• Journal of Korean Society of Industrial and Systems Engineering
• /
• v.21 no.47
• /
• pp.243-251
• /
• 1998

These days material handling accidents and injuries are some of the most common in the workplace. 20-45% of all occupational injuries is taken place in the area of material handling industry. The control and management of material handling activities can have a significant impact on the workforce safety and productivity in the manufacturing industry. This paper is to suggest effective countermeasures for reducing and protecting occupational accidents in the area of material handling industry. To do so, firstly, we found out the relationship between occpational accidents and business. Secondly, we are to analyse overall occupational accidents caused by material handling tools. Thirdly, we found out important factors of occupational accidents and injuries in the area of material handling industry by analysing 10 cases in detail, which have been occured from 1994 to 1997 in the workplace.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
• /
• v.9 no.2
• /
• pp.135-144
• /
• 1999

The purposes of this study were to survey types of pretreatment methods adopted by industrial hygiene laboratories in Korea for extracting heavy metals in welding fume samples and to compare performances of two pretreatment methods, the acid extraction and the microwave digestion, in extracting heavy metals contained in the real workplace samples from various welding jobs including arc, argon, and carbon dioxide. A total of 25 analytical chemists in the industrial hygiene laboratories participating the quality control program directed by the Korea Industrial Safety Corporation were interviewed by telephone. For the purpose of comparing performance of extracting heavy metals from real workplace samples, a total of 53 welders from 21 workplaces located in Anyang, Uiwang, and Kunpo areas were sampled from the period of March 22, 1999 to April 20, 1999. It was found that the most frequently adopted method for samples from the quality control program was the acid extraction method(40%) followed by the NIOSH 7300 method(36%). The NIOSH method, however, was the dominant method(36%) for samples from workplace followed by the acid extraction method(28%). In this study, two extraction methods, the acid extraction and the microwave digestion, were compared in terms of recovery rate, accuracy, and precision for both manganese and chromium. Both methods produced comparable results for the samples prepared for the quality control program. In contrast, concentrations of two heavy metals determined from real workplace samples pretreated with the microwave digestion method were statis tically significantly higher, manganese(166%) and chromium (200%), than those of utilizing the acid extraction method. These findings were consistent regardless of types of welding techniques used. The results of this study clearly show the importance of verifying the analytical performances of extraction methods for heavy metals not only for the samples from the quality control program but also from the real world samples collected from welding jobs.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.4 no.4
• /
• pp.177-186
• /
• 2013

The use of nanoparticles (NPs) in industry is increasing, bringing with it a number of adverse health effects on workers. Like other chemical carcinogens, NPs can cause cancer via oxidative DNA damage. Of all the molecules vulnerable to oxidative modification by NPs, DNA has received the greatest attention, and biomarkers of exposure and effect are nearing validation. This review concentrates on studies published between 2000 and 2012 that attempted to detect oxidative DNA damage in humans, laboratory animals, and cell lines. It is important to review these studies to improve the current understanding of the oxidative DNA damage caused by NP exposure in the workplace. In addition to examining studies on oxidative damage, this review briefly describes NPs, giving some examples of their adverse effects, and reviews occupational exposure assessments and approaches to minimizing exposure (e.g., personal protective equipment and engineering controls such as fume hoods). Current recommendations to minimize exposure are largely based on common sense, analogy to ultrafine material toxicity, and general health and safety recommendations.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
• /
• v.31 no.5
• /
• pp.35-41
• /
• 2016

Particulate filtering facepiece respirators (PFFR) is one of the most widely used items of personal protective equipments, and a tight fit of the respirators on the wearers is critical for the protection effectiveness. In order to effectively protect the workers through the respirators, it is important to find and evaluate the ways that can be readily applicable at the workplace to improve the fit of the respirators. This study was designed to evaluate effects of mask style (cup or foldable type) and donning training on fit factors (FF) of the respirators, since these are available at various workplace, especially at small business workplace. A total of 40 study subjects, comprised of 30~50s aged male and female workers in metalworking industries, were enrolled in this study. The FF were quantitatively measured before and after training related to the proper donning and use of cup or foldable-type respirators. The pass/fail criterion of FF was set at 100. After the donning training for the cup-type mask, subjects who passed the fit test were increased from 10 to 33. Moreover, the geometric mean (GM) of FF was increased by 340% in subjects who failed the test. In addition, the training effects for the cup-type mask were significant in female and 50s aged subjects. On the other hand, although the GM of FF for the foldable-type mask was also increased after the donning training, the GM of FF for the foldable-type mask and it's increase rate were smaller as compared to the cup-type mask. Furthermore, the differences of the increase rates of the GM of FF in sex and aged of the subjects were not significantly for the foldable-type mask. The multi-distribution of leak points for the foldable-type mask may be one of causes for the less effect of training on the fit of the foldable-type mask. These results imply that the raining on the donning and use of PFFR can enhance the protection effectiveness of cup or foldable-type mask, and that the training effects for the foldable-type mask is less significant than that for the cup-type mask. Therefore, It is recommended that the donning training and fit tests should be conducted before the use of the PFFR, and that efficient tranining programs for the foldable-type mask are required.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Gas
• /
• v.27 no.4
• /
• pp.43-49
• /
• 2023

Hydrofluoric acid is a less acidic substance than hydrochloric acid, nitric acid, and sulfuric acid, but it is one of the most dangerous substances for humans. In recent years, it has become an indispensable substance in industries such as chemical plants and the semiconductor industry, and although it is a threat to the human body, its use is increasing for various purposes, and the amount of use is constantly increasing due to the expansion and development of the industry. The dangers of hydrogen fluoride have been highlighted since the 2012 accident, which led to a more than fivefold increase in management standards for handling facilities. Hydrogen fluoride converts to hydrofluoric acid when exposed to the air, which can be fatal to humans. This study simulates the effects of a release of a toxic substance in the workplace, even though a protection layer has been provided to minimize the damage caused by the released toxic substance, and recommend ways to control the risk to workers in the event of a release in the workplace.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.8 no.2
• /
• pp.156-161
• /
• 2017

Background: Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems are becoming more widespread in organizations. Consequently, their effectiveness has become a core topic for researchers. This paper evaluates the performance of the Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series 18001 specification in certified companies in Iran. Methods: The evaluation is based on a comparison of specific criteria and indictors related to occupational health and safety management practices in three certified and three noncertified companies. Results: Findings indicate that the performance of certified companies with respect to occupational health and safety management practices is significantly better than that of noncertified companies. Conclusion: Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series 18001-certified companies have a better level of occupational health and safety; this supports the argument that Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems play an important strategic role in health and safety in the workplace.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
• /
• v.31 no.3
• /
• pp.226-236
• /
• 2021

Objectives: Concerns have been raised about the possible health effects of radon on both workers and consumers with the spread of social attention to the impact of radon exposure. Thus, an entire raw material handling workshop was investigated, and standards for radon levels in the workplace were newly established at 600 Bq/m³. However, regulations on the management of workers exposed to radon are still insufficiently developed. Therefore, by comparative analysis of overseas and domestic radon-related regulations for workplaces, this study aims to suggest improvement plans of protection regulations under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act) for the prevention of health disorders of radon-exposed workers. Methods: For overseas case studies, we consulted radon-related laws and reports officially published on the websites of the European Union (EU), the United States (U.S.) and the United Kingdom (UK) government agencies. Domestic law studies were conducted mainly on the Act on Protective Action Guidelines against Radiation in the Natural Environment and the OSH Act. Results: In Europe, the basic safety standards for protection against risks arising from radon (Council Directive 2013/59/EURATOM of 5 December 2013) was established by the EU. They recommend that the Member States manage radon level in workplaces based on this criterion. In the U.S., the standards for workplaces are controlled by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA). Action on radon in the UK is specified in "Radon in the workplace" published by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Conclusions: The Act on Protective Action Guidelines against Radiation in the Natural Environment mainly refers to the management of workplaces that use or handle raw materials but does not have any provisions in terms of protecting naturally exposed workers. In the OSH Act, it is necessary to define whether radon is included in radiation for that reason that its current regulations have limitations in ensuring the safety workers who may be exposed to naturally occurring radon. The management standards are needed for workplaces that do not directly deal with radon but are likely to be exposed to radon. We propose that this could be specified in the regulations for the prevention of health damage caused by radiation, not in Article 125 of the OSH Act.

• Journal of Construction Engineering and Project Management
• /
• v.4 no.1
• /
• pp.37-44
• /
• 2014

Comparatively, the construction industry has, on average, a higher rate of fatal and major injuries, work induced ill-health and damage to properties than other industrial sectors; and this is a source of concern to industry stakeholders. The study showed that although subcontracting could be contributory to an increase in workplace accidents in the construction industry, contractual aspects of subcontracting arrangements (such as the power imbalance that exist along the client-customer interface) also present opportunities for improvements in health and safety management (HSM) practices in organisations. This conclusion was reached after an analysis of a questionnaire survey (with a 27% response rate) that assessed the attitudes and perception to health and safety issues.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
• /
• v.32 no.1
• /
• pp.90-97
• /
• 2017

Overhead cranes are the most widely used and have been identified as one of the main causes of fatal accidents. Although structural, mechanical and electrical safety standards for overhead cranes have been established to some extent, ergonomic standards related to crane controllers are rarely established. As a result, many crane accidents are reported to be caused by operator's error. To investigate the actual use of crane controllers in the industrial field, we surveyed 82 overhead cranes in 15 workplace and interviewed workers operating them. This study has presented the ergonomic problems related to the crane controllers in the field. As a result of investigation, it was found that the direction control signs, the sign language, and the button layout on the pendant switches and remote controllers are not standardized, which can cause a human error. To reduce human errors in overhead crane operation, ergonomic standards for controllers should be reflected on the government legislation or standards.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
• /
• v.28 no.5
• /
• pp.1-4
• /
• 2013

The main objective was to design and develop a prototype robot system for assessing slip resistance. The developed robot system will be able to be used for stochastic nature of friction in the whole workplace. The second objective was to evaluate its operating condition in the laboratory, using a dreg sled type slipmeter(BOT-3000) as reference device. It was found that COF(Coefficient of Friction) measured with robot system was similar to that of BOT-3000 when sliding velocity was reached at 0.2m/s. The robot system might be the more promising one than any traditional measurement devices. A further evolution of prototype devices, as well as the development of test methods for that's various applications, is to be started in forthcoming studies.