Facility Safety


OSHA Antes Up for Casino Construction

The 126-acre site in Pennsylvania will hold a 300-room hotel, 200,000 square feet of retail space, 3,000 slot machines, a meeting and convention area, and a variety of dining, shopping, and entertainment venues.

Manufacturer Fined $102,000 for Lead Exposure, Defective Machinery, More

The total penalty amount is the result of citations for seven repeat violations, 19 serious violations, and 10 other-than-serious violations found during an inspection initiated by a complaint.

Lawmakers Reintroduce Combustible Dust Bill

U.S. Reps. George Miller, D-Calif., and John Barrow, D-Ga., have reintroduced a bill to force OSHA to issue a regulation intended to prevent combustible dust explosions. U.S. Rep. Lynn Woolsey, who chairs the Workforce Protections Subcommittee of Miller's Education and Labor Committee, joined them.

ASSE Kuwait Chapter Seeks Middle East SH&E Excellence Nominees

Companies will be evaluated on their ability to demonstrate that their SH&E management system led to proven success in their SH&E practices and enhanced productivity.

MSHA Files Lawsuit against Kentucky Darby LLC

After failing to pay a $342,000 penalty by the Oct. 19, 2008 deadline, MSHA now seeks to collect $505,012--which includes unpaid civil penalties, additional penalties, interest, and administrative fees.

Study: Does Shift Work Cause Certain Cancers?

Does shift work predispose you to cancer by altering the body’s response to hormones? And if so, can a dietary supplement help? Those are the questions researchers at The Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ)--a Center of Excellence of UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School--hope to answer through a new study, which recently received $600,000 in funding from The V Foundation for Cancer Research.

NYC Mayor Unveils Restaurant Inspection Program

Under the new model, the Health Department will increase inspections for less sanitary restaurants and require all establishments to conspicuously post letter grades.

Developing a Culture of Alertness

Every leader, manager, and safety professional I know hopes to see a higher level of worker awareness. But despite these wishes, there doesn’t seem to be a bull market in “awareness.” In fact, the opposite seems to hold. As external stressors pile on, people become more distracted, oftentimes so beset by personal worries—the economy? job security? retirement? effects on family relationships?—they have difficulty focusing even on simple day-in, day-out activities. So their default automatic pilot Safety programs become glitchy. And this doesn’t even begin to account for unusual events that really require split-second scoping out, decision-making, and immediate action.



Advancing Safety Around the World

Fact: Workplace safety in industrialized nations such as the United States, Canada, and much of the European Union is more entrenched than in other regions of the world. For ease of reference, we will call these advanced safety countries.

Go Beyond OSHA Compliance

Halfway through my bachelor’s degree in Environmental, Health, and Safety Management, I made the switch from Operations supervisor to Environmental, Health, and Safety Specialist. Through the course of the next two years, my view of the safety field as one that merely identifies hazards using OSHA and other tools made a 180-degree turn when I realized how versatile you have to be in order to be successful in safety.

Vision Testing: A Blind Spot in Occupational Safety

How many departments in your organization have requirements for visual inspections? How many of the codes, regulations, and legislative mandates demand that visual inspections be performed on a regular, weekly, monthly, quarterly, or annual basis? Think of the requirements for slings and wire ropes, aircraft parts, hazardous waste containers, and every commercial vehicle and load—the list goes on and on. Yet how many of those same codes have a single line that requires the inspectors (your employees) to be able to see and see correctly?

CPSC Warns of Home Heating Fire, Carbon Monoxide Hazards

According to the U.S. Fire Administration, there have been more than 150 residential fires that resulted in more than 200 deaths since Thanksgiving. These statistics have led USFA and fire chiefs to declare the holiday season and start of the new year as one of the deadliest in recent memory.

Workers' Worries about Job Security Increase

Forty-five percent of employees polled believe that because of the continuing economic conditions they face greater risk that their job will change or be eliminated, and 55 percent believe the risk that their future earnings will plateau or decline has increased.

New Web Site Focuses on Changes to NRR System

The site offers news updates as changes are made, answers to frequently asked questions, articles, and an opportunity to pose questions to hearing conservation experts.

Public Hearing on Proposed Cranes, Derricks Standards Announced

OSHA will hold an informal public hearing on the proposed cranes and derricks in construction standard on March 17.

Research Links Sleep Loss to Weight Gain

”No one’s sure why that happens, but it's thought to be influenced by limited food choices on the night shift, eating at the wrong times of day, and having limited time and energy for exercise,” the study says.

road construction ahead sign

Civil Engineers Give Nation's Infrastructure a 'D' Grade

Since ASCE's last assessment in 2005 there has been little change in the condition of the nation’s roads, bridges, drinking water systems, and other public works, and the cost of improvement has increased by more than $500 billion.

Alliance Aims to Boost Safety for Hispanic Workers in Central Florida

The focus of the pact is on reducing construction and general industry hazards, including but not limited to falls, electrical operations, ergonomics, bloodborne pathogens, fire safety, egress/exit routes, and evacuation plans.

California Launches 'Wiki' to Develop Green Chemistry Regulations

The wiki allows anyone to access and contribute or modify content, using simple on-line tools.

CSB Safety Video Urges OSHA Coverage for All Public Employees

Citing a fatal explosion in Daytona Beach, Florida, in 2006, U.S. Chemical Safety Board Chairman John Bresland has issued a new video safety message urging the state to move forward promptly with recommendations to extend OSHA coverage to all its public workers.

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