In March, 2019, United Piping, Inc, a pipeline construction company based in Duluth, MN and founded in 1997, surpassed a milestone – two million man hours worked without a lost-time injury. Key to this achievement in a hazardous industry is UPI Piping’s strong culture of safety values and practices.

Occupational safety and health professionals can transform their company’s safety program from a compliance-driven cost center into a corporate sustainability initiative with help from the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP). ASSP’s comprehensive Safety Standards Toolbox on Sept. 24-25 will give registrants access to four webinars and nearly 50 voluntary national consensus standards that promote industry best practices and address leading causes of citations.

The American Industrial Hygiene Association’s (AIHA) website has undergone a major redesign that includes a new online University and Consumer Center Makes the organization says will make IH/OEHS resources more accessible than ever. The online address remains the same: www.AIHA.org. The new website adds content resources for industrial hygiene and occupational health professionals, government agencies, researchers and students interested in worker health and safety, and the general public.

More than 15,000 safety, health and environmental professionals will descend on the San Diego Convention Center next month for the 2019 National Safety Council Congress & Expo, where they’ll find have opportunities to learn, network and check out new safety products. Keynote speakers Lorraine Martin, President & CEO of the National Safety Council (NSC) and Mick Ebeling, Founder & CEO of Not Impossible Labs and author of: Not Impossible: The Art and Joy of Doing What Couldn't Be Done, will kick things off.

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.

Leaders may not be at the “front line of safety,” but they must have an ability to “see safety” - to understand how visual bias impacts safety programs and how those biases influence not only their operating staff, but also themselves. By understanding their own visual literacy gaps, and those of others, leaders can develop a higher degree of empathy for the reality of getting work done safely.

MetroNet Inc. has announced Chuck Muller as the company’s new Safety Manager. With more than 30 years of experience in damage prevention, Muller will be spearheading all safety and damage prevention efforts in each state that provides MetroNet services. He joins the team after serving on Indiana 811 as the Director of Member/Public Relations where he served as the subject matter expert on all Indiana 811 legislative issues.

Safety training is increasingly going online because companies and organizations find it more convenient for workers, more productive and cheaper to deliver. “It’s huge,” says Dan MacDonald, president of BIS Training Solutions, an Edmonton-area company that provides training software, as well as classroom and online training. “It’s probably a billion-dollar industry just in Canada.”