Which item is NOT an engineering control?

Which item is NOT an engineering control?

• A. Beam Enclosures
• B. Protective Housing
• C. Warning Systems
• D. Standard Operating Procedures

Answer: (D)

Engineering controls are physical modifications to the equipment or environment that reduce exposure to non-ionizing radiation. Beam enclosures create a solid barrier that blocks the radiation from reaching workers, which is a direct, physical reduction of the hazard. Protective housing similarly confines the device and keeps people out of the radiation path, another clear engineering control. Warning systems, when built into the equipment, provide automatic cues or interlocks that help prevent exposure by design, which also fits the engineering control approach. Standard operating procedures, however, describe how to operate safely but rely on human action rather than altering the hazard or its environment. They’re administrative controls, not engineering controls, because they don’t physically modify or automatically limit exposure.

Engineering controls are physical modifications to the equipment or environment that reduce exposure to non-ionizing radiation. Beam enclosures create a solid barrier that blocks the radiation from reaching workers, which is a direct, physical reduction of the hazard. Protective housing similarly confines the device and keeps people out of the radiation path, another clear engineering control. Warning systems, when built into the equipment, provide automatic cues or interlocks that help prevent exposure by design, which also fits the engineering control approach.

Standard operating procedures, however, describe how to operate safely but rely on human action rather than altering the hazard or its environment. They’re administrative controls, not engineering controls, because they don’t physically modify or automatically limit exposure.