ASSE Publishes New College Texts

ASSE has published eight new textbooks for college and university students. Edited by Joel M. Haight, Ph.D., P.E., these peer-reviewed texts were written by SH&E professionals and intended as primary texts for core SH&E undergraduate courses.

Developed from The Safety Professional's Handbook, Second Edition, the textbooks were developed based on a survey of the publication's authors who are university instructors. Each chapter contains learning objectives and review questions.

The textbooks include:

• Environmental Safety and Health Regulations;
• Ergonomics and Human Factors Engineering;
• Hazard Prevention through Effective Safety and Health Training;
• Hazardous Material and Hazard Communication;
• Industrial Fire Protection;
• Principals of Industrial Safety;
• Recognition, Evaluation, and Control of Workplace Health Hazards;
• Workplace Hazard Prevention Management.

The textbooks provide in-depth analysis and discussion, case studies and examples of the core competencies expected of undergraduates as they enter professional practice, including SH&E regulations, applied science and engineering and best practices.

NSC Announces 2013 CEOs Who "Get It"

Eight leaders of national and multinational organizations, representing a range of industries, have been recognized for their dedication to safety excellence by National Safety Council (NSC). CEOs Who “Get It” is NSC’s annual recognition of business leaders who demonstrate world-class safety. According to NSC, each of these leaders understand that safety is not only the right thing to do, but that creating a culture of safety is also a business imperative.

NSC recognizes leaders of organizations who have a firm grasp on what it calls the “journey to safety excellence”—the quest to drive workplace injuries and fatalities to zero—and its four key pillars: committed leadership and employee engagement; sound safety processes and procedures; continuous risk reduction; and measuring and improving performance. This year’s honorees are:

• Teri Bristol, chief operating officer, FAA, Air Traffic Organization,Washington, DC;
• Richard Fox, CEO, CDM Smith, Cambridge, MA;
• Anthony Orlando, president and CEO, Covanta Energy Corp., Morristown, NJ;
• Richard Sarles, general manager and CEO, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority,Washington, DC;
• David Seaton, chair and CEO, Fluor Corp., Irving, TX;
• Michael Sims, general manager and CEO, Butler Rural Electric Cooperative Inc., Oxford, OH;
• Major General Peter Talleri, commanding general, Marine Corps Installations Pacific/Commander, Marine Corps Base Camp Butler;
• Bill Wright, president and CEO, Petrochem Insulation Inc., Vallejo, CA.

"The strong example these leaders have set in living the journey and protecting their employees is something we hope all business leaders will follow,” says NSC’s Janet Froetscher.

Beware of Carbon Monoxide Exposure, OSHA Says

According to OSHA, each year workers die from carbon monoxide poisoning. OSHA is reminding employers that they need to protect workers from the dangers of carbon monoxide exposure. The agency's Carbon Monoxide Fact Sheet provides tips and resources to help employers take precautions. To reduce risk, employers should install an effective ventilation system, try to not use fuel-burning equipment in enclosed spaces and install carbon monoxide detectors.

Canada Releases Standard on Workplace Psychological Health and Safety

A new Canadian standard has been released that is designed to help companies and employees improve workplace psychological health and safety. The voluntary standard, “Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace – Prevention, Promotion and Guidance to Staged Implementation,” focuses on promoting employees’ psychological health and preventing psychological harm due to workplace factors. The National Standard of Canada was released by the Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC), Bureau de normalisation du Québec (BNQ) and CSA Group.

"One in five Canadians experience a mental health problem or mental illness in any given year and many of the most at risk individuals are in their early working years,” says MHCC President and CEO Louise Bradley. “It’s time to start thinking about mental well-being in the same way as we consider physical well-being, and the standard offers the framework needed to help make this happen in the workplace.”

The standard provides a systematic approach to develop and sustain a psychologically healthy and safe workplace, including:

• identification of psychological hazards in the workplace;
• assessment and control of workplace risks associated with hazards that cannot be eliminated (e.g., stressors due to organizational change or reasonable job demands);
• implementation of practices that support and promote psychological health and safety in the workplace;
• growth of a culture that promotes psychological health and safety in the workplace;
• implementation of measurement and review systems to ensure sustainability.

“This voluntary national standard is the result of a collaborative effort between MHCC, BNQ and CSA Group, and is supported by scientific literature from many relevant areas of workplace health and safety, social science and law,” says CSA Group’s Bonnie Rose. “Workplaces with a positive approach to psychological health and safety have improved employee engagement, enhanced productivity, and a better financial outlook.”

Survey Shows Mining Executives Rank Workforce Safety as Highest Priority

Results from a recent survey show new trends and shifting attitudes among mining executives. The study identified worker safety and managing capital projects as the highest priorities of today’s mining executives, followed closely by maximizing production effectiveness.

Ventyx, an ABB company, completed its annual Mining Executive Insights survey in late 2012. According to the firm, the survey represents the views of 374 mining companies. Most respondents were C-level executives, vice presidents or directors across different mining sectors, including coal, gold, copper, iron ore, zinc and nickel.

Respondents identified their current priorities by level of importance as follows:

• ensuring workforce safety (31%);
• managing capital projects (25%);
• maximizing production effectiveness (21%);
• ensuring equipment operates reliably and predictably (8%).

PRNewsFoto/Ventyx

“Our research shows the mining industry remains cautious about the strength of global economic recovery. In response, many mining organizations have begun looking inward, especially in regard to the labor market,” says Bas Mutsaers, Ventyx’s senior vice president of mining industry solutions. “In doing so, they have shifted their focus from finding qualified workers anywhere, at any cost to ensuring the workforce they currently have is efficient, well-informed and safe.”

“At the same time, these companies aren’t seeing a tradeoff between worker safety and profitability,” he adds. “In other words, the same technologies and best practices that improve safety also improve performance and efficiency.”

According to Ventyx, the study demonstrates how closely mining executives correlate worker safety and mine productivity. When asked to identify their primary safety initiatives, 64% of respondents selected “development of skills, best work practices and situation-based decision making.”

Mutsaers says mobile and other new technologies allow companies to change their traditional approach to training and skill development. “There is definitely an opportunity for mining organizations to leverage emerging technologies to transform how they educate and empower their workers to reduce safety incidents and improve efficiencies.”

For complete survey results, visit http://bit.ly/WCyQf3.