solvents for machine part cleaning must take special precautions and implement specific handling practices for industrial degreaser use to avoid individual or environmental harm.

Less Volatile Products Deliver a Safer, Cost Effective Solution

The volatility of industrial degreasers has a direct impact on the practices a business must follow to meet EPA standards. Contaminant removal is an essential industrial process; however, companies must carefully choose products used to accomplish this task. Less volatile products have been developed to properly remove grease or grime without the risks associated with common degreasers. Greener alternatives allow companies to eliminate harmful substances from their processes and have these benefits:

• Ability to Meet Emission Caps
• Reduced Usage Costs
• Safer Working Environment
• Decreased Workman’s Compensation Claims
• Limited Insurance Expenses
• Limited the Number of Taken Sick Days
• Lawsuit Prevention
• Improved Public Image
• Use of Eco-Friendly Solutions

The EPA has put into place various standards regarding industrial degreasers due to the risks associated with volatile solvents. Businesses must follow these standards to avoid being charged hefty fines for failing to comply with emission caps. Additionally, the procedures required for handling dangerous solvents increase operational costs. Companies choosing to continue using highly volatile solvents for machine part cleaning experience loss of work due to increased sick days, a higher number of workman’s compensation claims, and costly lawsuits caused by prolonged exposure. The decision to use a safer alternative provides drastic cost decreases by generating a safer working environment based on EPA guidelines.

Companies implementing greener products for machine part cleaning also have the opportunity to improve their public image through promoting eco-friendly practices. By switching to less volatile products, a business is able to put themselves in a better position for increasing worker safety and protecting the environment. Eco-friendly solutions eliminate the dangers caused by the continued use of dangerous toxic substances. Extremely volatile cleaners generate several short-term health issues, which often lead to higher insurance premiums, legal fees, and time off of work. Companies are able to meet EPA standards, create a better working environment, and maintain process quality by choosing to use eco-friendly industrial degreasers.

Industrial degreasers are necessary in a number of industries and play a pivotal safety role. For more information about environmentally friendly, low VOC products, please call (800) 886-8240 or email info@ecolink.com.