Reliable Plant July August 2008

SAFETY REPORT
SAFETY’S BIG SHOW COMING IN SEPTEMBER
More than 15,000 industry leaders are
slated to attend the National Safety Council’s
2008 Congress & Expo, which will be held
September 19-26 at the Anaheim (Calif.)
Convention Center.
Congress, the event’s educational
program, features nearly 140 sessions,
ranging from broad-based to industryspecific
topics.
They are offered
SAFETY NOTES
to both the seasoned professional and
newcomers to the safety and health field.
“Arc flash safety”, “lift truck safety”, “fall
protection” and “electrical safety requirements
for manufacturing plants” are among
the technical sessions. Keynote sessions
include speeches by NSC chairman Joseph J.
Ucciferro and executives from Bahrain
Petroleum, Industrial Scientific Corporation
and ExxonMobil.
Expo, on September 22-24, features more
than 800 exhibiting companies showcasing
products and services to improve the safety,
health and environmental needs of industrial
facilities.
To learn more about the event, visit
www.congress.nsc.org.
Simple work schedule adjustments might
promote health and help shift workers strike a
better balance between work and personal
life, according to a new review of evidence.
Every workplace has its own definition of
shift work, but it generally includes nighttime
employees as well as anyone who works
outside the traditional 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.
workday. Previous research has established
that shift workers are vulnerable to certain
health and social problems including
substance abuse, sleep disturbances, absenteeism,
injuries and accidents.
Many shift workers have frequently
changing schedules. Instead of a permanent
night shift, for instance, some workers clock
in at night for several days and then rotate to
afternoons for several days. According to the
review, forward-rotating shifts that follow the
logical order of the day seem to be less
damaging to health and easier on the body.
“A forward rotation would be a shift in the
morning, then the afternoon and then maybe
a night shift later. That is less harmful to
people’s health than starting at night,” said
lead author Clare Bambra, a lecturer at
Durham University in England.
The review also found that rotating workers
through shift changes more quickly — perhaps
every three or four days vs. every seven days —
is better for health and work-life balance.
Honeywell recently agreed to acquire
Norcross Safety Products LLC for around
$1.2 billion. Norcross manufactures personal
protective equipment (PPE), including air
purifying respirators (APRs), footwear, headgear,
firefighter turnout gear, high-voltage
sleeves and gloves, and arc flash protection.
Norcross will be integrated into Honeywell
Life Safety, part of Honeywell’s Automation
and Control Solutions group.
For more safety-related news and notes, visit
www.reliableplant.com.
40 July - August 2008 www.reliableplant.com