In sectors such as the chemical and pharmaceutical industries, in mining, in the production of crude oil and natural gas and in the food industry (particularly in mills), flammable substances are worked with in various processing and manufacturing procedures. This means that dangerous situations continually arise that can result in explosions and jeopardise people’s safety.
Various technical and/or organisational measures can be taken to provide protection from explosions, and thus prevent injury or death. For this purpose, explosive areas are defined in the European Directive 1999/92/EC as particular zones according to the frequency and duration of an explosive atmosphere. The individual devices and equipment can thus be designed in accordance with the particular zones. This approach makes sense economically and consistently focuses the designer’s attention on safety in all their decisions and actions.
