January 2005


Cover Story

The Art of Meaningful Recognition

By Ed Robbins

THAT which gets measured often gets done, which helps explain why safety programs have become such a part of American business.


Features

New Packaging Regulations Affect Hazmat Shippers

By Christian Hilty

MEETING the challenges of today's packaging regulations can be difficult and time consuming for shippers.


Successful Dust Capture

By Joe Topmiller

CHALLENGE: How do you effectively capture weld dust when the work constantly moves and varies in size from small (10 liter) to large (30,000+ liter) stainless processing vessels?


The Three Changing Faces of the U.S. Workforce

By Kim Lopez

IT'S no secret that organizations spend billions of dollars each year on worker's compensation. Rising health care costs, a complex regulatory environment, and soaring premiums have affected the bottom line for many organizations.


High Tech at Low Cost

By Heejin Park

WORKERS throughout a wide range of chemical processing industries are becoming more conscious than ever before of discharges that, although they fall within acceptable safety limits, cause annoyance and potential discomfort.


A New Reality for Mold Professionals

By David Gallup, MS

IN the late 1990s, mold became an enormously popular topic because of a dramatic increase in the amount of media coverage and a resulting increase in the awareness by some of the potential health effects fungi may cause.


Risks of Involvement in Contractor Safety

By Don S. Zimmerman

MOST businesses of any size use contractors. Some large facilities use contractors on a regular, some even on a daily, basis for such things as maintenance.


High-Level Safety Persuasion

By Robert Pater

PERSUASION is the name of the big game in organizations. Safety professionals' effectiveness can ultimately depend on their ability to persuade others. This can encompass influencing senior management to actively fund and support new initiatives, inducing mid-managers and supervisors to visibly lead safety.


Characteristics of Effective Online Learning

By Donald A. Deieso, Ph.D.

DURING the past decade, "e-learning" has become a familiar term and a routine part of many corporate training programs.


On the Cutting Edge of Safety

By Elizabeth Parrish

THE kitchen at any one of the 84 Cheesecake Factory restaurants nationwide can be a pretty hectic place. This popular, casual-dining restaurant chain attracts thousands of customers every day for both eat-in and take-out service from its extensive menu--keeping the cooks and the wait staff very busy, given the way people pack in to eat at the upscale eateries.


Key Measures for Successful Improvements

By Walt Rostykus, CPE, CIH, CSP, Joshua Egbert, CPE

ESTABLISHING and achieving performance and improvement goals are critical elements of any successful organization. The adage "what gets measured, gets done" is true for all operations of a business, especially managing ergonomic improvements.


It's All About Communication

By Jerry Laws

Editor's note: You'll find smart ideas in this discussion to help you motivate employees or revive a slumbering incentive program. Consider "low-cost, no-cost" incentives at first, run two contests simultaneously instead of one, and offer two types of goals, suggests Keith Lauby, a safety product manager for human resources solutions provider G.Neil


Be Ready for Emergencies

By Jerry Laws

Editor's note: Respiratory protection in emergencies is not a one-size-fits-all proposition. Employers must assess their operations fully, determine the potential hazards and escape routes, and then equip and train their employees adequately so they can get out when necessary.


Departments

Heading Off Harassment

By Patricia S. Eyres

DESPITE increased attention paid to harassment prevention in the business world, claims of workplace harassment have remained relatively steady and jury awards have been quite high.


A First in Fire Safety

By Jerry Laws

YOU know something about assessing risk. Try this: Who is at highest risk of dying or being injured in a fire at home? More than 3,000 Americans die in home fires each year.


Lifeguard on Duty

By Emily Bryant

GPS (Global Positioning System) technology seems to be increasingly present in our daily lives. For those of you who have only a vague notion of how it works, it's a system that provides accurate position information based on data transmitted from a 24-satellite constellation.


Artificial Intelligence