THE FIRST LABORATORIES AND SAFETY
The Laboratory, as we know, is the premises arranged and equipped for research, experimentation and other scientific, technical or educational tasks.
In the 19th century, the first laboratories similar to those that exist today were built, with benches, cabinets, drawers and shelves on top to place the reagents. In the early years of the 20th century, attempts were made to facilitate the arrangement of services horizontally, on the floor or ceiling, or through vertical conduits. These services consist, at least, of the supply of water, gas and electricity. Nowadays, both the arrangement of the benches and the distribution of the services and security systems in them is very different depending on the type of laboratory.
** Safety in the Laboratory
Any chemical substance must be considered a potential toxic substance, so the handling of these substances must be done with great care and knowing, in advance, the consequences of such handling. Furthermore, although laboratories have been designed and built to minimize risks (fume hoods, gas alarms, fire extinguishers, eyewash stations or showers), a series of precautions must always be taken into account and basic safety rules must be followed:
• Know the emergency exits and the location and use of fire extinguishers, eyewash stations and emergency equipment.
• Keep the work area clean and tidy. All equipment must be installed in appropriate places, with good lighting, ventilation and the corresponding safety systems.
• Use a laboratory coat that must always be fastened.
• Avoid contact with sources of electricity and heat.
• Turn off electrical instruments before handling connections.
• Use gloves and safety glasses when required. The use of contact lenses is not advisable in chemistry and microbiology laboratories.
• Food and drink must not be stored or consumed inside the laboratory.
• All flammable products must be stored in a suitable place, separate from acids and bases and oxidising reagents.
• Chemical products and other types of materials must not be stored in the fume hood.
