ABSTRACT
Industrial ventilation is one of the most effective ways to reduce toxic exposures in the workplace by engineering. Unfortunately, poor design, poor installation and poor maintenance are very common in industrial ventilation systems, and may be exacerbated if modifications are made without a solid grasp of their impact. An understanding of the difference between sucking and blowing air is fundamental to industrial ventilation design. Industrial ventilation systems are often designed and installed by contractors who are more familiar with heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems, which condition air and blow it into buildings. A number of software packages are available to assist in industrial ventilation design. They are not a substitute for knowledge, but can reduce the tedium of iterative calculations.
