L’importanza del fattore umano e della manutenzione nel Safety Management System: dall’approccio risk based all’industria 4.0

Il presente lavoro, si è invece soffermato sullo stretto legame tra manutenzione e sicurezza. Un binomio, quest’ultimo, che ben si coniuga nell’approccio Risk Based Maintenance, il cui criterio decisionale è costituito dal rischio delle attrezzature/impianti e che nell’assicurare la longevità degli asset ha ricadute positive sulla salute e sicurezza dei lavoratori. Tuttavia, il binomio manutenzione-sicurezza, si presta anche ad un’altra considerazione: le attività di manutenzione sono intrinsecamente pericolose per la peculiarità delle modalità di esecuzione delle stesse. In questa prospettiva, non si può non tenere in conto del “Fattore Umano”, dapprima come “decisore” nel processo che porta alla definizione dei piani di manutenzione e di ispezione, e poi come “manutentore”, ed in quanto tale esposto a pericoli nello svolgimento delle attività. Un approccio sistemico al problema necessita di un utile strumento per mettere in evidenza le interrelazioni tra i componenti dello stesso, per cui si è fatto ricorso alla System Dynamics, ed in particolare allo strumento grafico, il Causal Loop Diagram, per rendere immediatamente visibili queste relazioni causa-effetto e che costituiscono il punto di partenza per la costruzione successiva del modello. Dal modello proposto, emerge quanto sia il “fattore uomo” che le “attività di manutenzione” siano elementi chiave all’interno del Safety Management e sui quali dover agire in maniera congiunta o singola (gli aspetti sono tra loro interconnessi) al fine di migliorare lo stato del sistema. Inoltre, considerata la rivoluzione industriale che ci accingiamo a sperimentare, industria 4.0, vengono rivisti i due fattori chiave del SMS: la manutenzione ed il fattore uomo. La manutenzione assume carattere prevalentemente “predittivo intelligente” in quanto fa ricorso a dati provenienti dal monitoraggio effettuato dai sensori collegati mediante la rete e ne vengono messi in evidenza i punti di forza e di debolezza. In questo scenario fortemente automatizzato, cambia anche il ruolo dell’uomo all’interno della nuova Smart Factory: “supervisore” dei robot e dei processi. Alla risorsa umana saranno richieste nuove “skill” per la gestione dell’enorme mole di dati che dovranno essere acquisiti, analizzati ed interpretati. Pertanto, la problematica si sposterà a livelli cognitivi e il “knowledge management” sarà la nuova sfida

Modelling a safety management system using system dynamics at the Bhopal incident

In a safety management system (SMS), risk management plays a key role for the prevention of accidents. This study aims to propose a safety management model by using a system dynamics approach applied to the Bhopal incident. The model proposed in this paper discusses the relationships among the main causes that have contributed to the occurrence of the incident studied, such as broken safety devices, inadequate personnel experience, operator decisions, manager production strategy, policy decision, as deduced from the relevant literature about the Bhopal incident dynamics. The simulation and the results clarify how to manage the key factors to make the plant safe. Moreover, we want to underline how these key modern aspects of safety could be enhanced by using the enabling technologies of industry 4.0

A Conceptual Framework to Defining Leading Indicators to Measure Safety Management System Performance

The measurement of health and safety management performance in organisations is a key step, as well as in any management process, as it provides information to identify the critical areas that require actions to achieve continuous improvement. Within the safety management system (SMS), the performance measurement is therefore associated with the check step in the plan-do-check-act (PDCA) cycle. However, it is also in the planning phase that we need to think about what we will have to measure in order to be able to make decisions in key areas. Unfortunately, based on existing literature and standardisation, there is no unique checklist for measuring the performance of safety management systems. Although theorists and researchers have not yet found standard indicators for measuring the SMS performance, they seem to agree in classifying performance indicators into lagging and leading indicators. While lagging indicators measure the frequency of injuries, illnesses and fatalities that occurred in the past, leading indicators provide information about safety and health activities by enabling organisations to implement preventive measures. In this paper, the authors have proposed a conceptual framework for defining key indicators to measure safety performance. The objective is to design a structured path to identify indicators, among those existing in the literature and those widely used by experts, for each element of the SMS. The steps for using these indicators are also traced

Long COVID and the cardiovascular system—elucidating causes and cellular mechanisms in order to develop targeted diagnostic and therapeutic strategies: a joint Scientific Statement of the ESC Working Groups on Cellular Biology of the Heart and Myocardial and Pericardial Diseases

Long COVID has become a world-wide, non-communicable epidemic, caused by long-lasting multiorgan symptoms that endure for weeks or months after SARS-CoV-2 infection has already subsided. This scientific document aims to provide insight into the possible causes and therapeutic options available for the cardiovascular manifestations of long COVID. In addition to chronic fatigue, which is a common symptom of long COVID, patients may present with chest pain, ECG abnormalities, postural orthostatic tachycardia, or newly developed supraventricular or ventricular arrhythmias. Imaging of the heart and vessels has provided evidence of chronic, post-infectious perimyocarditis with consequent left or right ventricular failure, arterial wall inflammation, or microthrombosis in certain patient populations. Better understanding of the underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms of long COVID will aid in the development of effective treatment strategies for its cardiovascular manifestations. A number of mechanisms have been proposed, including those involving direct effects on the myocardium, microthrombotic damage to vessels or endothelium, or persistent inflammation. Unfortunately, existing circulating biomarkers, coagulation, and inflammatory markers, are not highly predictive for either the presence or outcome of long COVID when measured 3 months after SARS-CoV-2 infection. Further studies are needed to understand underlying mechanisms, identify specific biomarkers, and guide future preventive strategies or treatments to address long COVID and its cardiovascular sequelae

Una survey sull’adozione dei Sistemi di Gestione della Sicurezza sul Lavoro

Documento accessibile all'indirizzo http://preventiontoday.ispesl.it/documenti_catalogo/Fogli_contributi_5.pd

Current views on anthracycline cardiotoxicity

Anthracyclines are well established and effective anticancer agents used to treat a variety of adult and pediatric cancers. Unfortunately, these drugs are also among the commonest chemotherapeutic agents that have been recognized to cause cardiotoxicity. In the last years, several experimental and clinical investigations provided new information and perspectives on anthracycline-related cardiotoxicity. In particular, molecular mechanisms of cardiotoxicity have been better elucidated, early diagnosis has improved through the use of advanced noninvasive cardiac imaging techniques, and emerging data indicate a genetic predisposition to develop anthracycline-related cardiotoxicity. In this article, we review established and new knowledge about anthracycline cardiotoxicity, with special focus on recent advances in cardiotoxicity diagnosis and genetic profiling

Akap1 regulates vascular function and endothelial cells behavior

MitoAKAPs (mitochondrial A kinase anchoring proteins), encoded by the Akap1 gene, regulate multiple cellular processes governing mitochondrial homeostasis and cell viability. Although mitochondrial alterations have been associated to endothelial dysfunction, the role of mitoAKAPs in the vasculature is currently unknown. To test this, postischemic neovascularization, vascular function, and arterial blood pressure were analyzed in Akap1 knockout mice (Akap1-/-) and their wild-Type (wt) littermates. Primary cultures of aortic endothelial cells (ECs) were also obtained from Akap1-/-and wt mice, and ECs migration, proliferation, survival, and capillary-like network formation were analyzed under different experimental conditions. After femoral artery ligation, Akap1-/-mice displayed impaired blood flow and functional recovery, reduced skeletal muscle capillary density, and Akt phosphorylation compared with wt mice. In Akap1-/-ECs, a significant enhancement of hypoxia-induced mitophagy, mitochondrial dysfunction, reactive oxygen species production, and apoptosis were observed. Consistently, capillary-like network formation, migration, proliferation, and AKT phosphorylation were reduced in Akap1-/-ECs. Alterations in Akap1-/-ECs behavior were also confirmed in Akap1-/-mice, which exhibited a selective reduction in acetylcholine-induced vasorelaxation in mesenteric arteries and a mild but significant increase in arterial blood pressure levels compared with wt. Finally, overexpression of a constitutively active Akt mutant restored vascular reactivity and ECs function in Akap1-/-conditions. These results demonstrate the important role of mitoAKAPs in the modulation of multiple ECs functions in vivo and in vitro, suggesting that mitochondriadependent regulation of ECs might represent a novel therapeutic approach in cardiovascular diseases characterized by endothelial dysfunction