Mr. Trevor Kletz is, without a doubt, my favorite author.  In 2001 he published his book on Human Factors in process safety – “An engineer’s view of human error” (Third edition).  It is a MUST-READ for those who practice process safety, significantly if you facilitate process hazard(s) analysis (PHA), including the Human Factors analysis.  His book is quite telling,...

Admiral Rickover’s 7 Steps to Safety Success need to be adhered to today more than ever!  They are simple and timeless, as he lived by them in the 1950’s and 60’s while building the U.S. Navy’s Nuclear Power program. … HomeRead More »

A safety management system should mirror the manufacturing process’s quality management system. The only difference is the “customer”… in the manufacturing process the customer is external – in the safety process, our employees are our customers. Both management systems REQUIRE SAMPLING and ACCURATE process measurements.

Safe storage, handling, and transfer of hazardous materials is key to reducing chemical accidents and dangerous mixtures of incompatible materials. Close storage of incompatible chemicals could create a risk of fire, explosion, or release of toxic gases and fumes. Storage locations should be according to the fire code, have proper fire protection, and are structurally appropriate. The Emergency Planning...

In OSHA’s fiscal year (October 2021 through September 2022), the agency conducted 151 Respiratory Protection inspections and issued 325 citations, with penalties totaling $1,388,505.  62311 / Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities) was #1 in Citations with 325 62311 / Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities) was #1 in Inspections with 151 62211 / General Medical...

Over the last several years, OSHA has asked, in the annual Supplement B questionnaire, specific questions designed to help share information about the site’s safety and health management systems (SHMS), but mainly about the critical areas of PSM programs and established procedures used to maintain, collect, and analyze PSM systems/process metrics. In 2016, OSHA developed a Fact Sheet, “The Use...

Background: CP rectifiers protect pipes against corrosion. Their use is mandated on liquid and gas pipelines by the Department of Transportation’s (DOT), 49 CFR § 195.573 (liquid pipelines) and § 192.465 (gas pipelines). While 29 CFR 1910.147 standard may control the hazards associated with the operation of CP rectifiers, it does not eliminate the other sources of electrical current employees...

Does § 1910.37(b)(7) permit the display of the ISO’s international emergency exit symbol as defined in ISO 7010 beside the mandatory EXIT text on an existing exit sign? … HomeRead More »

The Respondent owns an alkoxylation process at the Facility. Respondent manufactures a range of specialty surfactants for use predominantly in the oil and gas industry. The process of ethoxylation involves reacting ethylene oxide with various common chemicals , such as fatty alcohols and phenols, to produce a variety of products. The plant can also use propylene oxide instead of (or as well as) ethylene...

In OSHA’s fiscal year (October 2021 through September 2022), the agency conducted 18 HAZWOPER inspections and issued 29 citations, with penalties totaling $124,086.  42469 / Other Chemical and Allied Products Merchant Wholesalers was #1 in Citations with 5 42469 / Other Chemical and Allied Products Merchant Wholesalers, 32521 / Resin and Synthetic Rubber Manufacturing, and 33231 /...

In OSHA’s fiscal year (October 2021 through September 2022), the agency conducted 1,172 LOTO inspections and issued 2,131 citations, with penalties totaling $15,475,561.  31161 / Animal Slaughtering and Processing was #1 in Citations with 66 32619 / Other Plastics Product Manufacturing was #1 in Inspections with 35 31161 / Animal Slaughtering and Processing was #1 in Penalties...

In OSHA’s fiscal year (October 2021 through September 2022), the agency conducted 92 Permit-Required Confined Space inspections and issued 240 citations, with penalties totaling $1,637,458.  56221 / Waste Treatment and Disposal was #1 in Citations with 11 32739 / Other Concrete Product Manufacturing was #1 in Inspections with 4 81119 / Other Automotive Repair and Maintenance was #1 in Penalties...