Environmental Health and Safety

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Industrial Scientific, global leader in connected sensing technology, is pleased to announce that Parker Burke has joined the company as senior vice president and general manager. Parker will be responsible for leading Industrial Scientific’s global gas detection and iNet® businesses.

OSHA may “broaden the circumstances” under which certain employers would be permitted to comply with its Respirable Crystalline Silica Standard for Construction, according to a request for information and comment issued by the agency last week. OSHA is looking for information on additional engineering and work practice control methods to effectively limit exposure to silica.

OSHA has issued serious citations against the employer of two employees who died from carbon monoxide (CO) exposure while being transported to a jobsite. The incident involving AJR Landscaping, Inc. occurred when a gasoline-powered lawnmower was started inside an enclosed company trailer. OSHA initiated an inspection after the Washington Township New Jersey Police Department notified the agency that the workers had died.

Now you can safely speed up debris removal and workshop maintenance with the Jet-Kleen™ series of high-performance personnel blow-off and de-dusting systems from Specialized Safety Products and A.W.T. World Trade, Inc. The Jet-Kleen series provides fast, safe, and effective removal of residue - such as wood chips, sawdust, fibers, moisture, and particulate matter - from workers, equipment, and work surfaces at a fraction of the cost of compressed air systems.

Although they compose only six percent of the total U.S. workforce, construction workers accounted for 36 percent of all occupational heat‐related deaths from 1992 to 2016 – and climate change may have something to do with it. That’s one of the key findings from new research from the Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR).

J.J. Keller & Associates, Inc., the nation’s leading provider of safety and regulatory compliance solutions, announced today that it has achieved ISO 45001.2018 certification. ISO 45001 is the international standard outlining best practices for Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems. J.J. Keller is the first company in Wisconsin to be ISO 45001:2018 certified and the 17th company in the nation to attain this certification by DQS, Inc. since the ISO 45001 standard was introduced in 2018.

Two speakers will address the topics of product installation and plant safety at the American Architectural Manufacturers Association (AAMA) Fall Conference (Sept. 30-Oct. 3). Richard Hawk, motivational safety speaker and trainer for Make Safety Fun, will give a keynote presentation entitled, "The Future of Safety in Manufacturing Plants." Matt Risinger, owner of Risinger & Co., specializes in architect-driven projects and will discuss installation techniques.

One of the biggest wake-up calls I had recently was when I realized the detrimental impact biases have in the world of safety. Most people recognize that biases exist in “the other guy” but fail to see these preconceived notions in themselves. SPOILER ALERT: We all have them, and they are putting all of us at risk.

Compared to small and "micro" businesses, larger companies have made more progress toward introducing the Total Worker Health (TWH) approach to worker health and safety, reports the August Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. "Our results indicate a need for intervention research that specifically targets microbusinesses and small businesses, especially in light of the outsized health and safety risks encountered in these sectors of the economy," write Liliana Tenney, MPH, and colleagues of Colorado School of Public Health, University of Colorado, Aurora.

A pollutant associated with climate change is sulfur dioxide, a component of smog. Sulfur dioxide and closely related chemicals are known primarily as a cause of acid rain. But they also reflect light when released in the atmosphere, which keeps sunlight out and creates a cooling effect. Volcanic eruptions can spew massive amounts of sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere, sometimes causing cooling that lasts for years.