AHTD - Alliance Annual Report - January 11, 2010

ANNUAL ALLIANCE REPORT
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
and the
Association for High Technology Distribution (AHTD)
January 11, 2010

  1. Alliance Background

    Date Signed

    November 29, 2004

    Dates Renewed

    November 28, 2006
    November 18, 2008

    Overview:

    Through the Alliance, OSHA and AHTD are working together to provide industrial workers, supervisors and machine designers with information and guidance to raise awareness of the importance of proper selection, use, maintenance and installation of machine guarding equipment and the use of lockout/tagout procedures.

    Implementation Team Members

    OSHA:

    Bill Willson, Directorate of Cooperative and State Programs (DCSP) Office of Outreach Services and Alliances (OOSA)

    AHTD:

    Phil Allen, Grace Engineering
    James Norton, JHN Group
    George Otte, AHTD
    Maggie Skarich, Management Resource Association (MRA)
    Tom Swenton, Applied Automation Controls, Inc.

    Evaluation Period

    November 29, 2008 - November 28, 2009

  2. Implementation Team Meetings

    February 11, 2009 - Implementation Team Meeting
    July 21, 2009 - Implementation Team Meeting
    November 5, 2009 - Implementation Team Meeting

    In addition to these formal meetings, the Alliance coordinators from both groups maintained regular contact throughout the reporting period to monitor the Alliance’s progress and results.

  3. Results

    1. Events and Products

      Outreach and Communication Goals

      • Work with OSHA to provide expertise in developing and disseminating information on machine guarding equipment and lockout/tagout procedures, and to provide expertise in developing ways of communicating such information (e.g. print and electronic media, electronic assistance tools and OSHA's and the AHTD's Web site to employers and employees in the industry.)

      Products

      OSHA and AHTD Alliance Web Page

      OSHA continues to maintain and update its OSHA and AHTD Alliance Web page on the Agency's Web site. The page includes information on the Alliance's activities, such as AHTD's support of the 2009 North American Occupational Safety and Health (NAOSH) Week and events, and milestones and successes. For more information on the number of visits to the OSHA and AHTD Alliance Web page, please see the "Alliance Program Reach Table."

      AHTD Web Site

      In 2009, AHTD continued to update the AHTD and OSHA Alliance Web page on the AHTD Web site with links to additional downloadable safety and health resources such as:

      • Standup Forklift Under-ride Hazards SHIB
      • Special Purpose Particle Accelerators SHIP
      • New OSHA and Alliance Program Participant Products
      • Fact Sheet Ergonomic Office Lighting

      In addition, AHTD posts past editions of the Alliance Program's Alliance Quarterly Review (AQR) newsletter on the association's Web site.

      OSHA Safety and Health Topics Pages

      Through the Alliance, AHTD representatives continue to serve on the editorial boards for the following OSHA Safety and Health Topics pages and provide the Agency with their expertise and feedback:

        • Control of Hazardous Energy
          • Jim Norton, JHN Group, Hanover, MA
          • John Thompson, Dittman and Greer Inc., Middletown, CT
        • Machine Guarding
          • Jim Norton, JHN Group, Hanover, MA
          • John Pirner, PowerMation, St. Paul, MN
          • John Thompson, Dittman and Greer Inc., Middletown, CT
        • Robotics
          • Jim Norton, JHN Group, Hanover, MA
          • Roberta Nelson Shea, Pilz Automation Safety, L.P., Canton, MI
          • John Thompson, Dittman and Greer Inc., Middletown, CT
      • Speak, exhibit, or appear at OSHA's and AHTD's conferences, meetings or other events, such as the AHDT Spring and Fall Meetings and regional safety conferences that AHTD member companies may participate in.

      Events

      2009 AHTD Spring Meeting, Phoenix, Arizona, April 22 - 25, 2009

      OSHA provided AHTD with a number of the agency’s safety and health publications which were distributed by AHTD to its members during the association’s Spring Meeting April 22 - 25, 2009, in Phoenix, Arizona.  The OSHA publications included: the OSHA publications Control of Hazardous Energy Lockout-Tagout, Controlling Electrical Hazards and Questions & Answers for Small Business Employers.

      2009 NAOSH Week, May 3-9, 2008, Washington,

      On May 4, 2009, Jordan Barab, Acting Assistant Secretary, USDOL-OSHA, spoke to OSHA staff, Alliance Program

      participants and other safety and health professionals during the 2009 NAOSH Week kick-off event at DOL, in Washington, D.C. Sponsored annually by the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), an Alliance Program participant, and the Canadian Society of Safety Engineering, the Week focuses on the importance of preventing injuries and illnesses in the workplace. Jim Norton, attended the OSHA-led seminar for Alliance Program participants focusing on Agency updates, including "Navigating the OSHA Web site" and "OSHA Top 10 Violations and Compliance Assistance Resources." The AHTD, along with a number of other Alliance Program participants, supported the Week. The theme for the 2009 NAOSH Week was "Safety Means Always Coming Home

      2009 AHTD Fall Meeting, Hilton Head, South Carolina, October 14 - 17, 2009

      At the 2009 AHTD Fall Meeting October 14-17, 2009, in Hilton Head, South Carolina, Jim Norton gave an update on the OSHA and AHTD Alliance to 164 attendees at the meeting.  In addition, he distributed copies of the agency’s safety and health publications.

      2008 Drug-Free Workweek, October 20-26, 2008

      AHTD and a number of other Alliance Program participants supported the 2009 Drug-Free Work Week. Sponsored annually by Department of Labpor’s Working Partners for an Alcohol- and Drug-Free Workplace Program, the Week focused on educating employers, employees and the public about the importance of being drug-free as an essential component of a safe and healthful workplace.

      • Encourage AHTD's members to build relationships with OSHA's Regional and Area Offices to address health and safety issues in the industrial workplace, including machine safeguarding and lockout/tagout procedures.

      OSHA Region I

      As a result of the relationship established with Region I's staff through their earlier participation in AHTD's Machine Guarding Technology Training Seminar, which is a product of the Alliance, Jim Norton invited Kevin P. Clarke, Alliance and Partnership Coordinator, Boston Regional Office, and three other OSHA staff personnel to attend a training seminar. As a result of the invitation they were able to attend a Robotics Safety Training Seminar at the GE Aircraft Engine Group on October 7, 2009 in Lynn, MA.

      • Work with other Alliance participants on projects to address safety and health issues in the industrial workplace including machine safeguarding and lockout/tagout procedures.

        The OSHA and AHTD Alliance Implementation Team has not started work on programs or projects to address this goal.

      • Share information among OSHA personnel and industry safety and health professionals regarding AHTD best practices or effective approaches and publicize the results through outreach by AHTD and through OSHA-or AHTD-developed training programs, workshops, seminars and lectures (or any other applicable forum).

      Events

      Machine Guarding Technology Training Seminar

      Through the Alliance, AHTD created and delivered the Machine Guarding Technology Training Seminar for OSHA staff and others based on the training materials that AHTD developed through its safety program.  The seminar, taught by a member of AHTD, focuses on high technology equipment such as: safety interlock switches; guard locking devices (e.g. trip cords and safety mats); safety light curtains; two hand trip controls and safety laser curtains. During the training, the attendees also learn about safety issues associated with robotic equipment, the types of robotics used in the workplace and the applicable OSHA machine guarding and robotics-related ANSI standards. The OSHA and AHTD Alliance Implementation Team has not provided any training seminars during this reporting period. In addition, the slide presentation is posted on the AHTD and OSHA Alliance Web page on the association’s Web site and is available to the machine guarding industry and the general public free-of-charge.

      Robotic Safety Training Seminar AHTD continued to work on finalizing the presentation on how robots are becoming more prevalent in the workplace and the safety measures involved in utilizing them. Work on this presentation will not be completed until 2010 when the finalization and acceptance of the Industry Consensus Standards are approved.

      Promoting the National Dialogue Goals:

      • Develop and disseminate case studies illustrating the business value of safety and health and publicize their results.

        The OSHA and AHTD Alliance Implementation Team has not started work on programs or projects to address this goal.

      • Participate in stakeholder and other forums for providing input on machine safeguarding and lockout/tagout issues in the workplace.

        The OSHA and AHTD Alliance Implementation Team has not started work on programs or projects to address this goal.

    2. Executive Summary

      Through the OSHA and AHTD Alliance, the organizations continued their excellent working relationship which developed during the first five years of the Alliance.  The organizations have continued their efforts to raise awareness about high technology machine guarding devices and robotics through sharing information and participating in outreach opportunities.

      For example, OSHA continues to maintain the OSHA and AHTD Alliance Web page on the Agency’s Web site.  In addition, AHTD members continue to serve on the editorial boards for OSHA’s Safety and Health Topics pages for Robotics, Control of Hazardous Energy (Lockout/Tagout), and Machine Guarding.  In addition, AHTD revised and updated the AHTD and OSHA Alliance Web page on the association’s Web site which highlights the OSHA and AHTD Alliance.  AHTD also distributed a number of OSHA’s publications at AHTD’s 2009 Spring Meeting in Phoenix, Arizona and at AHTD’s Fall Meeting in Hilton Head, South Carolina. Through the Alliance AHTD continues to offer their Machine Guarding Technology Training Seminar to OSHA staff members nationwide. AHTD presented a Robotics Training Seminar to OSHA staff in Lynn, Massachusetts.

    3. Alliance Program Reach

    Type of Activity Number of Individuals Reached
    OSHA and AHTD Alliance Web page 1,275
    AHTD/OSHA Alliance Web page Data Not Available
    April 22, 2009 AHTD Spring Meeting, Phoenix, Arizona Publications 225
    October 7, 2009, Robotics Training Seminar, Lynn, Massachusetts OSHA Region I staff 4
    October 19-25, 2009, AHTD 2009 Fall Meeting, Hilton Head, South Carolina Publications 164
    Control of Hazardous Energy Safety and Health Topics page 104,310
    Machine Guarding Safety and Health Topics page 29,079
    Robotics Safety and Health Topics page 2,902
    Total 137,959

  4. Upcoming Milestones

    In the next year of the Alliance, OSHA and AHTD will continue to work together to identify opportunities for promoting safety and health and the OSHA and AHTD Alliance through presentations and exhibiting opportunities at AHTD events such as the AHTD 2010 Spring Meeting in Saint Pete Beach, Florida and the AHTD Fall Meeting in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.

    The OSHA and AHTD Alliance implementation team plans to deliver the Machine Guarding Technology Training Seminar for OSHA staff nationwide in 2010.

    AHTD will continue to publish its AHTD Newsletter that will regularly contain OSHA safety and health information.

    Through the Alliance, AHTD will be working to complete its’ draft Safety Tips Sheet on Safety Switches.  In addition, AHTD is planning on getting final approval from AHTD members to allow the Robotics slide presentation to be posted on the AHTD and OSHA Web page and linked to from the OSHA and AHTD Alliance Web page on the Agency’s Web site.

    Further, AHTD members will continue to serve on the OSHA Safety and Health Topics pages’ editorial boards for Robotics, Machine Guarding, and Control of Hazardous Energy.

    Lastly, OSHA and AHTD hope to renew the Alliance in 2010.

Report prepared by: Bill Willson, Alliance Coordinator, Office of Outreach Services Alliances, January 19, 2010.