Numerous manufacturing processes in electronics industry generate harmful or even toxic fumes. In terms of risk management, it would be best to remove the source of the fumes completely, but this is rarely possible. Usually with a fume extraction system, the risk of exposure to these harmful or toxic fumes can be reduced so drastically that personal protective equipment becomes unnecessary. Personal protective equipment is always the last option when it comes to occupational health and safety.
The more advanced Purex fume extraction systems are equipped with gas and particle sensors, so the fume extraction machine is able to warn the operators if harmful amounts of particles or gases is released back to the surrounding environment. This usually happens if the filters are installed incorrectly, or if the filters are in the end of their life cycle.