Simple Steps to Safety

What is the big deal with a record?

Trends and facts beat single-point values and vague recollections. A record can influence crucial decisions and judgments. Even diagnosis may not be possible without a record of what has happened in the past.

Record-keeping was a chore in the old days without computers. It can be merged in to current transactions using technology that is common now.

Record keeping is integral to efforts for better safety standards. Problem analysis after adverse incidents is nearly impossible if there are no historical records.

You never know when an old record will be useful again all of a sudden. Destroying records is always a risk, and has no benefits when we think of electronic databases.

This is why I loudly applaud the news at the following link:

http://www.wral.com/news/state/story/4310768/

Review your record keeping and disposal systems. Keep track of all your purchases, storage, use, and disposal of hazardous substances, with real-time copies always available at an off-site location. This could save lives in the event of an accident or a natural disaster.

The Most Humane Aspect of Rescue

This web log is all about safety for and in business and large organizations.

There are some aspects of risk management, like the one reported at the link below that are humane rather than business-like:

http://www.lakeelmoleader.com/articles/index.cfm?id=9071§ion=news

Pets and wild animals are everywhere. Many risk management plans ignore then by oversight or design. Cattle are the most pitiable victims of floods and other natural disasters in India. Most rescue workers have no clue about how to save animal lives after an adverse event.

Would your emergency plans work for strays that might be affected? Do you know how many nests there are in your neighborhood? Diwali and each marriage season remind me of all the birds that share my locality, because they fill the sky in fright with the crippling noise pollution.

Please spare some planning and contingency resources for animals.

Solution for Pollution

You cannot see them, but they are everywhere. The world of microbes is more ignored that hated or loved, but they are not to be denied.

Infectious diseases have given bacteria and fungi bad names, but could we enjoy bread, yogurt, or beer without them?

Methane on Mars may be inorganic, but if it does lead to a form of life on the planet, then a microbe not man will be involved.

Here is a link to the thought that a microbe from another part of the Universe, riding on a meteorite, could be our common ancestor:

http://www.v-j-enterprises.com/nasanews.html#7/29/98-vital

Back to the ground realities of today, microbes have huge roles in environmental conservation. Bacteria, fungi, and even humble algae can degrade harmful off-target residues of hazardous chemicals such as pesticides. Here is an exemplary link:

http://d.wanfangdata.com.cn/NSTLQK_NSTL_QK7802954.aspx

Post below if you would like to develop colonies of microbes to re-mediate contaminated soil and water.

Lifecycle Analysis Unearths New Risks

Consumers were shocked to discover that luxury brands of footwear were made in sweatshops of the third world.

Iconic brands of sodas have depleted scarce groundwater in the rain-shadows of earth.


High technology seeds were produced by keeping village girls from school.


Post below if you would like web addresses at which you can find details of such shocking realities.

There are numerous and abominable instances of raw and packing materials destroying the environment and endangering people. The good old days of limiting concerns to finished goods are well and truly over. Brand owners are now liable for how their outsourced products and services are put together.

Life-cycle analysis works forwards as well. The pesticide industry is not the only one to ignore widespread abuses of its brands, but it is the sector of the economy that I know well. It is not enough by far to pay lip service to safety and environmental conservation. Such responsibilities cannot be limited to manufacturing sites, or to token extension efforts. Safe and judicious use, as well as waste disposal are prime and essential brand responsibilities.

Post below or write to SafetyBrigade@gmail.com if you would like a Life-Cycle Analysis of products and services from which you profit.

Emergencies in Remote Areas

What happened to the water used to fight the fire reported at the following web address?


http://www.freep.com/article/20090111/NEWS07/90111020


It is apparent that the house involved did not have an automatic sprinkler system, which makes it safe to assume that there was no provision for the sequestering of fire-fighting water.

The fire started in the aftermath of a storm, which implies that the entire locality must have been awash in flowing water.

Could something similar happen to you?

Fires in warehouses are amongst the worst. Hazardous materials get released in to public water bodies in huge amounts.

Fire-fighting forces should use dry powder to douse warehouse and factory fires. All production and storage sites must have facilities for automatic isolation of fire-fighting wastes.

Post below or write to SafetyBrigade@gmail.com to safeguard your storage, production, office, and home sites.

Problem Analysis and Maintenance

Most of us will not believe that it is possible to have premonitions about disasters. However, there is a rationale way to foresee some adverse events. Clairvoyance is never about certainty. Maintenance work and incidents that remain unreported can yield invaluable tips about possible and even likely accidents. Consider the report at the following address:

http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2009/01/cause_sought_in.html

Major accidents are investigated thoroughly. What if we were to play Devil's Advocate and look for needles in haystacks of 'near-misses'?

Problem Analysis is a chore and a nuisance as well. It does pay big time though. Here is a link to the method:

http://www.kepner-tregoe.com/TheKTWay/OurProcesses-PA.cfm

Do you have another way of learning from adverse events? Can their probabilities be reduced? Post below to share your experience, and to ask for help with your operations as well.

Do you SPCC?

What is the big deal with a spill? It happens all the time, in homes, offices, and in the aftermaths of accidents.

A spill can spell disaster if a hazardous substance is involved. Any organic material that is normally considered to be safe, can become a source of serious risks, if spilled. Milk, blood, and human waste, are important examples of innocuous substances that become sources of contamination and pollution once they are exposed outside their containers.

Transport is a major source of spill-related risks to humans and the environment.

Drivers, helpers, and local authorities may have no clues on what has to be done to contain a spill of a hazardous or risky substance.

Here is a useful link on how to manage a spill:

http://www.epa.gov/OEM/content/spcc/index.htm

Extension Can Make or Break Technology

Ask a sample of lay people you know, and you will be surprised to learn that they know very little about honeybees.

Pollination is perhaps the most important natural process for our food security. Many fruits and oil-seeds depend on honeybees for reproduction.

The benefits of honey are widely known, but its production is not the most important thing that bees do during their busy lives.

Bees are also thought to be adept at keeping caterpillar pests away. Here is a web address to a report on this matter:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7796138.stm

Agriculture would not be the same without honeybees. Yet, even farmers ignore these brave and industrious creatures.

The rearing and breeding of honeybees is a matter of high technology, and deserves abundant funding. Yet, very little is done in this vital matter. It is simply because of our ignorance.

There are secular benefits in promoting awareness of honeybees and their crucial contributions to our lives. That is why the event announced at the following link is so important:

http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200990108070

Do your bit for pesticide safety and environmental conservation by promoting awareness about honeybees.

Perils of Globalization

People have always traded with distant associates. Commerce pre-dates the constitution of many modern nations. It is normal to sing the praises of global trade. After all, is it not logical to stretch a market as widely as possible? E-commerce makes it possible for your products to reach customers you may never have targeted.

What does all this have to do with safety and risk management? You have to be pro-active in limiting sales to countries in which you have regulatory clearances. Another approach is to obtain permissions for your brands in countries such as the United States. A US registration is a mark of product safety. The process can tell you things about your product that you have not known before.

Please cut and paste the following address on your browser to review and example of the effects of unauthorized international trade:


http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/news/2006/NEW01298.html


It follows that global trade threatens unsuspecting consumers. Temptations to buy medicines off the Internet can endanger health. That is why ethical pharmaceutical companies warn web site visitors that some of their pages are restricted to customers from specific countries. Visit the following page for an example:

http://www.novartis.com/products/pharmaceuticals.shtml

Safeguard your customers and your brands as well, by consciously restraining your logistics so that you do no business in an area where you lack regulatory clearances.

Towards a Risk Management Culture

Why do trees shed leaves in Autumn?

Risk management is the way of nature. Adaptation is not a guarantee against every disaster, but it does improve the chances of survival.

Greed and negligence are fatal lovers. Traditional growth and profit compulsions blind management teams from safeguarding the enterprises for which they are responsible.

How can conservative thinking permeate an organization?

Here is a link to a process that brings group intellect to bear on identifying and managing risks. (Please cut and paste the address on your browser as the link facility does not function at the time of writing this post).

http://www.iso.org/iso/management_standards.htm

An ISO 14001-compliant organization builds a culture of risk management. Everyone has opportunities to express doubts and fears. Not all dangers can be countered, but at least consensus is built around risks that are taken consciously.

Potential Problem Analysis is another process-driven way of building a risk-management culture. Here is another address for you to visit:

http://www.diegm.uniud.it/create/Handbook/techniques/List/PPA.php

Culture evolves through practice in society, but formal organization should not wait for events to follow

Start with New Accounting

Are profits from risky and polluting enterprises for real?

Safety and environment conservation awareness is a distinguishing feature of this Millennium. A business that has got away with major risks and negative impacts in the past, can afford to lose no time in cleaning up its act.

Which function should lead this revolution? Consider the perspective at the following address:

http://www.sciencealert.com.au/news/20090501-18613-4.html

Accountants are not well-versed in the technical aspects of a business. That is why old methods of accounting and audit are truly obsolete.

New ways of measuring costs will lead to viable competitive strategies for the future.

A business in generics is most vulnerable, because competition can force a Gross Margin to the bone. No one in an industry wants to be the first to bell the cat of risk management. Regulations may not be comprehensive in safety and re-mediation terms.

Do you pay taxes on fictitious profits, and distribute wealth that does not exist?

Here are some key actions with which you can start this week:

1. Commission a HAZOP covering operations outside production as well.
2. Take a fresh look at your product and service pricing.
3. Press your industry association for joint and pro-active steps to promote safe business operations.
4. Review your contingent liabilities and insurance cover for product liabilities.
5. Put your emergency response procedures to the test.

Post below or write to SafetyBrigade@gmail.com if you need help, or if you care to share your opinion and experience.

Networking for Safety

The breadth and depth of a network determine its effectiveness.

Consider risk management. There are so many unlikely dangers that People who operate and maintain a system can overlook.

It is the same with emergency responses. Chances of containment and recovery are directly proportional to the number of hands on deck, organization, and above all, speed of response.

Invite as many domain experts as you can to step in and repeat your hazard analysis. Include lay people as well, especially those who live and work in the vicinity of your sites.

Offer reciprocal emergency response facilities to as many people as you can. Count on others to step in and help you when disaster strikes. Attend to their emergencies on the highest priority. Provide for continuity of your own operations even when you are away.

Broadband, multi-media Internet makes this cheaper and more feasible than during days without a World Wide Web. Now the challenge is to give flesh and physical resources to networks of electronic processors.

The Rehearsal Panacea

"It never rains, but pours"

This is how you may feel in an emergency. It will take place outside your normal working hours. Telephones will not work. Crucial people will be on leave. The information you so desperately need will be nowhere to be found.

Rehearse and hope that you never need the training.

Rehearsal needs repetition. This is a part of the learning process. Besides, fitments in to organizational structures change all the time. What if the fire-control team who know your products has retired or been transferred to another location?

Back-up is a related concept. Build redundancy in to your emergency control Things rarely go right the first time, especially when you need them to do so. Question all assumptions, and cover serious risks regardless of their probabilities.

Here is a link to a commendable initiative in this respect:


http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/article/20090105/NEWS01/901050353

May it remain a phobia

Fear of a fire engulfing my home is amongst my worst nightmares.

Old buildings with wooden staircases are most vulnerable. Outdated, illegal, and poorly-maintained wiring make things much worse.

Rehearsals of emergency routines until the fire brigade arrives are most important in such circumstances. Here is a link to a photograph and a report on how the effects of fires can be contained through prior planning.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/4812896a11.html

(Please copy the URL to your browser: the link facility here does not work at the time of posting).

We are fortunate that fires are unlikely. However, it does tend to lull us in to complacence.

Have your house, offices, warehouses, and manufacturing sites been assessed for fire safety? Are you prepared to deal with a conflagration? I have worked with chemicals. That is why I am paranoid about containing water and powder used to fight fires.

I hope this post will never be put to any test in real life.

The Clean Water Resolution for 2009

I have read forecasts that the year ahead could be even worse than the one that has just gone by. Prophets of such doom focus on financial matters these days, but I have something else in mind.

The idea hit me late in 2008 as I drove towards Chandigarh on the road from Delhi. A patch of highway raises an unmistakable stink. It is a sign of the times that such an important stretch of road is witness to environmental abuse of the worst kind.

Differences between regulators in various countries continue to be glaring. While the India of 2008 has continued to allow abominable water pollution, the United States has taken a completely different direction. This is surely a huge challenge for international corporations that have to operate in all kinds of markets.

Will official and public neglect of water contamination last in countries such as India? Do not bet on it, for your future profits will be at stake. It is not just a matter of effluent discharge, but may also be related to phases of your business that you cannot see from your office.

Social, human, and environmental cost accounting lurks around corners. Catch up with your water balance and clean-up act before your business comes to a dead halt.

Forgive me for starting 2009 on such a somber note, but it is time to make a resolution to keep your enterprise running in to the brave new future. Clean up your water act now, and leave no cog of your business life-cycle exposed.

Here are some interesting links that I have used to write this post. I have not been able to work the image uploading and hyper-link facilities at this site for the past few days. Please cut and paste the addresses below until I figure a way to make my web log function fully.

http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2009/jan/01/tva-pond-had-problems-for-decades/

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-md.briefs310dec31,0,7848213.story

http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/lifestyle/health/chi-dow-dioxin-01-jan01,0,7193136.story

http://www.motherjones.com/news/featurex/2006/03/atrazine.html

http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/yourtown/oxford/4013814.Farm_company_fined_for_polluting_stream/