10 Items You Need To Know About Water and Mold Damage In A Commercial Building

By: Mike Gfroehrer

1. The uncontrolled release of water may result in mold (fungi) growth in a previously non-water damaged area of a building if the water release is not adequately addressed within 48 hours of its occurrence. In addition to mold growth, water damaged can result in structural damage and support the proliferation of other [...]

10 Things EVERYONE Should Know About Fire Safety

EHS Top Ten Tuesday: Fire Safety 

By: Eileen Lucier

1. Approximately 75% of fire related deaths are due to smoke inhalation rather than burns or other injuries.

2. Arson is the leading cause of non-residential structure fires in the United States, followed by electrical distribution systems.

3. Good housekeeping and proper storage of flammables and combustibles are important but often [...]

Top Ten Things You Need to Know About Lab Safety

EHS Top Ten Tuesday: LAB SAFETY
By: Laurie de Laski

1. The OSHA Standard for regulating hazardous chemicals in research and development laboratories is: Occupational Exposure to Hazardous Chemicals in Laboratories (29 CFR 1910.1450). The standard does not apply to production or QA/QC labs. Please refer to last week’s post for specific requirements of this [...]

Knowing Chemical Hygiene Standards

EHS Top Ten Tuesday:
Top Ten Things You Need to Know about the Chemical Hygiene Standard
By: Laurie de Laski

1. The OSHA Standard for regulating safety in research and development laboratories is: Occupational Exposure to Hazardous Chemicals in Laboratories (29 CFR 1910.1450). The standard does not apply to production or QA/QC labs (see definition in [...]

Top 10 Tuesdays: Shipping Hazardous Materials

Things to Know Before Shipping Hazardous Materials
By: Dian Cucchisi, PhD, CHMM

1. Is the material hazardous? This can be determined by looking at the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) or the label.

2. Does the Department of Transportation consider the material a hazardous material for transportation? Check the Hazardous Material Table (HMT) found in 49 CFR [...]

Top 10 Tuesdays: Respiratory Protection & Fit Testing

Top Ten Things You Need to Know about Respiratory Protection & Fit Testing
By: Kevin Zeller

1. OSHA regulation 29 CFR 1910.134 details the requirements for a Respiratory Protection Program.

2. A Respiratory Protection Program is mandatory if any employee is required to wear any type of respirator during the course of their job.

3. The establishment [...]

Top 10 Tuesdays – Water Safety

Water Safety at Work and Play
Capt. John DeFillippo, CHMP, EMT-B

The best thing anyone can do to stay safe in and around the water is to learn to swim. It’s never too late and kids should learn to treat the water with respect at an early age. As a veteran of the U.S. Coast [...]

Top 10 Tuesdays – Heat Stress

Top Ten Things You Need to Know About… HEAT STRESS
By: Paula Kaufmann – CIH

1. Our bodies get stressed by heat and then are unable to cool down by sweating.
2. An overload of heat is often caused by a combination of high temperature and high humidity, which can be made more “stressful” by no breeze [...]