- Email: [email protected]
Safety and health inquiry
architectural, military psychology, psychometrics, ergonomics, psychology in developing countries etc). An exhibition of psychological books, tests and apparatus will be organised by different European and American firms. The official languages of the congress will be English, French, and German with simultaneous translation. The registration fees are as follows: $36 for the members of the International Association of Applied
Psychology. $46 for non-members. $24 for accompanying persons (fees slightly higher if paid after March 31, 1971).
A provisional programme of the congress with a registration form may be obtained from the Congress Secretariat, Institut de Psychologic, 36, Boulevard Piercot, 4000- Liege, Belgium.
Safety and health inquiry Lord Robens has agreed to serve as chairman of an inquiry into the safety and health of employees. The terms of reference will be as f o l l o w s : To review the provision made for the safety and health of persons in the course of their employment (other than transport workers while directly engaged on transport operations and who are covered by other provisions) and to consider whether any changes are needed in:
l. The scope or nature of the major relevant enactments; or 2. The nature and extent of voluntary action concerned with these matters, and to consider whether any further steps are required to safeguard members of the public from hazards, other than general environmental pollution, arising in connection with activities in industrial and commercial premises and construction sites, and to make recommendations.
SI equivalent correction In the December issue of Applied Ergonomics, on page 15, Table 5, the SI equivalent of the UK gallon was misquoted owing to a typographical error. It should have read 4"54609 dm 3,
Conferences Fourth International Congress on Ergonomics International Ergonomics Association Strasbourg, France, 6--10 July, 1970
Although most of the papers presented at this meeting were concerned with research work recently completed or still being pursued, some dealt directly with ergonomics work already in service and many others included detailed reference to the practical implications. This should not suggest that those of the 450 delegates attending from 28 countries who were primarily concerned with ergonomics in practice were disappointed. 150 papers in 20 sessions gave a rich choice.
Industrial safety This important topic formed the subject of the opening session. The operator's reliability and safety in industry was considered by Professor J. M. Faverge of Brussels, who outlined several areas to be examined in considering an industrial situation. Factors related to the work environment included the determination of reliability 'black spots' which can usually be located at points where two groups of people involved in different systems are working, or points where there is a change of work function, or when one man or team replaces another. In
252
addition, there are less predictable points of momentary unreliability. These may occur when the system is being restored after an interruption when the operators are not adjusted to the chain of events. He stated that in Belgian iron mines, such 'recuperative' accidents occurred at a rate 4 times the normal accident rate. Similarly, the period when a worker changes to another tool or instrument is hazardous and care must be taken to ensure the tool is appropriate and adequate for the task. Other factors to be considered are related to the man. These include his knowledge of the work, with emphasis on the risks which arise through unfamiliarity with the situation and the working group; his knowledge of signs, especially informal communications and danger signs; and his knowledge of the risks involved.
offered protection to operators from radiant heat, head knocks and grit and dust was described. The use of this device extended the performance, in terms of time on the job, from 1 min 45 sec to 7 min 30 sec. Aluminised asbestos materials were evaluated and enormously varying wear lives discovered. Commercially available materials offering good reflective properties after wear were recommended. The use of these materials in protective assemblies increased exposure times to 13 min. The ultimate form of protection, a compact entirely self-contained water cooling unit, allowed operators to work in heat for six consecutive periods of 20 minutes each. The operating costs were very low, 10-15 shillings per hour, and the unit was carried by the operator.
Forestry accidents Thermal protection T. B. Leamon of the Cranfield Institute of Technology and J. W. Hill of Pilkington Brothers Ltd, summarised the investigation and design stages in providing independant personal protection in hot industrial environments, with up to 200°C globe temperature in extreme conditions being considered. Surveys of environments in the glass industry revealed the significance of the radiant heat c o m p o n e n t in most hot jobs. A form of helmet which
AppliedErgonomics September 1970
Investigations of near accidents have some important advantage over studies of real accidents. Near accidents are more numerous and people involved are more willing to give information. A study of near accidents in logging has been made by E. Lagerlof, L. Gustafsson and B. Pettersson in Sweden. A total of 907 near accidents was recorded during 1 681 man days. Compared with official statistics, the rates of real to near accidents is 1 : 700. The distribution of real and near accidents between the various working
Psychology. $46 for non-members. $24 for accompanying persons (fees slightly higher if paid after March 31, 1971).
A provisional programme of the congress with a registration form may be obtained from the Congress Secretariat, Institut de Psychologic, 36, Boulevard Piercot, 4000- Liege, Belgium.
Safety and health inquiry Lord Robens has agreed to serve as chairman of an inquiry into the safety and health of employees. The terms of reference will be as f o l l o w s : To review the provision made for the safety and health of persons in the course of their employment (other than transport workers while directly engaged on transport operations and who are covered by other provisions) and to consider whether any changes are needed in:
l. The scope or nature of the major relevant enactments; or 2. The nature and extent of voluntary action concerned with these matters, and to consider whether any further steps are required to safeguard members of the public from hazards, other than general environmental pollution, arising in connection with activities in industrial and commercial premises and construction sites, and to make recommendations.
SI equivalent correction In the December issue of Applied Ergonomics, on page 15, Table 5, the SI equivalent of the UK gallon was misquoted owing to a typographical error. It should have read 4"54609 dm 3,
Conferences Fourth International Congress on Ergonomics International Ergonomics Association Strasbourg, France, 6--10 July, 1970
Although most of the papers presented at this meeting were concerned with research work recently completed or still being pursued, some dealt directly with ergonomics work already in service and many others included detailed reference to the practical implications. This should not suggest that those of the 450 delegates attending from 28 countries who were primarily concerned with ergonomics in practice were disappointed. 150 papers in 20 sessions gave a rich choice.
Industrial safety This important topic formed the subject of the opening session. The operator's reliability and safety in industry was considered by Professor J. M. Faverge of Brussels, who outlined several areas to be examined in considering an industrial situation. Factors related to the work environment included the determination of reliability 'black spots' which can usually be located at points where two groups of people involved in different systems are working, or points where there is a change of work function, or when one man or team replaces another. In
252
addition, there are less predictable points of momentary unreliability. These may occur when the system is being restored after an interruption when the operators are not adjusted to the chain of events. He stated that in Belgian iron mines, such 'recuperative' accidents occurred at a rate 4 times the normal accident rate. Similarly, the period when a worker changes to another tool or instrument is hazardous and care must be taken to ensure the tool is appropriate and adequate for the task. Other factors to be considered are related to the man. These include his knowledge of the work, with emphasis on the risks which arise through unfamiliarity with the situation and the working group; his knowledge of signs, especially informal communications and danger signs; and his knowledge of the risks involved.
offered protection to operators from radiant heat, head knocks and grit and dust was described. The use of this device extended the performance, in terms of time on the job, from 1 min 45 sec to 7 min 30 sec. Aluminised asbestos materials were evaluated and enormously varying wear lives discovered. Commercially available materials offering good reflective properties after wear were recommended. The use of these materials in protective assemblies increased exposure times to 13 min. The ultimate form of protection, a compact entirely self-contained water cooling unit, allowed operators to work in heat for six consecutive periods of 20 minutes each. The operating costs were very low, 10-15 shillings per hour, and the unit was carried by the operator.
Forestry accidents Thermal protection T. B. Leamon of the Cranfield Institute of Technology and J. W. Hill of Pilkington Brothers Ltd, summarised the investigation and design stages in providing independant personal protection in hot industrial environments, with up to 200°C globe temperature in extreme conditions being considered. Surveys of environments in the glass industry revealed the significance of the radiant heat c o m p o n e n t in most hot jobs. A form of helmet which
AppliedErgonomics September 1970
Investigations of near accidents have some important advantage over studies of real accidents. Near accidents are more numerous and people involved are more willing to give information. A study of near accidents in logging has been made by E. Lagerlof, L. Gustafsson and B. Pettersson in Sweden. A total of 907 near accidents was recorded during 1 681 man days. Compared with official statistics, the rates of real to near accidents is 1 : 700. The distribution of real and near accidents between the various working