Using Peak and Cumulative Spinal Loading to Assess Jobs, Job Rotation and Engineering Controls

Peak and cumulative forces on spinal structures have been identified as significant and statistically independent risk factors for reporting low back pain (LBP). This paper describes a software based approach which utilizes these risk factors to quantitatively predict the reporting of LBP by utilizing a Low Back Pain Reporting Index Score (LBPRI). Two automotive manufacturing jobs were assessed utilizing this approach and these results were utilized in the development of a specific administrative and engineering control. Analysis of the jobs with the controls in place indicated that the administrative control, job rotation, was less effective than assumed and produced an overall increase in the risk of reporting LBP. The engineering control resulted in an overall decrease in the risk of reporting LBP and this beneficial risk reduction would be delivered to any worker that performed this job. The results of this study indicate that both peak and cumulative loading must be considered in order to properly appreciate the risk of injury and the consequences associated with the implementation of administrative and engineering controls

Identifying Safety Culture Deficiencies in Facilities with the Potential for High Consequence/Low Probability Events

PresentationOne of the key underlying causes of most major accidents can be traced to deficiencies within the organization’s safety culture. The Chemical Safety Board (CSB) has directly identified safety culture deficiencies in their recent investigations including the March 2005 BP Texas City accident and the June 2013 Williams Geismar Olefins Plant accident. There are many reasons as to why safety culture deficiencies exist within an organization and are not identified and corrected by those working within the organization. An example could be Drift to Danger that is often addressed in Resilience Engineering related discussion. Another concern is that high consequence/low probability events are rare, which results in a low risk perception by employees within systems that have the potential for severe events. One could argue that full compliance with current PSM regulations should be sufficient and would have prevented the major events that have drawn industry’s attention. However, organizations, especially those that handle highly hazardous materials, should strive to go beyond compliance. This is because regulations are designed as minimum requirements and in principle cannot cover all possibilities. Additionally, all organizations should strive in gaining knowledge (i.e., don’t know what you don’t know) to improve their operation and safety. Implementation of a well-designed safety culture program that includes periodic assessment and continuous improvement can address this concern. A well-designed safety culture program should have certain key elements. In this paper the authors put forward the elements of a safety culture program that they have develop and assisted in implementation at their client sites. To achieve the goal of establishing a positive safety culture management should be cognizant of certain concepts. Although each organization has its own specific culture (i.e., habits and practices), safety culture related issues can be grouped into a limited set. These issues include but are not limited to management involvement, communication, competing goals, follow through, etc. In this paper the authors discuss these issues with specific examples from their observations when assisting clients. Safety culture programs implemented at their client site are summarized

Oscillatory Positive Expiratory Pressure (OPEP) therapy in COPD

People with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) commonly have a productive cough due to mucus hypersecretion. Clearing mucus from the chest can be difficult, as lung hyperinflation, respiratory muscle dysfunction and premature airway collapse impede the ability to generate an effective cough. Airway Clearance Techniques (ACTs) with the use of oscillating positive expiratory pressure (OPEP) devices can be added to the usual care for sputum clearance. However, assessment of the effect of OPEP devices is so far based on short-term studies with low-grade evidence and there is a lack of information regarding their long-term impact and effectiveness. In this thesis, I have four results chapters to discuss this gap. First, using accepted systematic review methodology to rigorously examine the current evidence on the use of OPEP devices for the treatment of cough and sputum clearance in patients with COPD who frequently produce sputum. Second, conduct a randomised clinical trial (acronym: O-COPD) to evaluate the impact of an OPEP device (the Acapella) on the health-related quality of life in patients with COPD over three-months. Third, study cough characteristics and its relationship to overnight sleep disturbances. Fourth, evaluate the impact of an OPEP device (the Acapella) on cough frequency and sleep actigraphy in a subset of the O-COPD group. In summary, results from the O-COPD trial, coupled with the systematic review, can address the concerns raised regarding the long-term effectiveness of OPEP devices in treating sputum aspects in stable COPD patients. COPD patients with sputum production who received OPEP treatment for three months, compared to the usual care, demonstrated better disease management and improvement in general and cough-related quality of life (LCQ). The findings suggest that adding the OPEP device is effective in optimising the usual care and, perhaps, can be the new mode of usual care in managing cough and sputum production in COPD patients. Larger and longer clinical trials are required to guide the long-term use of OPEP and patient selection.Open Acces

Integration of Damage Mechanism Review with Process Hazard Analyses

PresentationSignificant releases of highly toxic and flammable materials have occurred in various industries as a direct result of corrosion effects and other damage mechanisms. Examples of such events can readily be found in petroleum refineries and ammonia refrigeration facilities. Understanding and identification of these damage mechanisms and locations of susceptibility play a critical role in limiting the likelihood of loss of primary containment, which can have serious safety consequences. Process Hazard Analysis (PHA) provides a thorough and efficient method for systemically reviewing complex systems for safety concerns. A commonly applied PHA method is the Guide-Word Style Hazard and Operability (HAZOP) approach, which breaks complex systems into focused sections called nodes. This methodology can be augmented to systematically address the effects of various damage mechanisms. Possibility of corrosion and other damage mechanisms can be included in each node through the addition of a new deviation dedicated to these phenomena. The PHA Team with the help of a subject matter expert reviews the various mechanisms unique to a particular node that can cause loss of integrity. PHA discussions of damage mechanisms should address normal and abnormal operating conditions. The timing of progression of damage mechanism effects and established methods for discovering the damage (detection safeguard) should be explicitly noted. It is important to note that such discussions require participation of experts in metallurgy, corrosion mechanisms, inspection techniques, and process chemistry. The proposed method has been applied successfully in identifying potential vulnerabilities and improvements to minimize the risks associated with corrosion. Specific examples are shown from actual studies addressing systematic analysis of damage mechanisms and the lessons learned from those studies

Effectiveness of Difference Soil and Manure Mixture on Growth and Yield of Bak Choy Planted in Bags

The study of soil groups, soil types, and soil characteristics is very important for the cultivation of crops in Cambodia. Selecting soil types that are not suitable for the type of crop will result in poor crop growth, slowness, and low yields. In the same way that the cultivation of crops in the production of vegetable crops is the same, that is, choosing the type of soil that is suitable for the crop is a point to consider and pay attention to. Due to some geographical areas in some communes, the topography is sandy or rocky, and the soil is hard, making it difficult for farmers to prepare parallel cultivable land where some people have less land and try to cultivate it using plastic buckets. Cement or bags to grow as a vegetable or grow to get some yield just to meet daily food needs; avoid spending money to buy vegetables from the market. Bak Choy is a crop that can grow on almost any type of soil, especially alluvial soils. It also has many benefits for the body, such as strengthening bones, the immune system, cancer cells, and so on. However, the cultivation of kale also encounters a number of problems, such as poor growth, low yields, pests, and diseases, especially the technique of choosing the wrong soil mixture, which affects the growth and yield. Not so good. A comparative study of different levels of soil and manure mixes on the growth and yield of Bak Choy in AmpilTapok commune, Orang Ov district, ThbongKhmum province. On the growth and yield of the first treatment (T1), the use of soil mix with cow dung, the second treatment (T2), the use of soil mix with chicken manure, and the third treatment (T3), the use of soil mix with pig manure is grown using a mixture of soil mixed with chicken manure (T2), which grows well and gives high yields in other ways

Composite equity issuance and the cross-section of country and industry returns

Behavioural finance literature argues that stock issuance contains information on equity valuation. If so, does it predict the cross-section of both country and industry stock returns? To answer this question, we investigate data from 68 markets from 1976 to 2022. We find that composite equity issuance negatively correlates with future aggregate stock returns. An equal-weighted quintile of countries (industries) with the highest issuance underperforms those with the lowest by 0.34% (0.58%) per month. Established risk factors and other anomalies cannot subsume this cross-sectional pattern. Furthermore, the effect remains robust to many considerations. This documented issuance anomaly paves the way for an exploitable international investment strategy