American Shipbuilding Association (ASA)

(signed July 15, 2003 ; renewed January 13, 2006; renewed August 22, 2007; concluded October 11, 2010)

Through the Alliance, OSHA and ASA use their collective expertise to provide the association's members and others in the shipbuilding industry with information and guidance to help protect employees' health and safety, particularly in reducing and preventing exposure to shipyard safety and health hazards. The Alliance's goals include:

Outreach and communication
  • Work with OSHA to provide expertise in developing information on the recognition and prevention of workplace hazards, and to provide expertise in developing ways of communicating such information (e.g., print and electronic media, electronic assistance tools and OSHA's and ASA's Web sites) to employers and employees in the industry.
  • Share information among OSHA personnel and industry safety and health professionals regarding ASA best practices or effective approaches and publicize results through outreach by ASA and through OSHA- or ASA-developed materials, training programs, workshops, seminars, and lectures (or any other applicable forum).
  • Work with other Alliance participants on specific maritime industry issues and projects that are addressed and developed through the Alliance Program.
Promoting the national dialogue on workplace health and safety
  • Convene or participate in forums, roundtable discussions, or stakeholder meetings on shipyard safety and health hazards to help forge innovative solutions in the workplace.

Products and Resources

Alliance Program Participant Developed Products
  • Safety Alert: Control of Hazardous Energy - Lockout/Tagout (LO/TO) Procedures in Shipyard Employment. English (PDF), Spanish (PDF). Through the OSHA and Shipbuilders Council of America, National Shipbuilding Research Program, and American Shipbuilding Association Alliances (now the Shipbuilding Group Alliance) and the American Industrial Hygiene Association and American Society of Safety Engineers Alliances, the participants developed a safety alert providing tips and reminders to control the release of hazardous energy through LO/TO procedures in shipyard building and repair.
  • Safety Alert: Electrocution and Shock Hazards in Shipyard Employment. English (PDF), Spanish (PDF). Through the OSHA and Shipbuilders Council of America, National Shipbuilding Research Program, and American Shipbuilding Association Alliances (now the Shipbuilding Group Alliance) and the American Industrial Hygiene Association and American Society of Safety Engineers Alliances, the participants developed a safety alert providing tips and reminders about electrical shock hazards that may be present in shipbuilding and repair and includes information on preventing and eliminating the hazards.
  • Safety Alert: Prevention of Ventilation Hazards in Shipyard Employment. English (PDF), Spanish (PDF). Through the OSHA and Shipbuilding Group Alliance and the American Industrial Hygiene Association and American Society of Safety Engineers Alliances, the participants developed a safety alert addressing the prevention of ventilation-related hazards in shipyard employment, including possible solutions to prevent injuries during the job.
  • Safety Alert: Shipyard Sewage and Hydrogen Sulfide (PDF). Through the OSHA and Shipbuilders Council of America, National Shipbuilding Research Program, and American Shipbuilding Association Alliances (now the Shipbuilding Group Alliance) and the American Industrial Hygiene Association and American Society of Safety Engineers Alliances, the participants developed a safety alert designed to make both shipyard employers and employees aware of the hazards of sewage systems on both ships and shipyard shore facilities and how to prevent accidents involving hydrogen sulfide gas.
  • Safety Alert: Welding and Other Hot Work Procedures in Shipyard Employment. English (PDF), Spanish (PDF). Through the OSHA and Shipbuilders Council of America, National Shipbuilding Research Program, and American Shipbuilding Association Alliances (now the Shipbuilding Group Alliance) and the American Industrial Hygiene Association and American Society of Safety Engineers Alliances, the participants developed a safety alert focusing on welding and hot work in shipyard employment, including tips and reminders to help maintain a safe work environment by identifying situations and hazards associated with hot work.
  • Toolbox Talks: Hearing Conservation in the Shipbuilding Industry (PDF). Through the OSHA and American Shipbuilding Association, National Shipbuilding Research Program, Shipbuilders Council of America (now the Shipbuilding Group Alliance) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and National Hearing Conservation Association Alliance, the participants developed a series of toolbox talks focusing on hearing conservation issues, including shipbuilding noise levels and selecting hearing protection.
OSHA Safety and Health Topics Pages
OSHA eTools
Success Stories
  • OSHA Region IV Mobile, Alabama Area Office Alliance Develops Courses in Occupational Safety and Health Standards for the Maritime Industry. OSHA's Region IV Mobile, Alabama Area Office, along with its OSHA and Gulf Coast Maritime Safety Alliance and the University of South Florida and representatives from national maritime-related Alliances, developed the OSHA Maritime Industry Outreach Training Program. Through the program, trainers are authorized to teach 10-hour or 30-hour safety and health hazard recognition and prevention classes in Shipyard Employment (including ship repairing, shipbuilding, and shipbreaking), Marine Terminals, and Longshoring.
† Alliance Implementation Team members participated in the development of this resource.