Read everything dpb said. That's the best way to approach this.
Since at one time my finishing/refinishing was going quite well, I was thinking of renting a space and setting up a small finishing/ refinishing shop. The amount of work it would have taken to get all the proper clearances to certify I was compliant in all government areas was overwhelming.
I cannot imagine it being any different for a public institution. The following had their hand in every aspect, and lacking any other benchmark, our fair city used them as such for their own requirements.
NIOSH, OSHA and EPA. Then there were local and state building code requirements specific to the venture.
Some of the more salient requirements were to have a have a certified booth that included the proper CFM of air filtering and exchange. I couldn't touch the $$$ building one, but I found these types of premade booths to be a much better solution:
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get the idea.
Most premade booths are just that, booths. You still need to provide the proper gas proof low temp lighting, a spark proof set of fans to prevent explosions, etc. Spark proof plugs and switches are required, as well as chemical/gas resistant coverings on all electrical devices and wiring. Then there is filtering of the air. In a booth you have to have all the air removed, and filtered to a very exacting protocol.
There are different certifications needed on the exhaust systems, and depending on the level of sophistication of your local code enforcement, this could be tricky.
There is a cert for particulates; there is a cert for gas; and there is in some cases a need for an engineered system by a certified engineer in that field.
One of the things that I was faced with was the disposal of old solvents and finishes, as well as old rags, filters, and containers. I would have had to make arrangements with a local "hazardous waste management" company to get rid of that stuff, and provide the local guys with proof I did.
And then there was insurance. I had to provide certificates of compliance in all areas mentioned above before they would consider me. That meant I had to have another group of independent professionals come out and inspect the final set up to make sure it was compliant to the company standards, and that all applicable standards had been met.
I hope you get the idea. This is a really big project once you get past a booth big enough to spray a chair.
With all the legal hoops, the design requirements, the proof of compliance to all govt regulations, and the cost to build... I gave up.
Can you see why no one jumped right in?
Robert