The global industrial protective fabric market is projected to reach $9 billion dollars by 2025, according to a new growth forecast analysis by Global Market Insights, Inc. Driving that growth: use by the chemical industry. Global petrochemical market size will surpass USD 950 billion by 2025 due to growing demand for plastics and lubricants.

Five years of legal wrangling following a workplace amputation – in which retaliation, intrigue and secret photos played a part – ended recently with a decision by a federal jury in Pennsylvania. The jury in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania found that Lloyd Industries Inc. and its owner, William P. Lloyd, unlawfully fired two employees because of their involvement in an OSHA investigation.

A North Carolina construction firm has received Safety and Health Achievement and Recognition Program (SHARP) accreditation for its work on a new health care facility. Brasfield & Gorrie was presented with a certificate of completion last month at the Mission Hospital for Advanced Medicine project, a 12-story, 615,000 square sq foot ft surgical tower with 220 patient beds, a newly expanded emergency department with 94 prep/recovery exam rooms, 10 operating rooms, 40 PACU bays, and a rooftop helipad.

California OSHA issued four citations and $63,560 in penalties to Mercer-Fraser Co. after a worker driving a truck collided with a front end loader and suffered a serious head injury. Inspectors determined that the company failed to require seat belt use, develop and implement safe practices for workers operating haul trucks, and ensure that trucks were operated at safe speeds.

Kevin Slates, a highly regarded scholar, educator and researcher in the occupational safety and health field and member of the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) for 14 years, is ASSP’s 2019 William E. Tarrants Outstanding Safety Educator.

The American Public Health Association (APHA) is urging Congress to urge support of the Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act of 2019, a bill to protect the public from exposure to the toxic substance. “Asbestos is a potent carcinogen. There is no safe level of exposure to it."

The progress of a Department of Energy (DOE) program to clean up the nation’s most dangerous nuclear waste sites appears to be slowing down even though it’s still devouring billions of dollars.

Construction is a high hazard activity. Workers face serious dangers posed by heavy machinery, sharp objects, falling objects, falls from heights, asbestos, silica, electrocutions, among many other hazards. It's in the best interest of workers and construction companies to ensure the highest safety standards.

An effort currently underway - timed to coincide with Construction Safety Week - is aimed at preventing fatalities and injuries from dropped objects. Through its 2019 Safety at Heights campaign, the International Safety Equipment Association (ISEA) The campaign is providing employers and workers educational information at SafetyAtHeights.org.

Rama Krushna Chary, senior environment engineer for the drilling and technology directorate at Kuwait Oil Company and 10-year member of the American Society of Safety Professionals, is ASSP’s 2019 Edgar Monsanto Queeny Safety Professional of the Year. He has taken innovative steps to advance the safety and health profession while enhancing ASSP’s membership abroad.