There are many different industries regularly relying on blasting and explosive companies to provide services. These include the use of explosives in industries such as:
- Construction
- Building materials
- Oil and gas exploration and pipeline development
- Roadway construction
- Agriculture
- Mining
This often includes a range of different possible explosives including packaged emulsions, bulk explosives, ammonium nitrate and ANFO (Ammonium nitrate fuel oil) as well as dynamite and seismic explosives.
Additionally, most companies providing these products will also offer all the other necessary materials including detonating cord, boosters, initiation systems and full service for explosion management and planning needs.
Storage
If a company is purchasing explosives to use, it will be critical to ensure that all storage requirements for the materials are met. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives is in charge of setting the storage requirements, and these are outlined in 27 CFR, Part 555, Subpart K.
In a very simple and basic summary, which is not meant to be comprehensive or complete, the requirements are that:
- All explosives must be storage at all times in a magazine designed based on the type of explosive.
- All of the magazines (storage areas) have to be fully inspected every seven days for any potential structural or storage violations or concerns.
- Any explosive has to be properly secured between use in the appropriate type of magazine. Unattended storage is more specific than storage for attended areas.
There are specific distances between magazines for storage that will need to be carefully managed. This includes the location of the magazine from a highway, the distance between magazines, and the amount of specific types of explosives stored within the magazines.
Record Keeping Requirements
On all job sites where explosives are used and stored, there are also specific requirements for record keeping. This includes a full account of all information on the explosives being added or removed to the magazine on a daily basis.
This record keeping is critical, and all companies with explosives on hand are required to have accurate and up to date logs for inspections as well as to provide annual records as required.
There are also different regulations based on industries. This is important to know for the business, and often the company selling the explosives will be able to provide insight into specific requirements based on the project, the number of explosives ordered, and any updates or changes to the requirements for storage and use of the explosives by licensed individuals.
