Document 6499583

Setting the
Standards
for Safety
Equipment
N ews from the I nternational Safety E quipment Association
APRIL 2012
Approximately 22 million American workers are exposed to hazardous noise levels at
work, eight million experience some degree
of hearing loss and an additional nine million are exposed to ototoxic chemicals. An
estimated $242 million is spent annually on
worker’s compensation for hearing loss disability in the United States.
Many workers have false perceptions
about noise that lead them to believe the
ears are forgiving (they are not), and that
hearing loss is only a concern for older
workers (it is not). When surrounded by
many more life-threatening risks, noise
exposure perhaps gets relegated to an after-thought:
When job“Nothing bad will happen if
site noise
is obvious,
I just work quickly without
workers
my earplugs — it will only
can easily
be a few minutes.” In some
be protectindustries, there can even be
ed against
a machismo among worker
hearing
attitudes that accepts hearloss.
ing loss as part of the job,
as if it is the destined price to pay for working in a particular industry. A worker who dismisses concerns about loud
noise by bragging, “my ears have gotten used to the noise
around here,” is sorely mistaken. Ears don’t grow accustomed to noise ... they simply lose hearing.
When it comes to hearing protection, cheaters pay a
dear price. Risk of hearing loss increases both with noise
level and with length of exposure. That’s why OSHA’s permissible limit of 90 decibels (dB) is based on a timeweighted average (TWA) of an 8-hour work shift. But
louder noise can cause damage in a much shorter time.
Because sound energy doubles with every increase of 3 dB,
exposure to 105 dB of sustained noise can cause permanent damage in just a few minutes. There are many
reported cases of permanent damage resulting from just
one unprotected impact noise on the job, or one unprotected shotgun blast off the job.
How can we protect the hearing of working Joe on the job?
Here are some of the most common concerns expressed by
workers when it comes to hearing protection, and how new
technology and materials in hearing protection address
a46
those concerns:
How to Stop
Joe’s Hearing Loss
on the Job
By Brad Witt, MA, CCC-A
Howard Leight/Honeywell Safety Products
PHOTO COURTESY HONEYWELL SAFETY PRODUCTS
W
orksites are filled with many obvious hazards:
cutting blades, trip or fall hazards, or moving
equipment pose imminent danger, whether they
are sign-posted or not. After decades of hearing conservation regulation in the workplace, one could assume noise
would be one of those “obvious” hazards. Yet occupational
hearing loss continues to be one of the most common
workplace injuries, with about 25,000 new cases reported
each year. When noise is so obvious, and a worker can be
so easily protected, why does the working Joe continue to
lose hearing on the job?
In the workplace, hearing loss is a common injury, albeit
an invisible one. Noise-induced hearing loss causes no immediate pain or trauma, leaves no scars or bruises, and is
unnoticeable in its early stages. Damage compounds with
each additional unprotected overexposure, and the resulting loss is permanent: there is no cure for noise-induced
hearing loss. Ironically, it is easily and completely preventable by properly wearing appropriate hearing protection.
INSIDE: FIVE
THINGS TO
MAKE YOU
SMARTER ABOUT
PROTECTING
WORKERS
48
Get to know ISEA member
MSA – The Safety Company
49
How QSSP gives you expertise along with your PPE
50
NIOSH/OSHA
launch program
to prevent
construction falls
51
17 OSHA videos help
workers learn respirator use
54
FHWA okays latest ‘high-viz’
standard for
responder
garments
46 Protection update | APRIL 2012
About the Author
Brad Witt is the director of
hearing conservation at
Howard Leight/Honeywell
Safety Products (http://www.
howardleight.com), a global
leader in hearing conservation solutions. He has a
bachelor’s degree in communication disorders from
Brigham Young University,
and a master’s in audiology
from Northwestern University.
For 14 years, he managed a
hearing conservation practice
in California, providing
OSHA-standard services at
175 locations. He has served
as president of the National
Hearing Conservation
Association and has presented more than 200 hearing conservation seminars on
behalf of Honeywell Safety
Products over the past six
years. Contact at bwitt@
sperian.com.
News from the International S afety Eq uipment A ssociation
Protection Update
is intended for anyone who
specifies, purchases or uses
personal protective equipment,
and those who regulate it.
Protection Update is available via ISEA’s website, www.
safetyequipment.org.
1901 North Moore Street
Arlington, VA
22209-1762 USA
Telephone: (703) 525-1695
Fax: (703) 528-2148
Daniel K. Shipp, President
dshipp@safetyequipment.org
Joseph L. Walker, Editor
jwalker@safetyequipment.org
HEARING CONSERVATION
from page 45
Intermittency
For a safety manager, it is usually harder to
protect workers from intermittent noise than
from continuous noise. Workers rationalize
not retrieving their earplugs or earmuffs
from the toolbox, or not inserting them if
the noise lasts “just a few minutes.” But in
acoustic terms, “just a few minutes” of
unprotected noise exposure at high levels is
enough to cause permanent damage.
To make hearing protection as accessible and convenient as possible, a variety of
options exist. Corded earplugs and banded
earplugs hang conveniently around the
neck when not in use, but are quickly available for intermittent noise. Push-in foam
earplugs are available that require no rolldown, improving hygiene (no rolling with
dirty hands) and deliver instant protection
upon proper insertion. Belt clips keep earmuffs easily accessible and “at the ready”
when encountering intermittent noise.
Communication
In a busy workplace filled with many potential hazards coming from various directions,
workers might feel that hearing protection
isolates them from their environment – limiting their ability to hear other critical
sounds such as communication from coworkers, warning signals, or the change in
sound from the machinery they are operating. One key NIOSH study conducted
across numerous worksites in three countries concluded that critical factors contributing to non-use of hearing protection were
interference with communication, and interference with job performance.
While there is no magical valve in a
hearing protector that allows desired
sounds to pass through, but blocks
unwanted sounds, there are earplugs and
earmuffs that are more speech-friendly
than others; that is, they attenuate the
speech frequencies of sound less than the
competing frequencies. This feature, called
uniform attenuation, gives workers the perception of better communication in the
presence of background noise, making it
less likely the hearing protection will need
to be removed to communicate.
Many different hearing protection
options are available to ensure worker
comfort and acceptance.
For high-end applications where communication in high noise is critical, new in-ear
intelligent protection systems deliver bionic
hearing technologies which heighten a
wearer’s ability to communicate with others
and better understand their environment.
These systems reproduce natural sound
clearly via digital processors, providing
active hearing protection from continuous,
intermittent, and impact noise — seamless
to the user. For more conventional applications, earplugs and earmuffs that incorporate uniform attenuation block hazardous
noise without distorting the clarity of incoming speech and warning signals.
Comfort and Convenience
User studies have shown that workers will
not wear hearing protection if it is uncomfortable or inconvenient. Several earmuff
designs work in sync with other personal
protective equipment (e.g., earmuffs that
attach to hard hats, or slim-line earmuffs
that can be worn under welding shields or
respirator hoods). Some styles offer highvisibility earcups and reflective headbands
for increased visibility day and night. And
electronic earmuffs offer a variety of additional features such as impact noise reduction
or active noise cancellation. For repetitive
jobs away from moving equipment, earmuffs with built-in AM/FM radios and MP3
connection jacks are available. Limiting circuits within these earmuffs ensure safe
noise exposures while still listening to music
to increase productivity on a tedious job.
Protection
Earplugs can also provide a comfortable
alternative. Features such as low-pressure
foam and thermal-conforming materials
make a fit more comfortable for longer
wearing time. Earplug dispensers in noisy
areas around the workplace encourage
easy accessibility, and remind users that
there’s no excuse for not having hearing
protection handy.
Verification of Protection
One of the newest technologies, accepted
now as a best practice in many Hearing
Conservation Programs, is fit-testing of hearing protectors. Similar to fit-testing of respirators, an in-field check of the worker’s actual
earplugs measures real-world performance,
just the way the earplugs are worn at the worksite. In a Best Practice Bulletin published by
an OSHA Alliance of hearing conservation
professionals, numerous benefits of fit-testing
of hearing protection were defined. These
systems, the publication explains, are valuable in assisting to select proper protection
for each worker individually, verify protection,
train workers in proper fitting techniques,
and re-fit workers whose audiometric results
demonstrate a shift in hearing. Fit-testing
systems also serve to document that the
employer has provided adequate protection
and training for its noise-exposed workers.
While fit-testing shows
the protection level at one
snapshot in time, continuous real-time verification of
hearing protection is now
available through technology called in-ear dosimetry.
The noise dosimeter takes
its readings under the earplugs or earmuffs, thus providing instant feedback
whether the wearer has a
good fit, bad fit, or is not
wearing the hearing protection at all. As a training and
compliance tool, in-ear
dosimetry has proven to
stop the progression of
noise-induced hearing loss
at the workplace.
While there are numerous
hazards at a worksite, all
competing for the worker’s
protective attention, noise is
one of the easier hazards to
mitigate. By partnering welldesigned products with
competent training, safety
managers can remove the
barriers to real hearing
conservation. l
update
| APRIL 2012
47
Look for Hearing
Protection from ISEA Members
Protection Update readers are encouraged
to specify hearing protection from the
International Safety Equipment Association
(ISEA) members, as follows:
l Bose Corporation, www.bose.com
l ERB Industries Inc., www.e-erb.com
l Gateway Safety, www.gatewaysafety.com
l Gentex Corp., www.gentexcorp.com
l Honeywell Safety Products, www.honewellsafety.com
l Kimberly-Clark Professional, www.kcprofessional.com
l Magid Glove and Safety Mfg. Co. LLC,
www.magidglove.com
l MCR Safety, www.mcrsafety.com
l 3M Company, www.3m.com/occsafety
l Moldex-Metric Inc., www.moldex.com
l MSA – The Safety Co., www.msasafety.com
l Radians Inc., www.radians.com
l Sellstrom Manufacturing Company,
www.sellstrom.com
l Sensear, www.sensear.com
l U.S. Safety, www.ussafety.com
Links to all ISEA member companies may
be found at www.safetyequipment.org;
click on “Resources” and, from the dropdown menu, click on “Buyer’s Guide.”
Order Complete Set of ANSI/ISEA Standards at Deep Discount
ISEA is offering a complete set of its American National
Apparel and Headwear, ANSI/ISEA 107-2010
l American National Standard for Air-Purifying Respiratory
Standards at 30 percent off the price of purchasing the
Protective Smoke Escape Devices, ANSI/ISEA 110-2009
publications individually. For $335 including shipping,
l American National Standard for Fixed and Portable
safety officers can get all the following publications in a
Decontamination Shower Units, ANSI/ISEA 113-2008
convenient three-ring binder:
l American National Standard for Limited-Use and
l American National Standard for Classification of
Disposable Coveralls - Size and Labeling Requirements,
Insulating Apparel Used in Cold Work Environments,
ANSI/ISEA 101-1996 (R2008)
ANSI/ISEA 201-2012.
l American National Standard for Classification and
l American National Standard for High Visibility Public
Performance Requirements for Chemical Protective
Safety Vests, ANSI/ISEA 207-2011
l American National Standard for Occupational and
Clothing, ANSI/ISEA 103-2010
l American National Standard for Gas Detector Tube Units
Educational Personal Eye and Face Protection Devices,
- Short Term Type for Toxic Gases and Vapors in Working
ANSI/ISEA Z87.1-2010.
l American National Standard for Industrial Head
Environments, ANSI/ISEA 102-1990 (R2009)
l American National Standard for Air Sampling Devices Protection, ANSI/ISEA Z89.1-2009
l American National Standard - Minimum Requirements for
Diffusive Type for Gases and Vapors in Working
Workplace First Aid Kits and Supplies, ANSI/ISEA
Environments, ANSI/ISEA 104-1998 (R2009)
l American National Standard for Hand Protection
Z308.1-2009
l American National Standard for Emergency Eyewash and
Selection Criteria, ANSI/ISEA 105-2011
l American National Standard for High Visibility Safety
Shower Equipment, ANSI/ISEA Z358.1-2009
Order directly online or download a faxable order form at www.safetyequipment.org.
48 Protection update | APRIL 2012
SPOTLIGHT ON...
The Safety
Company
MSA already was
protecting workers
during the oil boom
of the early decades
of the 20th Century.
“Spotlight on…” highlights
an ISEA member company
that is working hard to
ensure that workers are
protected by world-class
safety equipment. Answers
to questions about MSA –
The Safety Company were
provided by Steve Grasha,
manager, MSA North
America Creativity Center,
1000 Cranberry Woods
Drive, Cranberry Township,
PA 16066, 724-776-8813,
steve.grasha@msanet.com
Can you give us some background on
MSA – The Safety Company?
Established in 1914, MSA is a global leader
in the development, manufacture, and supply of safety products that protect people’s
health and safety. Principal products include
self-contained breathing apparatus, gas
masks, gas detection instruments, head
protection, fall protection devices, and thermal imaging cameras. Headquartered just
north of Pittsburgh, MSA has annual sales
of approximately $1 billion, a global workforce of 5,300, manufacturing operations
in the United States, Europe, Asia and Latin
America, and more than 40 international
locations, serving over 120 countries.
June 14, 1914, Ryan and Deike shook
hands and the Mine Safety Appliances Co.
was born. Their company started with simple things: first aid kits and signs in five
languages (because of the large number of
immigrants in the mines), and rudimentary
breathing equipment and instrumentation.
The Holy Grail they sought was the flameless electric miners’ cap lamp. They had the
concept, but in need of a miniaturized, reliable battery they sought the assistance of
Thomas Edison, who eventually was swayed
by their stories. Later in life, Edison said
that of all the things he had ever invented,
the Flameless Electric Cap Lamp was the
one that did the most for humanity.
What is MSA’s history, where did it
start and why?
In the early 1900s, people lost their lives
in U.S. mines every day. Over 1,000 died in
a single year within 100 miles of Pittsburgh
alone. When the U.S. Bureau of Mines
formed a Mine Rescue Division in 1910,
mining engineers John T. Ryan, Sr. and
George Deike, Sr., were among the first to
join. Although the conception of the Mine
Safety Appliances Co. was gradual, one
incident, in particular, proved pivotal for
Ryan. In March 1912, Ryan entered a mine
rescue operation. He emerged, carrying in
his arms a dead young boy who had become
trapped in the mine. In that moment, he
declared that if he could prevent this type of
tragedy, his life would be worth living.
Deike faced similar situations during his
days in mine rescue. Once, he found himself having to save his own rescue team.
Their breathing equipment had failed and,
unfortunately, one team member perished.
Sharing the same determined desire to
bring safe practices, proper protective gear
and dependable rescue equipment to the
mines, both men agreed that this mission
could only be accomplished by a company
that would make the necessary equipment
and spread the Gospel of Safety. So, on
How would you describe MSA’s mission?
Quite simply, MSA’s mission has gone
unchanged since the company’s founding in
1914: That men and women may work in
safety and that they, their families and their
communities may live in health throughout
the world.
What are MSA’s primary markets and
how do you strive to meet their needs?
Oil, Gas, and Petrochemical; Mining; Military;
Construction; Law Enforcement and the Fire
Service are MSA’s primary markets. Besides
a field sales force of over 130 associates
who have daily customer contact, MSA
engages in a rigorous “Voice of the Customer”
program to acquire a deep understanding
of customer needs. In fact, over the past
year, our New Product Development teams
made 467 visits talking with — and more
importantly — listening to customers - to
ensure that our products meet or exceed
their needs for safety, ease of use and value.
If prospects want to check out MSA
products, where would they find them?
The first place most people search for information today is online, and MSA’s new Web
a54
site at MSAsafety.com is a truly
Photos courtesy MSA
MSA
Protection
update
| APRIL 2012
49
When Your Safety Equipment Vendor
Is a QSSP, You’re Buying from the Best
By Dan Shipp
International Safety Equipment Association
You’re a safety director, or a small business
owner. You have to conduct hazard assessments, plan and implement control strategies, make sure your workers are equipped
with the right safety equipment and trained
on how to use it. You’re measuring noise
and dust, fit testing, supervising maintenance, tracking OSHA and EPA compliance
and filling out forms. And then your safety
equipment vendor pays you a call. This
could be the best news you’ll get all day, if
your vendor is a QSSP.
QSSP means Qualified Safety Sales Pro­
fessional. Marketing and sales people who
carry the QSSP title have taken a step beyond
just knowing the products they sell. They
have successfully completed an intensive,
week-long course on technical and regulatory fundamentals of workplace safety and
health, sponsored by the International Safety
Equipment Association (ISEA). QSSP has
prepared them to be a resource to their customers, bringing knowledge, competence
and credibility, and solutions to support your
critical mission of protecting your workers. In the QSSP course, they’ve learned
how you identify and evaluate hazards,
management approaches to personnel
safety and health, and how all the parts of
a safety and health program work together.
They study air sampling and exposure levels, respiratory and fall protection basics,
electrical safety, capabilities and limitations
of personal protective equipment (PPE), and
confined spaces. They dig into OSHA regulations to learn about standards, compliance and enforcement.
The centerpiece of the course is an innovative way of looking at the health and safety
value proposition. Students learn how to
calculate the real cost of an injury or fatality, how workers compensation insurance
premiums are affected by your company’s
safety performance, and how health and
safety management should be viewed as a
business asset. To get the right perspective,
they learn to calculate the cost of an injury
in sales equivalent dollars,
showing how poor safety
performance affects profits.
All this knowledge is at
your disposal when a QSSP
is your vendor.
QSSP Course is Taught
by Professional Trainers
The course is taught by a
faculty of professional trainers led by Rick Raymer, CSP,
president of Safety Solutions
Partners and a veteran safety
manager for a major international corporation. It was
created under the leadership of Dr. Rick
Fulwiler, who served as the first course
director and is a recognized leader in safety
and industrial hygiene. Since 1996, over
1,000 safety and health professionals from
safety equipment manufacturers and distributors have completed the course,
earned the QSSP title, and become valuable
partners to their customers in helping them
solve worker safety and health challenges.
When you buy from a QSSP, you’re
working with someone who has a real
understanding of the challenges you face,
and is armed with creative solutions that go
beyond filling your PPE order. QSSPs have
helped companies identify hazards and
controls, participated in safety meetings
and training, and of course provided protective equipment and technologies suited
to the job and environment. In the words of
Rick Fulwiler, they have gone “from peddlers to partners.”
It’s easy to find a QSSP. There’s a
searchable directory on the Web at www.
qssp.org, where you’ll also find a course
description and registration information.
QSSP Background
For its first 16 years, QSSP was a cooperative project of ISEA and the Safety
Equipment Distributors Association (SEDA).
However, SEDA was dissolved in late 2011,
and ISEA has taken over full management
of the program. l
Course director Rick
Raymer, CSP, covers the
importance of public
trust during 2011 QSSP
training in Durham, N.C.
About the Author
Daniel K. Shipp has been
president of the Arlington,
Va.-based International
Safety Equipment Association
since 1993. With 70 member companies, ISEA is the
leading North American
association for companies
that manufacture personal
protective equipment and
other forms of safety gear,
and for safety equipment
distributors. As president,
Shipp is ISEA’s senior staff
executive; reach him at
703-525-1695 or dshipp@
safetyequipment.org.
50 Protection update | APRIL 2012
CONSTRUCTION CORNER
OSHA, NIOSH Join Forces on
Fall Protection Campaign
T
New
fall
protection
guide from ISEA
Above: slide from OSHA’s
fall costs Powerpoint;
below: scene from
“Flagging Fundmentals”
by ARTBA
he U.S. Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (www.osha.gov) and
National Institute for Occupational
Safety and Health – www.cdc.gov/niosh —
are launching a campaign to encourage
residential construction contractors, workers and others in that industry to work
safely and use the right equipment to prevent falls.
“Falls kill; they are the top cause of construction fatalities accounting for one-third of
on-the-job deaths in the industry,” said Matt
Gillen, deputy director of NIOSH’s Office of
Construction Safety and Health. “There is a
real need to promote the use of fall prevention practices by contractors and construction workers to turn the problem around.”
The campaign focuses on three major
fatal fall types: from roofs, from ladders,
and from scaffolds.
The launch is slated for the week of
Worker’s Memorial Day, April 23-28, with a
Web site, logo and series of targeted materials and messages. Further details will be
announced in the July Protection Update.
Those interested in participating should
contact Gillen at 202-245-0651 or mgillen@cdc.gov.
Also from OSHA comes a new PowerPoint
presentation that shows the heavy financial
cost resulting from falls in construction, three
fact sheets that address fall prevention during roofing operations in residential construction, and a publication on the hazards of
loud noise in construction.
The fact sheets on fall prevention cover
reducing falls during roof sheathing, installing standing seam metal roofs, and reroofing. The publication on construction
noise hazards covers how noise levels are
measured, and how to find out if noise on
the job site is loud enough to cause hearing loss, and includes information on how
to conserve workers’ hearing. Two International Safety Equipment
Association (ISEA) documents to help protect workers whose jobs expose them to fall
hazards are available free via download
from the association’s website – www.safetyequipment.org.
A Personal Fall Protection Equipment Use
and Selection Guide provides practical,
hands-on guidance for users and administrators in their selection, use, maintenance
and inspection of fall protection equipment. A companion document, Frequently
Addressed Topics in Fall Protection, covers
subjects on which manufacturers get frequent inquiries.
Both are available free online in PDF format for easy downloading, printing and
reading at http://www.safetyequipment.
org/c/guides.cfm.
The American Society of Safety
Engineers — www.asse.org — announced
that the American National Standards
Institute (ANSI) has approved the updated
ANSI/ASSE A10.33-2011 standard, Safety
and Health Program Requirements for MultiEmployer Projects. The standard sets up
minimum elements and activities of a program that defines the duties and responsibilities of construction employers working on
a project where multiple employers are or will
be engaged in the common undertaking.
American Road and Transportation
Builders Association — www.artba.org —
has introduced the “Flagging Fundmentals”
DVD, which provides the latest information
to revitalize flagging training programs with
information from the most recent federal
and industry standards. Available in Spanish
as well as English, the video focuses on six
steps to safe flagging operations, ARTBA said.
The Specialized Carriers & Rigging
Association (www.scranet.org) has introduced two comprehensive checklists for
annual crane inspections.
The “Telescoping Boom Crane Annual
Inspection Checklist” and “Lattice Boom
Crane Annual Inspection Checklist” may
be ordered from the website “store.” l
Protection
update
| APRIL 2012
51
M aking W orkers S afer A round the N ation
The U.S. Occupational Safety and
Health Administration (www.osha.gov)
has posted a series of 17 videos to help
workers learn about the proper use of
respirators on the job. These short videos
— nine in English and eight in Spanish —
provide valuable information to workers in
general industry and construction, OSHA
said.
Topics include OSHA’s Respiratory
Standard, respirator use and training, fittesting and detecting counterfeit respirators.
The videos are available with closed captioning for streaming or download from the
agency’s Web site.
OSHA’s Safety and Health topics page
on Respiratory Protection also includes
additional training materials, information
on occupational respiratory hazards in different industries, and details on OSHA’s
Respiratory Protection Standard.
Other new OSHA communications products are:
l An “Injury and Illness Prevention
White Paper.” An injury and illness prevention program is a proactive process to
help employers find and fix workplace hazards before workers are hurt. OSHA
believes that adoption of injury and illness
prevention programs will help millions of
U.S. businesses improve their compliance
with existing laws and regulations, decrease
the incidence of workplace injuries and illnesses, reduce costs, and enhance their
overall business operations.
l A fact sheet, “Eye Protection against
Radiant Energy during Welding and
Cutting in Shipyard Employment.”
Tables provide proper shade numbers to be
used under various conditions when performing welding operations.
The National Institute for Occupational
Safety and Health ( www.cdc.gov/
niosh) has published proceedings from
the International Conference on Fall
Prevention and Protection, with the goal
of reducing injuries from work-related
falls. This document represents a wealth
of knowledge from experts and informed
stakeholders on the best way to understand, prevent, and control fall-related risk
exposures.
Some 250 presentations cover (1) global
strategic goals; (2) slips, trips and falls on
the same level; (3) fall-from-elevation
research, and (4) research to practice.
l NIOSH also has published “Fast Facts”
for home healthcare workers on how to
prevent needlestick and sharps injuries, and
how to prevent latex allergies.
Contact with contaminated needles,
scalpels, broken glass, and other sharps
may expose healthcare workers to blood
that contains pathogens that pose a grave,
potentially lethal risk, NIOSH said, adding
that latex products are made from natural
rubber, and limiting exposure can help prevent allergic reactions for both home
healthcare workers and their clients.
l Through a partnership with the University
of Cincinnati, the NIOSH “Skin Permeation
Calculator” has been updated with enhanced
features. The calculator now allows users to
simulate typical occupational exposure scenarios, and estimates fluxes, skin concentrations, and amounts absorbed from any
size dose applied to partially or fully
hydrated skin.
In cooperation with the National Hear­
ing Conservation Association (NHCA)
— www.hearingconservation.org — NIOSH
has released a supplemental issue of the
International Journal of Audiology
dedicated to research presented at NHCA’s
36th Annual Conference in February 2011.
Topics include how different hearing devices
perform across a wide range of impulse
sounds.
l NIOSH also has created a “Nonverbal
Communication for Mine Emergencies”
training program, which provides miners
with a set of nonverbal hand signals that
they can use in the event of an emergency
that requires donning a self-contained self
rescue device.
New from the U.S. Mine Safety and
Health Administration — www.msha.gov
— is the third phase of its outreach and
enforcement program to strengthen efforts to
prevent mining fatalities. “Rules to Live By
III: Preventing Common Mining Deaths”
focuses on 14 safety standards that were
chosen because violations related to each
have been cited as contributing to at least
five mining accidents and at least five
deaths during the period Jan. 1, 2001, to
Dec. 31, 2010.
52 Protection update | APRIL 2012
M aking W orkers S afer A round the N ation
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (www.
csb.gov) has released a new safety video
depicting three accidents involving combustible iron dust at the Hoeganaes Corp.
in Gallatin, Tenn. “Iron in the Fire” features
three computer animations showing how
fine metal particles ignited in two incidents,
and how a hydrogen explosion and subsequent flash fires caused by lofted metal dust
killed five workers and injured three others.
Download the video from the Web site.
The California Division of Occupation­al
Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) — www.
dir.ca.gov/dosh — has launched in partnership with the Oakland Fire Department a
Stay on Top of PPE
Developments with
ISEA’s ‘Safety
Signals’ Blog
You can stay on top
of the latest developments in the
world of personal
protective equipment (PPE) by frequently checking
out the International
Safety Equipment
Association’s
(ISEA’s) blog at
www.SafetySignals.
org.
You will find information and opinion
about personal protective technologies
and markets, standards, government
affairs involving PPE, ISEA and its
members.
“New articles are posted regularly, and
readers can add their own comments and
observations,” said ISEA President Dan
Shipp. “You can subscribe through RSS
and be notified any time there is a new
article.”
If you are a member of the LinkedIn
community and want to join the ISEA
LinkedIn network, you will find it at http://
safetysignals.org, Shipp added. l
continued
statewide “Confined Space Special Empha­
sis Initiative” to focus on preventing worker
deaths and injuries in confined spaces.
The program’s goals are (1) increase
awareness of employees and employers to
these hazards; (2) provide resources, online
materials, training and consultation to prevent injuries and deaths, and (3) increase
enforcement efforts to ensure all employers
have adequate confined space programs
and training in their workplaces. As part of
this initiative, the agency issued a
“Confined Space Hazard Alert” to help
employers and employees identify confined
space situations and take immediate steps
to protect worker.” l
FHWA Says ANSI/ISEA 207-2011
Garments Meet MUTCD ‘High-Viz’
Requirements for Responders
The Federal Highway Admin­istration (FHWA) has issued an interpretation
stating that garments complying with the 2011 edition of the American
National Standard for High Visibility Public Safety Vests, ANSI/ISEA 2072011, meet the requirements of the 2009 edition of FHWA’s Manual on
Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD).
The MUTCD defines the standards used by road managers nationwide
to install and maintain traffic control devices on all public streets, highways,
bikeways, and private roads open to public traffic. The formal interpretation
came via a Feb. 1, 2012, letter from Mark R. Kehrli, director of FHWA’s
Office of Transpor­tation Operations, to ISEA President Dan Shipp.
The MUTCD requires high-visibility protective garments compliant with
the ANSI/ISEA 107 American National Standard for High Visibility Safety
Apparel and Headwear for right-of-way workers, flaggers and adult crossing guards. Public safety workers including law enforcement, firefighters
and other emergency responders have the option of wearing high-visibility
vests specifically designed for their use, and compliant with the ANSI/ISEA
207 American National Standard for High-Visibility Public Safety Vests.
“We are delighted that FHWA has provided this interpretation in a
timely fashion, ensuring that emergency responders have access to the latest in protective high-visibility apparel from ISEA members,” Shipp said.
An MUTCD revision published in 2009 mandates that public safety vests
be labeled as compliant with the 2006 version of the ANSI/ISEA 207 standard, or a subsequent revision. ANSI approved the revision to the standard in
late 2011. On Jan. 4, 2012, ISEA asked to for an interpretation stating that
garments meeting the new standard would be acceptable, pointing out that
the requirements of the two standards for daytime and nighttime visibility
are essentially the same. In its February 1 letter, FHWA agreed that garments
compliant with the updated standard would meet MUTCD requirements.
FHWA’s and ISEA’s letters may be accessed from ISEA’s Web site, www.
safetyequipment.org, see item under “ISEA News.” l
Protection
update
| APRIL 2012
53
O S H A $ 1 0 0 , 0 0 0 C lub of S afety C itations
The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) proposed penalties of $100,000 or more during
the Jan. 1 – Feb. 29, 2012, period for the following alleged failures to protect workers from potential hazards.
All included citations for failures to provide or properly train workers in the use of personal protective equipment
(PPE) and other forms of safety gear. Companies have 15 business days from receipt of citations and fines to
request and participate in informal conferences with OSHA or to contest the citations before the independent
Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission:
l DeMoulas Super Markets Inc., doing business as Market
Basket, Tewksbury, Mass., $589,200 for mainly fall and
laceration hazards at the company’s 60-plus stores in
Massachusetts and New Hampshire. “Hazardous conditions at multiple locations that expose employees to serious injuries demand a swift and comprehensive corrective
response at the corporate level,” said Assistant Secretary
of Labor David Michaels. “OSHA insists that this employer
completely and effectively eliminate the hazards it never
should have allowed to exist in the first place.”
l Welch Group Environmental LLP, Belton, S.C., $480,000
for knowingly neglecting to protect workers from overexposure
to lead while cleaning the Delray Shooting Center in Delray
Beach, Fla. Willful violations included failing to provide
employees with respirator fit test, respirator training, eye
or head protection, shower facilities or changing rooms.
l Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Bentonville, Ark., $365,500 for 24
violations at its supercenter store No. 2859 in Rochester, N.Y.
Inspections led OSHA to identify fall hazards, no training for
employees using PPE, and a lack of eye and face protection.
l American Marazzi Tile Inc., $318,000 for 25 violations
for exposing workers to excessive noise levels, machine
guarding hazards and other dangerous conditions at its
facility in Sunnyvale, Texas.
l Jennie-O Turkey Store Inc., a division of Hormel Foods
Corp., $318,000 for 11 violations after a worker’s arm at
the company’s Baron, Wis., facility was amputated below
the shoulder while the individual was conducting cleaning
activities in a confined space. Violations included failure to
provide fall protection. Jennie-O and Hormel are based,
respectively, in Wilmar and Austin, Minn.
l Exel Inc., $283,000 for nine violations at the Hershey
Co.-owned Eastern Distribution Center III in Palmyra, Pa.
Exel operates the center for Hershey. Citations included
failing to develop and implement an effective hearing conservation program.
l Publix Supermarkets Inc., $182,000 for 16 violations at
its Jacksonville, Fla., distribution facility. OSHA investigated after receiving word that a worker’s hand was
amputated while cleaning conveyor equipment.
l Penney Construction Co. LLC, Hartford, Conn., $169,000,
chiefly for exposing workers to cave-in hazards while
repairing a sewer line in Hartford, but also for a lack of PPE.
l Bridgford Foods Corp., Anaheim, Calif., $164,500 for
violations at its food manufacturing facility in Dallas. Serious
violations included failing to provide machine guarding to
prevent workers from contacting rotating parts of drill presses.
l Basic Marine Inc., $147,840 for 32 violations at its shipyard and boat-repair facility in Escanaba, Mich. Citations
included failing to fit test workers who wore respirators
and to provide workers with fall protection.
l American Felt and Filter Co., $146,300 for 35 violations,
including exposing workers to excessive noise, at its New
Windsor, N.Y., plant, which makes woolen felt for a variety
of applications.
l KD Acquisition I LLC, doing business as Coleman Natural
Foods, $142,150 for eight violations at its KD5 plant in
Braselton, Ga. OSHA investigated after receiving a complaint about safety conditions at the food-processing plant.
l Fritz Aluminum Services Inc., $139,800 for 37 violations,
including failing to ensure workers were wearing eye and
face protection when exposed to chemicals and using
compressed air for cleaning, at its aluminum fabrication
facility in Eustis, Fla.
l Kuehne Chemical Co., South Kearny, N.J., $139,000 for
21 violations, including failing to provide PPE to workers
exposed to electrical hazards, at its bleach manufacturing
facility in Delaware City, Del.
l Gemtex Inc., doing business as Gemini Linen Rental,
$125,000 for 48 violations, including several that involved
PPE deficiencies, at its facility in Palmyra, N.J.
l Jeffboat LLC, $119,000 for nine violations, including
failing to properly train workers in the use of PPE, after a
worker was fatally crushed at the company’s Jeffersonville,
Ind., facility. Jeffboat specializes in hopper, tank and
oceangoing tank barges.
l Basic Grain Products Inc., $112,000 for 13 violations,
including failure to provide adequate assessments to
determine if PPE was required, at its snack food plant in
Coldwater, Ohio.
l Curt Manufacturing LLC, $105,500 for eight violations,
including failing to provide information to workers voluntarily using respirators, at its facility that makes towing
components in Eau Claire, Wis.
l Interstate Brands, doing business as Hostess Brands,
$104,700 for 10 violations, including failing to provide
PPE to safeguard employees against electrical shocks, at
its Biddeford, Maine, production plant.
l Franklin Lumber Co., Bude, Miss., a division of Cortez
Byrd L.P., $103,356 for 22 safety violations, including failing to provide proper machine guards.
54 Protection update | APRIL 2012
Safety Equipment
Works
You
for
Send Us Your ‘Safety Equipment Works for You’ Stories
Protection Update welcomes contributions from readers for our regular
“Safety Equipment Works for You” feature. Email examples of where
PPE has saved workers’ lives or prevented injuries to Editor Joe Walker,
jwalker@safetyequipment.org, or mail them to the Editor, Protection
Update, International Safety Equipment Association, 1901 N. Moore
Street, Suite 808, Arlington, VA 22209. Photos are welcome.
Construction Electrician Reduces Nuisance Cuts
Journey level construction electrician Barbara Monk of Odessa, Ont., Canada, says there were very few times
during her 21-year career that her hands were not covered with nicks and cuts. Contractors often supplied “pimple-grip” cotton gloves that offered some cut resistance, but did not provide the dexterity she needed to handle small
objects, she said.
Then a contractor at a refinery construction site provided Monk gloves with a nitrile coating and Kevlar® liner designed
to protect against sharp-edged tools and materials. Since she began wearing the gloves, Monk says she has not suffered
from nicks and cuts that require bandaging like she used to.
“My hands feel safe from cuts for the first time,” she said. “The gloves are comfortable and fit well, and they provide
the dexterity I need for most jobs. I remove them only for the most finite tasks.”
Monk’s HyFlex® gloves by Ansell Corp., www.ansellpro.com or 800-800-0444.
OSHA Inspector Prevents Potentially Fatal Fall
During a November 2011 inspection at an Illinois worksite, OSHA Compliance Safety and Health Officer Tony
Nozzi identified a roofing contractor’s employees and a building restoration employee working on a church roof
without any fall protection. Before leaving the site, Nozzi made sure that all employees put on harnesses and lanyards
and secured themselves with rope grabs, OSHA reported.
After Nozzi departed, an employee began power washing the steeple. Shortly after starting, the employee slipped and
slid down the church’s pitched roof. His lifeline tightened on the lanyard and he stopped right before the edge of the roof,
OSHA said. His fall protection prevented serious and potentially fatal injuries and the employee was able to walk back up
the roof to the steeple and complete his work safely.
SPOTLIGHT ON MSA
from page 48
world-class resource searchable by product, market or hazard. After getting product information, or reviewing a Care
& Use, application or Testimonial video, a visitor can quickly
obtain contact information for over 700 MSA Channel
Partners or Manufacturer Reps.
Why should someone who needs safety equipment
obtain it from MSA?
Over 250 MSA engineers, scientists and technicians are
dedicated exclusively to developing new, innovative safety
products, with the most complete research and development facilities in the industry at their disposal. MSA associates
in North America also serve or lead more than 25 safety
standards committees that promote proper use and standardization of personal protective equipment, allowing us to
be true advocates for workers. Our total focus is safety equipment, so you can be sure you’re getting the most durable, easy
to use, and reliable products possible. To ensure this high
level of product quality, we craft many of our components
in-house from raw materials when we formulate, machine,
tool or mold our products. This insistence on in-house production guarantees greater manufacturing control and
unequaled quality assurance for safety equipment users.
What is the key feature that differentiates MSA
from others making and selling safety equipment?
We recognize that our customers require not just safety, but
safety that generates value for their organization. MSA provides added value by conducting no-charge, on-site customer training seminars, PPE evaluations, and application
training; producing product training videos and print materials customized to your specific procedures and product
feature set; and by demonstrating savings through a total
cost of ownership approach using on-line calculators.
What are MSA’s offerings that provide unique performance characteristics not found elsewhere?
MSA recently introduced the XCell Sensors in the Altair 4X
and Altair 5X Multigas Detectors. This sensor technology
makes others obsolete by integrating the electronics along
with the sensor itself, not just adding it on. This allows for
significantly faster response and clear times, sensor life
nearly double the industry standard, and durability that
enables the Altair 4X to survive a 20’ drop.
What else would you like to tell Protection Update
readers about MSA – The Safety Company?
MSA aims to provide customers with a superior customer
experience. It begins with the development of high-quality
products and continues with support services that exceed
customer expectations. High-profile offerings such as MSAU, our on-line training resource, offers employee training
to fit your schedule and save you time and money. Our
customer service promise is simple: To make the world
safer, one person at a time. l