Strong interest in two upcoming OSHA stakeholder meetings on crane operator certification requirements has prompted the agency to add a third.

Washington – OSHA is delaying by three years its certification requirements for crane operators, the agency announced in a final rule published Sept. 25.

Washington – OSHA has issued a new compliance directive to help guide inspectors in the enforcement of the agency’s updated Cranes and Derricks in Construction Standard.

Washington – OSHA is seeking a one-year delay on crane operator certification requirements scheduled to go into effect in November.

Washington — A new fact sheet from OSHA is intended to help protect workers from hazards associated with shipboard pedestal cranes.

Washington — OSHA is moving to finalize changes to its crane operator certification requirements, according to a proposed rule published in the May 21 Federal Register.

Washington — OSHA is giving stakeholders until July 5 to comment on its proposed rule for crane operator certification requirements, the agency announced June 15.

Washington — OSHA is giving stakeholders another 30 days to comment on its proposed update of crane operator certification requirements, the agency announced in the July 30 Federal Register.

Washington — OSHA has released a preview of the long-awaited updates to its crane operator certification requirements, days ahead of the final rule’s expected publication in the Federal Register.

Washington — OSHA is set to publish the long-awaited updates to its crane operator certification requirements in the Nov. 9 Federal Register.

Fairfax, VA — The National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators has published three employer guides on OSHA’s updated crane operator requirements, a final rule scheduled to go into effect Dec. 10.

Washington — Employers who make “good faith efforts” to document their evaluations of crane operators have an additional 60 days to comply with OSHA’s Cranes and Derricks in Construction: Operator Certification Extension, according to a Feb. 7 enforcement memorandum from the agency.

It has taken many years, but OSHA’s construction crane operator requirements are finalized and nearly in full effect.

Fairfax, VA — The National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators no longer will require a physical evaluation for workers to be eligible to take its certification exams. Instead, beginning Jan. 1, NCCCO will rely on employers to determine whether their workers are physically qualified to operate the equipment.

Washington — OSHA has issued a temporary enforcement policy for the construction industry after being informed by the Sanford, FL-based Crane Institute Certification that the organization no longer is accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency, as required under section 1926.1427(d) of OSHA’s Cranes and Derricks in Construction Standard.

Fairfax, VA — Virtual reality could provide a reliable measure in predicting a candidate’s ability to pass a crane certification exam, results of a recent study published by the National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators indicate.

Gaithersburg, MD — Using an equation they derived while studying the “motion of a so-called torsional pendulum,” researchers from the National Institute of Standards and Technology have found a “surprising link” between the equation and the work of crane operators on construction sites.

Salem, OR — Oregon OSHA is seeking public comment on proposed rules that would increase worker protections against extreme heat and wildfire smoke, calling them “the strongest such protections in the nation.”

Salem, OR — Oregon OSHA has adopted permanent rules intended to safeguard workers from extreme heat and wildfire smoke, calling them “the most protective of their kind in the United States.”

Washington — A State Plan covering Massachusetts’ state and local government employees is a step closer to reality after OSHA recently published a proposed rule outlining its initial approval.

Washington — OSHA will reopen, for an additional 60 days, the comment period on its proposal to revoke Arizona’s State Plan status, the agency has announced.

Portland, OR — A recent study of residential construction supervisors in Oregon who received toolbox talks via text messages showed that their compliance with Oregon OSHA’s standard on safety meetings increased – and the delivery method was welcomed.

Salem, OR — Students from Portland’s Parkrose High School and West Linn High took the top prizes in this year’s Oregon OSHA media contest to promote young worker safety and health awareness.

Washington – A Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration final rule issued April 17 revises agency regulations to match the maximum and minimum civil penalties for hazardous materials violations established by law in 2012.

Washington – A Sept. 24 proposed rule from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration would prohibit hazardous materials carriers and associated companies from further operations if they do not pay civil penalties for violations within 90 days.

Washington – Beginning Nov. 1, Department of Transportation safety inspectors must follow new notification procedures when opening packages containing perishable hazardous materials that are deemed unsafe or non-compliant with safety regulations, according to a final rule from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.

Calgary, Alberta – Oil-carrying pipeline workers have a lower injury risk than workers transporting oil on railroads or roadways, according to a new study from public policy think tank Fraser Institute.

Washington – Crude oil shipped from the Bakken Formation – located in North Dakota, Montana and nearby Canadian provinces – may be more flammable than “traditional” heavy crude oil, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration warned shippers, sellers and emergency responders in a Jan. 2 safety advisory.

Washington – A new advisory bulletin from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration recounts one of the largest pipeline spills in the past five years and encourages pipeline owners and operators to take new preventive measures against leaks.

Washington – The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration must make improvements to its oversight of state pipeline safety programs, concludes an audit released May 7 by the Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General.

Washington – The House has approved an amendment to fund pipeline safety measures as part of the 2015 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act.

Washington – Pipeline operators may be required to notify the National Response Center no later than one hour after an incident involving natural gas and hazardous liquid pipelines, under a recently proposed rule from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.

Washington — Developments in automation in the transportation industry have prompted a pair of Requests for Information from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration and the Federal Railroad Administration.

Washington — Federal regulation of small distribution systems for propane and other liquefied petroleum gas should be revised for clarity, efficiency, enforceability and applicability to risk, a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine concludes.

Washington — The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration recently published a set of FAQs on training requirements.

Atlanta — Occupational exposures may have contributed to 11 percent to 21 percent of all asthma-related deaths among 15- to 64-year-olds between 1999 and 2016, according to a recently released report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Chicago — Health care workers commonly carry respiratory viruses on their hands, clothing and personal protective equipment after administering care to patients, accentuating the need to practice “complete hand hygiene and use other PPE to prevent dissemination,” results of a recent study suggest.

Washington – OSHA has extended to March 31 the comment period for a request for information on potential changes to the agency’s Process Safety Management Standard.

Washington — Concerned about what it views as an agency oversight related to petroleum refining, the American Petroleum Institute is calling on the Environmental Protection Agency to reassess a draft revised final risk evaluation that states perchloroethylene – as a whole chemical substance – poses “unreasonable risk” to workers under certain conditions.

Once relegated to simple locks and card reader panels, access control is assuming a starring role in overall business operations.

This year’s SDM 100 report and rankings show excellent growth for the SDM 100 companies in 2019. The onset of the coronavirus pandemic was just starting to hit as the security industry’s top companies were filling out the 2020 SDM 100 applications; to many of this year’s companies, it is like being on a mountaintop without a clear view of the landscape. Read on to look at this year’s top security companies ranked by recurring monthly revenue, along with their thoughts and projections for what lies ahead.

Washington – The Office of Management and Budget has begun its review of an OSHA proposal to address outdated permissible exposure limits.

Washington – The Office of Management and Budget is reviewing a controversial U.S. Department of Agriculture final rule that would speed up poultry-processing lines, a move safety advocates warn could lead to more worker injuries.

Washington – A review of OSHA’s proposal on chemical management and permissible exposure limits is now complete, allowing the agency to move forward on the rulemaking process.

Historically, PPE has been designed with a man’s body size and shape in mind. But when Safety+Health reached out to the International Safety Equipment Association regarding progress on designing personal protective equipment for women, manufacturers’ representatives were quick to respond.

Itasca, IL — The Journal of Safety Research is offering free access – through February – to a special issue featuring select papers from the National Occupational Injury Research Symposium.

The Hi-Viz Lime Mechanics Style Glove has reflective stripes for better visibility.

Arlington, VA – The Mine Safety and Health Administration has addressed all of the 100 corrective actions recommended in its 2012 internal review following the Upper Big Branch mine explosion in April 2010, the agency announced Jan. 13.

Washington – A rule listed on the Department of Labor’s spring 2014 regulatory agenda is intended to address problems with the administration of the Black Lung Benefits Act, through which miners receive compensation for disabilities related to pneumoconiosis – also known as “black lung” disease.

Madisonville, KY – A new mine rescue station in Kentucky aims to improve response times to mine emergencies in the Midwest.