Industrial Safety & Hygiene News articles from October 2001

Industrial Safety & Hygiene News archives from October 2001

Know Your CHEMICAL HAZARDS.
October 1, 2001... You probably know what it says in 29 CFR 1910.1200 about having to keep copies of MSDSs for all of those chemicals used at your facility. And you probably also know all the familiar reasons why it seems to be such a chore: * Not enough...

Someone to watch over us.(safety management)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Intuitively we seem to know this world can be a scary place. Maybe that's why we have to be dragged into it kicking and screaming. Then as we adjust to our surroundings early on, we see threats everywhere: monsters in the closet, in our dreams,...

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS.(safety management)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... performance measures Q What types of tracking statistics would you use to monitor safety effectiveness in an operation with more than 5,000 people? A With 5,000 people, the lost-time injury rate is a good lagging indicator of safety...

OSHA'S AGENDA.(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... John Henshaw charts his course Just three weeks after his Senate confirmation hearing, new OSHA chief John Henshaw held a one-hour roundtable with about two dozen reporters. He said it was a "life-long dream" to be part of the agency, and...

STANDARDS WISH LIST.(International Safety Equipment Association)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... The International Safety Equipment Association has written new OSHA chief John Henshaw a letter pressing the need for these standards: ASSIGNED PROTECTION FACTORS -- OSHA should complete the respirator standard by adding respirator APFs,...

Recordkeeping: Who's entitled to privacy?(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... OSHA 's revised recordkeeping rule, which goes into effect January 1, 2002, requires you to withhold the names of injured or ill employees in cases that involve: 1 An injury or illness to an intimate body the reproductive system; 2 An...

OSHA targets most dangerous sites.(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Work sites with a lost workday incident rate of 14 cases per 100 workers in 1999 have been targeted for wall-to-wall inspections by OSHA as part of the agency's 2001 site-specific targeting program. About 4,000 of the 80,000 sites...

Adopt ANSI standards, group urges OSHA.(International Safety Equipment Association)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... The International Safety Equipment Association wants OSHA to adopt these standards: * ANSI Z385.1-1998 Standard for Emergency Eyewash and Shower Equipment. The current OSHA regs do not reference a recognized standard for emergency eyewash...

OSHA's first job is: COMPLIANCE AID.(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... says Labor Secretary Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao made these remarks to the Labor and Employment Section of the American Bar Association in a speech outlining her philosophy governing regulatory agencies such as OSHA: * "Some...

10,000.(Certified Safety Professionals)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... For the first time, the number of people holding the Certified Safety Professional (CSP) designation has topped 10,000, according to the Board of Certified Safely Professionals. During the past 31 years, approximately 16,700 people achieved...

WHO'S RESPONSIBLE?(public relations of General Motors and Ford Motor Co.)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Automakers compete credibility Ford Motor Co. and rival General Motors are engaged in a PR battle to publicize their commitments to responsible corporate behavior. Ford has published "corporate citizenship" reports for the past two...

New executive director for AIHA.(American Industrial Hygiene Association)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... The American Industrial Hygiene Association has named Richard A. Strano, CAE, to be its executive director. Strano will succeed O. Gordon Banks, CAE, who is retiring at the end of this year after 12 years as the association's executive...

What to do about TOXIC MOLD.(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Mold forces students out." "Mold forces Houston fire station to close." "Homeowners burn homes due to mold." Amid all the bad advice, unnecessary expense and overreaction triggered by mold headlines, industrial hygienist Kyle Dotson, CIH, says,...

EPA guidelines for taking care of mold.(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Keep in mind these points from EPA's guide, "Mold Remediation in Schools and commercial Buildings": * Molds can produce toxic substances called mycotoxins. More than 200 mycotoxins have been identified from common molds. * Health...

WORKPLACE FATALITIES DECLINE.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
October 1, 2001... In 2000, 5,915 fatal work injuries were reported -- about 16 every day -- the fewest since the fatality census began in 1992, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. One trouble spot: Workplace deaths among Hispanic workers increased...

Not another performance appraisal!(ten rules for performance appraisals)
October 1, 2001... Scores and rankings won't help safety How do you get everyone in your organization to perform competently -- and safely? To improve our performance we need feedback, so the most obvious answer is behavior-based feedback. Another common...

The mold rush is on.(resolving the toxic mold issue)
October 1, 2001... Opportunists cash in on toxic mold hysteria The latest health scare to hit the headlines big time is "toxic mold." Toxic mold is the generic term for Stachybotrys and other microbes that are charged with causing a myriad of ailments and...

Software can simplify your life.(using software to simplify material safety data sheets compliance)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Let's face it. As a safety and health professional, keeping material safety data sheets (MSDS) books and calculating the total amount of EPA-reportable chemicals is time-consuming and mundane. It's also very necessary. OSHA's Hazard...

When should hearing loss be recorded?(Occupational Safety and Health Administration revises rules on job-related hearing loss)
October 1, 2001... The debate over recordable job-related hearing loss rages on, and OSHA will soon have to decide: Where do you draw the line in an area that is so gray? OSHA's revised rule addressing the recording and reporting of occupational injuries and...

HEARING PROTECTION.(hearing protection products)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... 1 EXPANDED LINE CIRCLE 200 North's expanded hearing protection line includes new models of the Jaguar [TM] and Sabre [TM] earmuffs, which offer noise reduction ratings of 29 dB and 27 dB, respectively. North also offers its Com-fit AB...

Who pays for FOOTWEAR?(Occupational Safety and Health Administration's footwear rules)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Data studied by OSHA suggest that most employers will pay for most kinds of personal protective equipment they provide to their employees. Why? If employers pay for PPE, they know what kinds of PPE their employees are using, they can ensure...

FOOT PROTECTION.(work shoes)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... 1 FOOTWEAR LINE CIRCLE 214 Lehigh Safety Shoe Co. offers four nationally recognized brand names in its product line: Durango, Nautilus, Justin and Dr. Martens. The company also offers two of its own brand names -- Lehigh Lites and Swampers...

Know your APFs.(assigned protection factors)
October 1, 2001... Standard still in the works for respirator protection factors What exactly are assigned protection factors (APFs), why are they important and what as an employer must you do about them? The answers to these questions and others are crucial...

Where's the weak link in your safety program?(occupational safety)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... What's the-most critical link in your safety program? Where should you focus your efforts? That's easy: It's the employee, right? It's been shown time and again that 80 percent, even up to 90 percent, of all injuries are caused by unsafe acts....

MOVES.(North Safety Products and American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists Worldwide announce appointments)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... North Safety Products has appointed John Kime to the position of senior vice president of sales and Charles Ellis to the position of president. ACGIH(r) Worldwide has announced the resignation of Richard A. Strano and the appointment of A....

BUSINESSES.(Fisher Scientific buys Safety Equipment Co. and stake in Medical Analysis Systems)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Fisher Scientific recently completed two acquisitions. In May, Fisher acquired a controlling interest in Medical Analysis Systems (MAS), a manufacturer of controls and calibrators for the clinical-laboratory industry, with annual revenue of...

Drone & Mueller.(introduces Internet site for its Partners for Safety program)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Drone & Mueller has created an Internet home for its *Partners for Safety program at www.partnersforsafety.com. The new Web site includes comprehensive information about the recently announced behavior management program. Details on the safety...

Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM).(moves offices from Anaheim, CA, to Des Plaines, IL)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... The Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM) moved its offices from Anaheim, Calif., to Des Plaines, Ill., a northwest suburh of Chicago. Now located near the nation's major medical associations, the move allows the SCCM to collaborate locally...

A "gut-wrenching sense of guilt".(worker dies at construction site)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2001... Facing a grieving parent, and a friend I have a serious tragedy to report to all of you. On July 31, 2001, an employee of ours, Ryan W. Fox, was killed as a result of injuries during an incident. Ryan was 19 years old, and the son...