Winners of the 14th German Hazardous Substances Protection Award

The winner of the 14th German Hazardous Substances Protection Award was announced on 29 September 2022, in Berlin. The Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs awarded the 10,000 euro prize to BOMAG GmbH of Boppard for its development of the Ion Dust Shield, a technical solution for the safe handling of carcinogenic particulate matter and fumes. Ökopol GmbH of Hamburg also received an official commendation in the management category for the European social partner project “Reducing Respirable Crystalline Silica Dust Effectively”.

The Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs grants the German Hazardous Substances Protection Award every two years. The motto of the 14th award was “STOP cancer in the workplace – 2022 focus: particulate matter and fumes”. An independent jury evaluated the applications in June 2022.

Dust-reduced milling of asphalt pavements on road construction sites

BOMAG GmbH from Boppard was given the award in the category “technical solutions” for the development of the Ion Dust Shield, a road milling machine with an electrostatic precipitator. This cold milling machine for asphalt enables dust-reduced milling of asphalt pavements on road construction sites. Electrically charging the particulate matter causes it to clump together and become harmless coarse dust, which can then be disposed of. This protects workers in road construction, workers in asphalt mixing plants, residents and passers-by from exposure to carcinogenic particulate matter.

BOMAG GmbH will double the prize money of 10,000 euros and donate the sum to the Verein der Freunde und Förderer der DASA e. V., the DASA Working World Exhibition in Dortmund, representatives of which were present at the award ceremony to accept the donation.

State of the art methods

Ökopol GmbH of Hamburg received an official commendation in the management category for its contribution to the European social partner project “Reducing Respirable Crystalline Silica Dust Effectively”.

The aim of the project was to use state of the art methods to evaluate proper implementation of the European occupational exposure limits for respirable crystalline silica. Based on this scientific survey, construction activities were mapped precisely and specific guidelines were established for the individual construction professions. These guidelines, called “mapping” in the project, present the specifications for good professional practices for more than 35 construction professions. The “mapping”, which is available in 12 European languages, is used throughout the European Union. 

More detailed information on the award-winning solutions, the award winners themselves and the Hazardous Substances Protection Award can be found on website of the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs at www.bmas.de and on the website of the Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health at www.gefahrstoffschutzpreis.de.

Share this page
FacebookTwitter