. The European Union requested that OSHA explore the possibility of adopting its system, known as Supplier’s Declaration of Conformity (SDoC). Under the EU system, manufacturers declare that their products meet safety requirements before placing these products on the market, thus requiring EU governments to operate a post-market surveillance system to verify whether products are safety compliant after they already are on the market.
Currently, OSHA requires employers to use electrical devices tested and certified by independent testing companies recognized by OSHA. These companies, known as nationally recognized testing laboratories, conduct tests to determine whether products are safe before manufacturers or distributors place them on the market and employers use them in the workplace.
“OSHA’s current system is a reliable and cost-effective approach to ensuring the safety of American workers,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Dr. David Michaels. “A request for information did not reveal compelling evidence to abandon this system.”
In 2008, in response to the EU’s request for the U.S. to adopt an SDoC system, OSHA issued a request for information (RFI). It was the second RFI on this issue published by OSHA in the last five years. By statute, OSHA must demonstrate, based on substantial evidence, that its safety regulations and standards will provide or maintain a high degree of protection for U.S. workers. After reviewing comments submitted in response to the RFI, OSHA determined that the burden required for OSHA to revise its standards was not met.
OSHA also is not convinced that the cost of administering such a system is compatible with its current budget. Based on limited information obtained from post-market surveillance costs of two EU countries, OSHA estimated that implementing an SDoC system throughout the U.S. would cost hundreds of millions of dollars. OSHA also currently lacks explicit legislative authority to implement the enforcement powers required for an effective SDoC system, including issuing product recalls and bans, assessing fines, and imposing criminal penalties.
IATA Update – What’s New for 2011?
Each year, the International Air Transportation Association (IATA) updates and revises the regulations for the transportation of dangerous goods (hazardous materials) by air. If you offer dangerous goods for transportation by air, you must follow the new regulations by January 1. A large number of significant changes are being implemented in the 2011 IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations (DGR).
At this live webcast, you will learn:
- Changes in the regulations for consumer commodities– new marking and shipping paper entries
- New test authorized to determine classification and packing group of corrosives
- Changes in the classification criteria for magnetized materials
- Revisions to the classification of environmentally hazardous substances, marine pollutants, and aquatic pollutants
- Phase in of new packing instructions for Class 3 flammable liquids, Class 4 flammable solids, Class 5 oxidizers/organic peroxides, Class 8 corrosives, Class 9 miscellaneous, and Division 6
- New entries on the IATA List of Dangerous Goods and new special provisions
- New marking requirements for net quantities, limited quantities, environmentally hazardous substances, and orientation arrows
Cleveland RCRA and DOT Training
Advertising Opportunities Available
Environmental Resource Center is making a limited number of advertising positions available in the Safety Tip of the Week™, the Environmental Tip of the Week™, and the Reg of the Day™.
New and Revised ANSI/AIHA Standards
The American Industrial Hygiene Association® (AIHA), as an American National Standards Institute (ANSI) member and accredited standards developer, serves as the secretariat for three ANSI committees that develop occupational safety and health related standards. AIHA, in collaboration with ANSI, has released two new fundamental consensus standards that promote conformity among assessment systems.
ANSI/AIHA Z9.9-2010 Portable Ventilation Systems
This new standard describes fundamental good practices related to the design, manufacture, labeling, use and application, and maintenance and testing of portable ventilation systems used for the control of airborne contaminants or environmental conditions. Intended users of this Standard include owners of facilities, designers and manufacturers of portable ventilation equipment, employers, industrial hygienists and safety professionals, maintenance personnel, and end-users. This Standard is compatible with other recognized standards of good practice. ANSI/AIHA Z9.9 intends to address a long-standing need in the ventilation arena. Portable ventilation is a broad and complex subject. Much of what applies to portable ventilation systems does not apply to fixed systems, and vice versa. This equipment is usually unobtrusive, often just another piece of clutter in surroundings crowded with other portable and mobile equipment and tools. Portable equipment comes in all shapes and sizes, ranging from the home-built to the shop-built to the factory-built, and the utilitarian to the elegant. Very little, if anything, exists in standard textbooks on ventilation about this subject. Yet, the subject is considerably more complicated than meets the eye of the casual observer.
ANSI/AIHA Z9.10-2010 Fundamentals Governing the Design and Operation of Dilution Ventilation Systems in Industrial Occupancies
This revised Standard establishes minimum requirements for the commissioning, design, specification, construction, installation, management, operation, maintenance, and testing of dilution ventilation systems (including demand dilution ventilation) used for the reduction, prevention, and control of employee exposure to harmful airborne substances in the industrial environment. The Standard establishes minimum requirements to provide safe and healthful working conditions in industrial employee occupancies.
If you have any questions, contact Mili Mavely, Manager, Standards and Guidelines at mmavely@aiha.org or 703-846-0794.
OSHA Extends Comment Period and Announces Stakeholder Meeting on Noise Control Interpretation
Interested parties are encouraged to submit comments online, by mail, or by fax by the March 21, 2011, deadline.
The agency will also hold a stakeholder meeting before the end of the comment period to listen to the concerns of businesses and workers about the proposed noise interpretation. Information about the stakeholders meeting will be forthcoming.
“We are intending to hold this stakeholder meeting before the comment period ends and it will provide an opportunity for all interested parties to provide their comments to the agency. Our common objective is to ensure that workers do not lose their hearing without overly burdening employers,” said OSHA Assistant Secretary David Michaels. “OSHA will take all stakeholder comments seriously and will fully consider impacts on business and workers before determining what final action, if any, we will take.”
MSHA Increases Focus on Implementation of Exposure Monitoring at Metal and Nonmetal Mines
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) announced an increased focus on exposure monitoring at metal and nonmetal mines throughout the country to ensure better worker protection from overexposure to harmful airborne contaminants. Agency efforts will include stakeholder outreach, education and training, and enhanced implementation of existing standards. In particular, MSHA will focus on 30 CFR Parts 56.5002 and 57.5002, which require mine operators to conduct dust, gas, mist, and fume surveys for harmful airborne contaminants’ fumes to determine the adequacy of control measures. A stakeholder briefing was held at MSHA headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, to outline the initiative aimed at reducing illnesses and diseases due to such overexposures, and explain MSHA’s enforcement approach on complying with the standards.
“We want to ensure that miners are protected from overexposure to harmful contaminants and mine operators have required safety and health programs in place to meet that objective,” said Joseph A. Main, assistant secretary of labor for mine safety and health.
“A number of diseases and illnesses can be caused by overexposure to harmful airborne contaminants, including lead poisoning, nervous system damage, lung cancer, asbestosis, lung inflammation and scarring, bronchitis and metal fume fever,” said Dr. Gregory Wagner, deputy assistant secretary for mine safety and health. “Some health conditions can take a long time to develop and may not be apparent at the time of exposure. Exposure monitoring programs to identify unhealthful levels of contaminants are critical to disease prevention.”
In a program policy letter issued in October, MSHA reiterated that mine operators have the primary responsibility for protecting the health of miners and must demonstrate compliance rather than rely on enforcement interventions. By conducting surveys in the workplace to determine the adequacy of exposure controls, miners are much less likely to be affected by the hazardous materials they encounter at work.
“This is a first step that includes a wide variety of industry stakeholder outreach, education, development of training programs and enhanced enforcement of existing standards,” said Main. “We will be working closely with the mining community, national and state mining associations, labor organizations, MSHA’s Small Mines Office and others to implement this initiative. Ultimately, the goal is improved health protection for metal and nonmetal miners, and help for all mine operators to better understand and meet the requirements of this standard.”
OSHA Appoints New Head of Construction Directorate
Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health David Michaels, Ph.D., MPH, has appointed Jim Maddux as the new director of the agency’s Directorate of Construction, effective Monday, Deember. 20, 2010. Maddux most recently served in OSHA’s Directorate of Standards and Guidance as the Director of the Office of Physical Hazards and Acting Director of the Office of Engineering Safety. Maddux has held several leadership positions at OSHA, including Director of the Office of Maritime and Acting Deputy Director for the Directorate of Standards and Guidance.
He began his career with OSHA in 1990 as a statistician in the Office of Statistics, and joined the Directorate of Standards and Guidance in 1998. Maddux has been a project director, author, and contributor to numerous OSHA standards and guidance projects, including the payment for personal protective equipment standard, injury and illness recordkeeping regulations, ergonomics guidelines, and several maritime standards and guidance products. He has a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Maryland, University College, an associate’s degree in computer information systems from Laramie County Community College, and an associate’s degree in chemistry from Northern Wyoming Community College.
“Jim has been a valuable member of the OSHA team for over 20 years,” said Michaels. “I congratulate him on his new position, and I am confident that he will be an effective leader in construction safety working to accomplish the agency’s mission of protecting America’s workers.”
OSHA Fines WRR Environmental Services Co. $787,000 Following June Explosion
OSHA cited the hazardous waste management processor, WRR Environmental Services Co., for failing to implement measures to prevent potentially catastrophic chemical fires and explosions at its facility in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. OSHA has issued 14 willful and one serious citation to the company with proposed penalties of $787,000 for failing to fully develop and implement a process safety management program at the facility. This action stems from the agency’s investigation of a June 29 explosion and fire at the facility.
“WRR Environmental Services put its workers in grave danger, and it is truly fortunate that no one was killed or severely injured in these incidents. The company’s blatant disregard for workers’ health and safety is not acceptable,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis.
“Even after WRR Environmental Services experienced a devastating fire that destroyed the facility in 2007, the company still failed to implement an adequate program to ensure safe operating conditions,” added Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Dr. David Michaels.
The June 29 explosion and fire was likely caused when an ignition source within a solvent sludge feed tank ignited flammable solvent vapors, blowing the roof off of the tank and igniting its contents. A neighboring tank also exploded. Employees had been working in the area of the solvent sludge feed tank immediately prior to the explosion. Fortunately, there were no reported injuries.
OSHA has issued WRR Environmental Services Co. Inc., 14 willful citations with proposed fines of $784,000. The citations allege an intentional disregard of the elements of the PSM standard, including failure to implement and provide required process safety information such as engineering drawings and materials of construction; failure to implement process hazard analyses, operating procedures and training; failure to perform pre-startup safety reviews and inspections and tests on process equipment; equipment deficiencies; failure to implement change management procedures; and failure to conduct incident investigations. A willful violation is one committed with intentional knowing or voluntary disregard for the law’s requirements, or with plain indifference to worker safety and health.
WRR Environmental Services Co. Inc., which currently employs more than 50 workers, has been inspected by OSHA five times since 1991. In 2007, a fire and explosion destroyed most of the facility including the solvent sludge recycling processes. As a result of those inspections, the company admitted to 30 serious and four other-than-serious safety violations.
As a result of OSHA’s most recent inspection, the company also has received one serious citation with proposed penalties of $3,000 for alleged deficiencies in its emergency action plan. A serious citation is issued when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.
This investigation falls under the requirements of OSHA’s Severe Violators Enforcement Program (SVEP). Initiated in the spring of 2010, SVEP is intended to focus on recalcitrant employers who endanger workers by committing willful, repeat, or failure-to-abate violations.
MSHA Initiative Highlights Dangers Related to Mobile Equipment Use in Coal Mines
Through a new mine safety initiative, MSHA is calling special attention to the potential dangers that shuttle cars and scoops in underground coal mines pose to miners. Between January 2000 and September 2010, nearly 800 miners have been injured and 16 killed in coal mine accidents involving shuttle cars and scoops. Three of those deaths occurred this year.
“We are concerned by the large number of injuries and fatal accidents involving shuttle cars and scoops, and are especially alarmed by the number of deaths that occurred just this year,” said Joseph A. Main, assistant secretary of labor for mine safety and health. “On too many occasions, miners are being hit or crushed by this type of mobile equipment, primarily due to the obstructed view of the driver. Miners need to be more aware of the presence of these vehicles, and mine operators need to provide safety protections to prevent these injuries and deaths.”
Shuttle cars and scoops are used to transport material from one area of the mine to another. The vehicles operate in close quarters and tight travel ways, where space is limited. When these vehicles are loaded, a driver’s view of the travel way may be obstructed, making movement dangerous and presenting serious hazards to other working miners in the area.
Using the slogan “Watch Out!,” MSHA has developed new posters, hard hat stickers and best practice resources to address the issue of worker safety around shuttle cars and scoops in underground coal mines, and mine inspectors will distribute the materials to miners at these operations. The handouts warn miners to watch out for moving mobile equipment in the underground area at all times. MSHA also advises miners to wear reflective clothing or reflective patches that make them more visible to equipment operators. Miners should make certain that equipment drivers can actually see them by signaling their presence in a way that will get the driver’s attention. They are encouraged to keep a safe distance from and avoid walking in front of moving shuttle cars or scoops.
“Mine operators need to determine safe routes of travel for miners and equipment, and examine systems that better establish a worker’s location, such as the use of small strobe lights for miners on foot,” Main said.
For several years, MSHA has actively encouraged the development and use of “proximity detection” technology on mining equipment, which can sense the presence of people and machinery within a certain distance of the equipment. These systems can be programmed to send warning signals and stop machine movement when a certain area or space near the system is breached.
“Proximity detection systems, used in conjunction with good safety practices around mobile equipment, could bring an end to fatal accidents involving shuttle cars and scoops in underground coal mines,” Main added.
OSHA Cites Masonry Company for Serious and Repeat Fall Hazards
OSHA has issued citations to Joe Montalvo, doing business as Montalvo’s Masonry, for three serious, one double repeat, and three single repeat violations following identification of fall hazards at the company’s facility in Hurst, Texas. Proposed penalties total $54,000.
“OSHA has specific standards when employees are working on and around scaffolding,” said Zachary Barnett, OSHA’s area director in Fort Worth, Texas. “It is fortunate in this case that no one was injured.”
OSHA’s Fort Worth Area Office began its inspection on October 21 at the company’s facility on Pipeline Road, which found employees working at an elevation of approximately 14 feet without wearing fall protection. Serious citations allege a failure to provide guardrails to withstand 200 pounds of force, ensure planks extend far enough over the support system of the scaffold and protect employees from exposed electrical wires on equipment cords.
The citations for repeat violations allege a failure to ensure a scaffold included a toe board, that working surfaces were fully planked, and that a competent person inspect the scaffolding. A repeat citation is issued when an employer previously has been cited for the same or a similar violation of a standard, regulation, rule or order at any other facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years.
A double repeat citation was issued for an alleged failure to ensure the scaffold had a toe board. A double repeat citation is issued when an employer previously has been issued a repeat citation for the same or a similar violation of a standard, regulation, rule or order at any other facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years.
Showalter Roofing Services Fined Over $87,000 for Fall Hazards
OSHA cited Showalter Roofing Services Inc., of Naperville with four alleged willful safety violations for exposing workers to fall hazards at a commercial roofing jobsite in Wheaton, Illinois. The company faces a $87,600 fine.
“Falls are a leading cause of injury and death in the workplace. Showalter Roofing has a history of failing to provide fall protection for workers at a number of other worksites,” said OSHA Area Director Kathy Webb in North Aurora, Illinois. “OSHA is committed to ensuring that all workers are provided a safe and healthful workplace.”
OSHA began its inspection in June as part of a local emphasis program on fall protection. The citations are for failing to provide fall protection for employees who were signaling crane operators while working on the commercial roof, failing to erect flags delineating work areas, and placing warning flags too low and too close to the edge of a building.
Showalter Roofing previously has been cited 15 times for violations regarding fall protection.
OSHA Issues Notices of Unsafe Working Conditions to Mansfield-Lahm Regional Airport
OSHA has issued Notices of Unsafe or Unhealthful Working Conditions to the Federal Aviation Administration’s Mansfield-Lahm Regional Airport for 13 violations including one serious notice for failing to provide a diagram of designated emergency egress routes as required in the airport traffic control tower.
The OSHA inspection was conducted June 15th, as part of the Airport Air Traffic Control Tower Monitoring Program. In addition to the serious violation, OSHA’s inspection cited five repeat and seven other-than-serious violations at the facility.
“The FAA failed to properly ensure this facility is in compliance with established safety procedures and to train workers for emergency actions,” said OSHA Area Director Jule Hovi in Toledo. “By ignoring safety procedures and training, the FAA is inviting tragedy into the lives of their workers.”
Repeat violations include notices for not ensuring fire stops were used to prevent an unintentional path for smoke and fire, failing to update the facility compliance programs as annually required, failing to implement a hazard communication program in the workplace and not making a facility emergency action plan and fire prevention plan available for review and use by employees. A repeat OSHA notice is issued if the Federal Agency had been cited previously for the same or a substantially similar condition and if OSHA’s region-wide inspection history for the agency lists a previous notice issued within the past three years. The FAA was previously cited in 2009 for similar violations at other sites in the region.
The seven other-than-serious violations include not properly recording injuries and illnesses on the OSHA 300 and 301 Logs in a timely manner, failing to providing accurate records for inspectors, failing to maintain material data sheets, failing to implement a facility fire drill training program, and not using proper ladders.
As required by the Occupational Safety and Health Act, Federal agencies must comply with the same safety standards as private sector employers. The federal agency equivalent to a private sector citation is the Notice of Unsafe and Unhealthful Working Conditions (commonly called the Notice). The OSHA Notice is used to inform establishment officials of violations of OSHA standards, alternate standards, and 29 CFR citable program elements. OSHA cannot propose monetary penalties against another federal agency for failure to comply with OSHA standards.
Raytheon Earns OSHA Star for Effective Injury and Illness Prevention Program
OSHA has recognized the management and employees of the Raytheon Co., in Omaha, Nebraska, for achievement in the company’s employee safety and health program.
Raytheon Company has been recognized as a Star site, the highest level of recognition that OSHA’s Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP) offer. The company provides high-tech information management solutions focusing on weather hardware and software systems for the military. It earned VPP star recognition following a comprehensive on-site evaluation by a team of OSHA safety and health experts. The company employs about 240 workers at its Omaha facility.
“From the top down, Raytheon Co. has shown outstanding efforts in implementing a comprehensive safety and health management system,” said Charles E. Adkins, OSHA’s regional administrator in Kansas City, Missouri. “The company is an exemplar of workplace safety.”
The VPP recognize employers and workers in the private industry and federal agencies who have implemented effective safety and health management systems, and maintain injury and illness rates below national Bureau of Labor Statistics averages for their respective industries. In VPP, management, labor, and OSHA work cooperatively and proactively to prevent fatalities, injuries and illnesses through a system focused on hazard prevention and control, worksite analysis, training, management commitment, and worker involvement.
To participate in the VPP, employers must submit an application to OSHA and undergo a rigorous on-site evaluation by a team of safety and health professionals. Union support is required for applicants represented by a bargaining unit. VPP participants are re-evaluated every three to five years to remain in the programs. VPP participants are exempt from OSHA programmed inspections while they maintain their VPP status.
OSHA Cites Lucas Oil Production Studios
OSHA cited Lucas Oil Production Studios of Corona, California, following the death of a cameraman at the Thunder Valley Motocross race course outside of Lakewood, Colorado, on June 25.
OSHA’s investigation found that the cameraman fell from an elevated all-terrain scissor lift from which guardrails had been removed. The company also exposed other cameramen and technicians to fall hazards by removing guardrails from several other scissor lifts.
“Lucas Oil Production Studios failed to provide its employees with a safe and healthful workplace,” said Greg Baxter, OSHA’s regional administrator in Denver, Colorado. “The company demonstrated indifference to the requirements of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, which resulted in fatal injuries to its employee.”
OSHA has proposed $91,000 in fines against the company for one alleged willful, two alleged serious, and one other-than-serious violation. The willful citation addressed the deliberate removal of the guardrails from the scissor lifts exposing employees to fall hazards up to 27 feet.
The serious citations addressed the employer’s failure to provide any training to employees on the proper operating procedures of all-terrain scissor lifts, and exposing employees to crushing and amputation hazards by not having established a lockout program for performing modifications on the lifts.
An other-than-serious citation was issued alleging the company failed to report the incident. An other-than-serious violation is one that has a direct relationship to job safety and health, but probably would not cause death or serious physical harm.
Contractor Faces $44,000 Fine After Explosion Injures Worker
OSHA has cited SPS New England with 11 alleged serious violations of safety standards following a July 15 explosion at the company’s maintenance facility in Salisbury, Massachusetts, that injured a worker. The Salisbury-based construction contractor faces a total of $44,000 in proposed fines, chiefly for deficiencies in welding procedures and safeguards.
The employee was performing welding on a pontoon boat when the hot work ignited vapors from within the boat’s interior. OSHA found that the boat had not been adequately ventilated to ensure the escape of flammable gases before welding; welding had been performed in the presence of an explosive atmosphere; guards had not been set up to confine heat, sparks, and slag; combustibles were not properly shielded; a welding area and procedures had not been established; authorization had not been secured for the welding; a fire watch was not provided; no individual had been designated to authorize and oversee the welding; and the work area had not been adequately inspected beforehand. In addition, there were electrical hazards stemming from damaged welding cables and an ungrounded extension cord.
“This incident graphically shows what can and does happen when proper welding preparations and procedures are not followed,” said Jeffrey A. Erskine, OSHA’s area director for Essex and Middlesex counties in Massachusetts. “While it is fortunate that this worker was not killed, he was needlessly injured. This incident should not have occurred.”
$76,000 Fine Following Worker Injury, Forklift, and Recordkeeping Violations
OSHA has cited New England Motor Freight Inc., an Elizabeth, New Jersey-based freight carrier, for 17 serious violations, as well as repeat and other-than-serious violations after an employee sustained a foot injury while operating a forklift at the company’s Pawtucket, Rhode Island, freight terminal. The company faces a total of $76,000 in fines.
OSHA’s inspection found several instances where forklifts were operated incorrectly, resulting in collisions and an injury. Employees were not wearing attached seatbelts while operating forklifts and forklift operators did not receive required refresher training. These conditions resulted in the issuance of seven serious citations, with $25,500 in proposed fines.
“Employers and workers must understand that lack of operator training and improper operation of forklifts can have severe and lasting consequences for workers,” said Patrick Griffin, OSHA’s area director for Rhode Island. “OSHA standards mandate initial and periodic refresher training for forklift operators to ensure the machines are operated safely.”
The inspection also found that defective forklifts were not removed from service and no assessment had been made to determine the personal protective equipment needed for forklift operators who changed liquefied petroleum gas tanks. OSHA previously had cited New England Motor Freight for similar hazards at terminals in Meriden, Connecticut, and South Plainfield, New Jersey. As a result, OSHA issued the company two repeat citations with $42,500 in fines for these latest violations.
Finally, the company was issued eight other-than-serious citations and fined $8,000 for inadequate and incomplete recording of on-the-job injuries and illnesses.
Industrial Ceramic Products Fined $91,500 After Worker Suffers Permanent Arm Injury
OSHA cited Industrial Ceramic Products, also known as ICP, in Marysville, Ohio, with two willful, seven serious, and four other-than-serious safety violations after a worker suffered a permanent arm injury while fixing a jammed machine. The manufacturer of industrial ceramic products is facing proposed penalties of $91,500.
“Failing to properly lock out machinery and electrical equipment from energy sources while workers perform maintenance places them at serious risk of injury,” said OSHA Area Director Deborah Zubaty in Columbus, Ohio. “There is no excuse for this type of complacency or for a worker to suffer permanent injury because an employer chooses not to comply with OSHA regulations. OSHA will do all it can to protect employees in the workplace.”
OSHA’s inspection, which began in June, cited the company with willful violations for failing to establish and enforce energy control procedures and to have guards in place on tube cutters.
The serious citations are for failing to train employees on lockout/tagout procedures for energized equipment; to provide appropriate personal protective gear for employees working on electrical equipment; and to ensure electrical parts were de-energized when employees were working on them.
ICP received the other-than-serious violations for failing to properly record and accurately describe workplace injuries and illnesses that resulted in lost workdays in the OSHA 300 log for the years 2007 to 2009. ICP has had 10 previous OSHA inspections resulting in 30 violations.