ALLIANCE ANNUAL REPORT
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
and the
Society of the Plastics Industry, Inc. (SPI)
August 10, 2006

1. Alliance Background

   Date Signed

   September 19, 2002

   Dates Renewed

   March 4, 2004; November 3, 2005

   Overview

   The OSHA and SPI Alliance continues to focus on providing SPI's members and others with information, guidance and access to training resources to promote machine safety, particularly in identifying machinery hazards and providing potential solutions to reduce injuries (e.g., lacerations, burns and amputations). In addition, the organizations are working together to raise awareness of hazard communication issues in the workplace.

   Implementation Team Members

   OSHA:

   Cathy Cronin

   Office of Training and Education (OTE)

   John Hermanson

   Region VIII

   Chuck Lorish

   Michigan OSHA

   Lisa Ramber*

   Office of Outreach Services and Alliances (OOSA)

   Beth Sherfy

   OOSA

   Doug Simon

   OTE

   Jack Standard

   OTE

   Jim Washam

   Region V, Cincinnati, Ohio Area Office

   SPI:

   Sue Babler

   Placon

   Luther Compton

   Amcor PET

   Susan Howe

   SPI

   Marie Martinko

   SPI

   Brian Schell

   Buckell Plastics Company

   Wayne Wilson

   United Southern Industries, Inc

   Contributors

   Kristi Dearing

   OSHA Contractor for SLTC

   George Washburn

   OSHA Contractor for SLTC

   *Lisa Ramber was a member of the implementation team until November 2005.

   Evaluation Period

   September 19, 2005 - September 18, 2006

2. Implementation Team Meetings

   October 24-25, 2005

   Team Meeting, Conference Call

   December 12, 2005

   Team Meeting, Conference Call

   January 9-10, 2006

   Team Meeting, OSHA Training Institute (OTI)

   January 26, 2006

   10-Hour Course Development Meeting

   March 3, 2006

   10-Hour Course Development Meeting

   March 14-15, 2006

   Team Meeting, OTI

   May 15-16, 2006

   Team Meeting, OTI

3. Results

   1. Events and Products

      Training and Education Goal

      • Work with OSHA to provide expertise to develop training and education programs for plastic industry employers and employees regarding machine guarding and lockout/tagout, and to provide expertise in communicating such information to employers and employees in the industry.

      Events

      NPE 2006: International Plastics Showcase, June 19-23, 2006, Chicago, Illinois

      On June 20, 2006, Jim Washam, Region V, USDOL-OSHA, and Wayne Wilson, United Southern Industries, Inc., taught workshops on roll-fed and inline thermoforming machinery safety and injection molding machinery safety. On June 21, they taught workshops on rollstock and sheet extrusion machinery safety and injection molding machinery safety. The workshops at NPE 2006: International Plastics Showcase used material from the following OSHA and SPI Alliance-developed courses:

      • Injection Molding Machine Safety Training Course
      • Rollstock and Sheet Extrusion Machine Safety Training Course

      • Roll-fed and Inline Thermoforming Machine Safety Training Course

      OSHA 10-Hour Course for the Plastics Industry

      The OSHA and SPI Alliance implementation team continued its development of an OSHA 10-Hour Course for the Plastics Industry that can be presented at OSHA's Education Centers and plastics industry employers can use in their workplaces to help educate their workers.

      Blow Molding Machine Safety Training Course

      The OSHA and SPI Alliance implementation team began developing a Blow Molding Machine Safety Training Course that will focus in machine guarding, lockout/tagout, auxiliary equipment and palletizing. The team members toured the Amcor PET packing facility in Itasca, Illinois January 9, 2006 to take pictures for use in the course.

      Outreach and Communication Goals

      • 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 SPI's Web sites) to employers and employees in the plastics industry.

      Products

      "Making the Business Case for Safety and Health" Safety and Health Topics page

      Through the Alliance, SPI representatives provided input and expertise to assist OSHA with the development of its "Making the Business Case for Safety and Health" Safety and Health Topics page. SPI provided feedback on the draft page during a July 17, 2006, conference call with other Alliance Program participants and also provided comments by e-mail after the call. The Topics page will be launched on the agency's Web site by October 2006.

      OSHA Assistance for the Plastics Industry Safety and Health Topics Page

      The following representatives from the OSHA and SPI Alliance are members of the editorial board of the OSHA Assistance for the Plastics Industry Safety and Health Topics page:

      • Susan R. Howe, SPI, Senior Technical Director, Worker and Product Safety; Washington, DC
      • Loren Mills, Manager, Product Safety, Demag Plastics Group; Strongsville, OH
      • Bob Monteith, Milacron Inc.; Batavia, OH
      • James Washam, Lockout and Machine Guarding Coordinator, OSHA Region 5, Cincinnati Area Office; Cincinnati, OH
      • Wayne Wilson, Corporate Director of Safety/Training, United Southern Industries; Forest City, NC

      Thermoforming Module of OSHA's Machine Guarding eTool

      The OSHA and SPI Alliance implementation team continued to provide input into the development of a draft Thermoforming module for OSHA's Machine Guarding eTool. The tool identifies potential hazards and possible solutions associated with thermoforming machinery.

      OSHA and SPI Alliance Web Page

      OSHA continues to update its OSHA and SPI Alliance Web page on the Agency's Web site. The Web page includes the OSHA and SPI Alliance agreement, renewal agreements, news releases, milestones and successes and information on meetings, conferences and training courses.

      SPI Worker Safety and Health Web Page on SPI's Web Site

      SPI's Web site has a Worker Health and Safety section that includes information on the Alliance and its accomplishments, including links to the training tools and electronic assistance products developed by the Alliance.

      Print and Electronic Media

      Articles about the OSHA and SPI Alliance have appeared in a number of printed and online publications, including: Occupational Health and Safety Magazine, U.S. Newswire, OSHA's Press Releases, and QuickTakes. For more information on the articles, please see the Alliance Program Reach table in this report.

      • Speak, exhibit or appear at OSHA and SPI conferences, such as NPE, local meetings, or other industry events.

      Events

      NPE 2006: International Plastics Showcase, June 19-23, 2006, Chicago, Illinois

      On June 22, 2006, Cathy Cronin, Chief, Division of Training and Educational Development, OTE, USDOL-OSHA gave a presentation about the OSHA and SPI Alliance and OSHA's Susan Harwood Training Grant Program during a workshop on workforce development grants and training resources. In addition, OSHA Region V representatives staffed an OSHA and SPI exhibit booth.

      During the event, the OSHA Region V representatives staffed an exhibit booth that was part of SPI's exhibit pavilion, and members of the OSHA and SPI Alliance implementation team distributed OSHA safety and health information, including a Plastics Industry CD on machine safety that was developed by the Alliance. The CD contains the Alliance's machine guarding and lockout/tagout training courses for injection molding, thermoforming and extrusion machinery and the OSHA Assistance for the Plastics Industry Safety and Health Topics page.

      • Promote and encourage SPI members' participation in OSHA's cooperative programs such as compliance assistance, the Voluntary Protection Programs, and Consultation and its the Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program.

        During this reporting period, OSHA and SPI did not work on projects to address this goal.

      • Work with other Alliance participants on projects on hazard communication issues that are addressed and developed through the Alliance.

      Products

      Making the Business Case for Safety and Health, Safety and Health Topics page

      Susan Howe and Marie Martinko joined other Alliance Program participants providing input into the development of OSHA's draft Making the Business Case for Safety and Health, Safety and Health Topics page.

   2. Executive Summary

      During 2005-2006, OSHA and SPI renewed their Alliance and continued to work together through the Alliance to address machine safety hazards in the plastics manufacturing workplace. In addition, the organizations also agreed to address Hazard Communication issues.

      For example, the OSHA and SPI Alliance implementation team continued to provide input into the development of a draft thermoforming module for OSHA's Machine Guarding eTool. The module discusses the potential hazards associated with the thermoforming process and identifies possible solutions. In addition, it will include a 360-degree tour of a thermoforming machine and identify its machine guarding and lockout/tagout locations. In addition, the SPI representatives provided input into the development of OSHA's draft Business Case Safety and Health Topics page.

      Through the Alliance, SPI and OSHA experts continue to use their expertise to review and provide ongoing comments on the Plastics Industry Safety and Topics page. OSHA also updated the OSHA and SPI Alliance Web page on its Web site with information about Alliance-related activities.

      In addition, OSHA and SPI promoted the Alliance and the products it has developed at NPE 2006: International Plastics Showcase, June 19-23, 2006, Chicago, Illinois. On June 20, Jim Washam, Region V, USDOL-OSHA, and Wayne Wilson, United Southern Industries, Inc. taught workshops on roll-fed and inline thermoforming machinery safety and injection molding machinery safety. On June 21, they taught workshops on rollstock and sheet extrusion machinery safety and injection molding machinery safety. In addition, Cathy Cronin, Chief, Division of Training and Educational Development, OTE, USDOL-OSHA made a presentation about the OSHA and SPI Alliance and the Susan Harwood Training Grant Program on June 22.

      During the event, the OSHA Region V representatives staffed an exhibit booth that was part of SPI's exhibit pavilion, and members of the OSHA and SPI Alliance implementation team distributed OSHA safety and health information, including a Plastics Industry CD on machine safety that was developed by the Alliance. The CD contains the Alliance's machine guarding and lockout/tagout training courses for injection molding, thermoforming and extrusion machinery and the OSHA Assistance for the Plastics Industry Safety and Health Topics page.

      The Alliance continued its development of an OSHA-10-hour Course for the Plastics Industry. After the course is completed, it will be given to OSHA's Ed Centers to add to their course offerings. In addition, plastics industry employers can present the course in their workplaces to help educate their workers. Finally, OSHA and SPI Alliance implementation team members began work on a Blow Molding Machine Safety Training Course and toured the Amcor PET packaging facility to obtain photos to include in the course.

   3. Alliance Program Reach

      Type of Activity (Conference, Training, Print and Electronic Distribution, etc.)	Number of Individuals Reached or Trained
      OSHA and SPI Alliance Web page on the OSHA Web site	4,200
      SPI Alliance Web page on SPI's Web site	Data Not Available
      Plastics Industry Safety and Health Topics Page	19,200
      Machine Guarding eTool, Horizontal Injection Molding Machines Module	8,074
      November 4, 2005: "OSHA, Society of the Plastics Industry Continue Alliance," OSHA News Release	69 New Services
      November 7, 2005: "OSHA, Society of the Plastics Industry Continue Alliance, Second Renewal Focuses on Machine Safety, Hazard Communication," U.S. Newswire	Data Not Available
      November 7, 2005: "OSHA, SPI Renew Alliance with Focus on Machine Safety, HazCom," Occupational Safety and Health Magazine	Data Not Available
      November 15, 2005: "OSHA Renews National Alliance with Society of the Plastics Industry," QuickTakes	50,000
      January 9, 2006: "OSHA Forms Alliances for Worker Safety in Various Industries," Facilities Management News	Data Not Available
      January 2006: "OSHA Alliances," OSHA Up to Date	Data Not Available
      June 19-23, 2006: NPE 2006: International Plastics Showcase, Chicago, Illinois. OSHA exhibit	1400
      June 19-23, 2006: NPE 2006: International Plastics Showcase, Chicago, Illinois. Speakers: Jim Washam, Region V, USDOL-OSHA Wayne Wilson, United Southern Industries, Inc. Cathy Cronin, Chief, Division of Training and Educational Development, OTE, USDOL-OSHA	100
      TOTAL	82,974

4. Upcoming Milestones

   During the upcoming year, OSHA and SPI will continue its training and outreach efforts and the development of compliance assistance tools and resources. For example, the Alliance implementation team will complete the thermoforming machinery module for OSHA's Machine Guarding eTool. The tool addresses thermoforming machinery hazard areas and possible solutions to the hazards and includes a 360-degree tour of a thermoforming machine. The Alliance will also continue developing a blow molding machine safety training course and will complete the development of a 10-hour OSHA Course for the Plastics Industry.

Report prepared by: Elizabeth Sherfy, OSHA and SPI Alliance Coordinator, August 10, 2006.