Pallet maker continues to expose workers to wood dust

,
Wood Dust from Pallets

A pallet maker based in Wisconsin has had another citation from the OSHA after some investigation reveals that it has continuously been exposing its workers to wood dust. The penalties that Avid Pallet Services LLC will face are to the tune of $188,302 for serious violations that are repeated related to safety and health of its workers. When inspectors checked the company’s premises, they determined that the company did not implement or failed totally to implement engineering controls that would reduce the exposure of its employees to wood dust, and was failing in its ability to train its employees on the health hazard of wood dust. But this citation is not the first for Avid Pallet Services. It has been cited before by the OSHA in 2016. It was reported that the company was not transparent in its treatment of its employments when it comes to workplace hazards. The OSHA director states that it regularly informs employers that they have to make employees aware of the health hazards related to their work and to manage it well. On a contrasting note, the author notes that Avid Pallet states that transparency and integrity is one of its guiding principles. This was also stated on their website.

Key Takeaways:

  • OSHA carries out several inspections on factories and it has found out that a pallet maker exposes its workers to wood dust.
  • The fault of the Wisconsin pallet manufacturer is that they failed to implement sufficient engineering controls that would be able to limit workers’ exposure to dust.
  • Employers of all categories, according to the OSHA, should make sure that employees are not exposed to dust of any kind and should protect employees from hazards.

“Avid Pallet Services LLC faces penalties of $188,302 for repeated, serious, and other-than-serious safety and health violations.”

Read more: https://www.ishn.com/articles/110522-pallet-maker-continues-to-expose-workers-to-wood-dust

/by

Course is set for A+A 2019 Occupational Health and Safety Trade Fair

,

On November 5-8, 2019, there will be an A+A International conference that will be held in Dusseldorf, Germany, on Safety, Security, and Health. Mess Dusseldorf has been responsible for the A+A Conference and the man in charge of affairs is Wolfram Diener who has been the Managing director of the agency since October 2018. From the interview held with him, one can see that Diener is super excited and enthusiastic about his new job. He considers this conference a challenge after successful fairs in other places and even in Asia. His company, Messe Dusseldorf, is seen as a robust and successful company in hosting trade fairs in Germany. When asked about the response to the fair from companies so far, Diener states that the response has been great. There has been considerable interest shown in the fair both from companies that have participated before and from new companies. To accommodate all companies, the space for the fair has been expanded. Additional capacities in the areas of health at Work, Operational Safety, and Corporate Fashion have been added. Diener goes on during the interview to demonstrate the arrangements that have been put in place for the fair.

Key Takeaways:

  • Diener has been planning the hall for the A+A 2019 event for a long time and he says that the planning has been great.
  • The response from companies about the A+A event has been great and many that were there before want to come again.
  • The space at the event has been expanded due to the overwhelming response and three areas have been added such as Health at Work and Operational Safety.

“Since October 1, 2018, Wolfram Diener has been the new Managing Director of Messe Düsseldorf and responsible for A+A. Diener is enthusiastic about his new job: “After many exciting and successful years with various trade fair companies, and quite some time in Asia, I am now facing the next challenge – and this challenge will be more than the bandwidth of my trade fair portfolio in Düsseldorf.”

Read more: https://www.ishn.com/articles/110640-course-is-set-for-aa-2019-occupational-health-and-safety-trade-fair

/by

Real-time dust monitor launched

,
industrial dust monitor

Depending on one’s place of employment, the particles that can be found in dust often contain harmful materials that can result in dangerous situations, some of these situations being fatal. Since these hazardous conditions can be hard to detect with the human eye, many companies are now employing real-time monitors that have the ability to detect any harmful particles so that they are addressed before it develops into a bigger issue where someone is potentially put in harm’s way.

Key Takeaways:

  • The new Trolex dust monitor beats conventional dust monitors, which are designed to measure a single size particulate at a time.
  • With its new, cutting-edge laser technology, the Trolex dust monitor can monitor multiple sizes at once.
  • The new Trolex Air XD is also cost-effective, as it requires less routine maintenance, which brings down the overall cost of ownership.

“The real-time application also allows companies to use live data to identify specific trends and peak levels of risk.”

Read more: https://www.shponline.co.uk/occupational-health/real-time-dust-monitor-launched/

/by

Safety gaps led to explosions at Mississippi gas plant: CSB

, , , ,
Gas Plant Explosion

In July of 2016, the mismanagement of a heat exchanger led to an extensive series of explosions that resulted in damaging forest fires in Mississippi. The mismanagement was a result of Enterprise Products Pascagoula Gas Plant allowing the equipment to experience too much thermal fatigue. If there had been more extensive safety measures and inspection protocols set in place, these disastrous results may not have occurred, saving a plethora of vegetation and clean up funds.

Key Takeaways:

    • As regards a Mississippi gas leak explosion, a February 12 report points to thermal fatigue as the culprit.
    • Thermal fatigue refers to the weakening of materials over time, due to the stress of heating and cooling.
    • Upon inspection, it was clear that small cracks had arisen over time, due to temperature fluctuations.

“The plant – which had repaired four heat exchangers nine times in 17 years, CSB found – was shut down for nearly six months.”

Read more: https://www.safetyandhealthmagazine.com/articles/18103-safety-gaps-led-to-explosions-at-mississippi-gas-plant-csb

/by