To maintain a safe and healthy workplace, housekeeping must be a priority.

The TouchFree EcoStation is a 100% hands-free earplug dispenser. Users place their hand under the automatic sensor and a pair of earplugs will drop right into their palm.

Chameleon Ears PRO Custom Earbud Sleeves are supersoft hydrophobic silicone sleeves that improve comfort and sound while eliminating the danger of losing an earpiece.

Washington — The House has passed legislation that would expand the types of medical professionals who can treat injured employees under the Federal Workers’ Compensation Program.

Melbourne, Australia — People who are unable to work because of a disabling on-the-job injury or illness are at greater risk for suicide or self-harm, according to the results of a recent research review.

Morgantown, WV — A permanent disability caused by a work-related injury can increase the risk of other serious health disorders and even premature death, results of recent study suggest.

Ambi-Dex Gloves with Grippaz Technology feature a fish scale pattern for unparalleled grip performance.

ProWorks Lime Green Nitrile Exam Gloves are virtually impossible to miss, facilitating at-a-glance oversight of barrier-protection protocols.

These genuine deerskin sports gloves feature 3M Thinsulate Insulation and black spandex with two-way stretch backing for fit and flexibility.

Designed for arm and wrist protection, the TEKTYE sleeve features an ANSI A4 cut protection level without using fiberglass or stainless steel fibers. Its yarn technology enhances mobility while providing a custom, secure fit.

These mechanic-style gloves feature a leather palm and both gray spandex and flexible impact protection on the back of the hand.

Tumwater, WA — A proposed update to Washington state’s permanent rules on worker heat exposure would set the “temperature action level” at 80° F for most outdoor workers.

Washington — The National Advisory Committee on Occupational Safety and Health has scheduled a public meeting for May 31.

Washington — OSHA’s proposed rule on protecting workers from extreme heat exposure in indoor and outdoor settings is progressing toward potential publication – and the agency wants feedback.

Washington — OSHA has published a new resource on how best to protect pregnant workers from heat-related illnesses.

Washington — Two potential OSHA regulations will be discussed during an upcoming Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health meeting.

Washington — OSHA’s Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health has unanimously recommended that the agency move forward with its proposed standard on protecting workers from excessive heat.

Washington – OSHA recently issued a fact sheet about protecting workers from abrasive blasting materials.

Washington — A new fact sheet from OSHA seeks to help shipyard employers evaluate their fire and rescue services.

Washington — More than half of recordable injuries in commercial fishing are preventable with proper housekeeping and sanitary practices, OSHA states in a recently released fact sheet.

Composed of two parts, the Loner Bridge System includes the Loner Bridge Portable Satellite and GSM Base Station and the Loner 900 Employee-Worn Safety Monitoring Device.

Designed for personnel working in paint booths and on-the-ground manufacturing repair and operations, the G7c is a combined safety monitoring and communications device that continuously monitors the concentration of hazardous gases or fumes, and communicates the employee’s identity and location to a live monitoring team in real time.

Home Automation Inc. (HAI), New Orleans, a manufacturer of integrated security and home automation products since 1985, announced that its wireless energy management suite was certified as a golden unit for ZigBee® Smart Energy Profile 1.1.

Honeywell’s 6280i Tuxedo Touch™ touchscreen highlights the growing trend of residential security systems to become increasingly intertwined with other home systems, including energy management, lighting controls, HVAC, and other “green” opportunities — designed to help homeowners improve comfort while saving money and respecting the earth.

Energy Squad, a new distribution company on a mission to provide the green technology customers need, made its official debut to the custom installation industry at CEDIA EXPO 2012.

A new distribution company, which made its debut at CEDIA Expo 2012 in September, aims to provide professional systems integrators with access to the latest in environmentally friendly consumer and custom electronics products and services.

Toronto – Leading indicators can be used to help prevent an incident, but little research exists on which ones are actually effective, concludes a new report from the Institute for Work & Health.

Indianapolis — Beginning July 2, anyone seeking the Certified Safety Professional designation must have a bachelor’s degree, the Board of Certified Safety Professionals announced April 2.

Demolition work involves the dismantling, razing, destroying or wrecking of any building or structure. Hazards of this dangerous work, according to OSHA, may include materials hidden within structural members (e.g., lead, asbestos, silica, and other chemicals or heavy metals requiring special material handling), as well as unknown strengths or weaknesses of construction materials, such as post-tensioned concrete.

All Encon showers can be fitted with automatic freeze or scald protection valves for use during temperature extremes. Automatic Freeze Valves open automatically when the internal water temperature reaches 35° F (2° C) and close at 40° F (4.5° C). Automatic Scald Valves open when the internal water temperature reaches 105° F (41° C) and close at 95° F (35° C).

Encon Safety Products

Washington — The Mine Safety and Health Administration has no immediate plans to change its regulation on respirable dust in coal mines, MSHA administrator David Zatezalo said Feb. 6 during a hearing before the House Workforce Protections Subcommittee.

Washington — Coal miners soon will have access to a series of free, confidential health screenings through the NIOSH Coal Workers’ Health Surveillance Program.

Arlington, VA — The Mine Safety and Health Administration is seeking input on a study of its respirable coal mine dust rule, as outlined in the 2014 regulation, according to a Request for Information published in the July 9 Federal Register.

State College, PA — Using a 3D device on a microchip that mimics the behavior of human lungs, researchers from Penn State University will use a $400,000 grant from NIOSH to study the effects of nano-scale coal dust on the lungs of underground miners, the university has announced.

Blacksburg, VA — Researchers at Virginia Tech have launched a project aimed at boosting the effectiveness of dust scrubbers in underground mining to enhance dust control and improve miner safety.

360 State Street, New Haven, Conn. — the state’s greenest and largest residential development — is the first new major residential construction in New Haven in more than 15 years. 

The Siemens Building Technologies Division’s Beltsville, Md. branch office was recently awarded LEED® for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance (EB: OM) certification by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC).

The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art’s academic facility at 41 Cooper Square in New York, attained LEED Platinum certification. ASSA ABLOY supplied door and hardware products.

Energy-saving light control manufacturer Lutron Electronics announced that its Washington, D.C. Commercial Experience Center was awarded LEED Gold Certification by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). LEED is the USGBC’s leading rating system for designing and constructing the world’s greenest, most energy-efficient and high-performing buildings.

Brent Street runs through a diverse, tree-lined neighborhood in Dorchester, Mass. At 81 Brent Street stands a three-story, traditional New England home. However, its basic design is the only traditional thing about the home, which is adorned with 30 solar panels on its roof, native and drought-tolerant plants and trees in its yard, and a home automation system fit for the Jetson’s.

The Johnson Controls headquarters campus at Glendale, Wisconsin has the largest concentration of buildings on one campus to ever receive LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Platinum certification.

The tallest LEED certified green office building in the United States, the Comcast Center in Philadelphia, has more than 2,500 openings equipped with door and hardware products from ASSA ABLOY Group companies.

The University of British Columbia (UBC) Centre for Interactive Research on Sustainability (CIRS), a living laboratory for researchers to teach, test and study the long-term impact of sustainable practices and technologies, features advanced building controls, sensing technology and management software from Honeywell.

Throughout the channel and around the industry, security just keeps getting greener all the time.

Innovative Electronic Systems (IES), an electronic systems contractor in Hurt, Va. partnered with Custom Structures, a Central Virginia architectural design and build firm, to build the first LEED-certified home in the central Virginia area.

For Thomas Marino, president of Advanced Technologies, Baton Rouge, La., “green” projects were nothing new. He had done projects that involved low-power, solar or other green elements. But when he ran into local attorney Joe Simmons at a trade show, the extremely environmentally conscious lawyer asked him to do the security and home automation for the custom home he was building. The home was new construction in a community of older homes and would feature as many green elements as possible, from the material in the countertops to the security and audio elements.

Detroit – Night-shift workers who experience insomnia but report low levels of sleepiness have higher levels of cognitive impairment than those with insomnia who say they experience “excessive” sleepiness, according to a recent study from the Sleep Disorders and Research Center at Henry Ford Hospital.

Washington – NIOSH is offering a free online training program to help educate nurses and supervisors about reducing the health and safety risks of shift work and long hours.

Madison, WI – Shift workers may be more likely to be overweight, have sleep problems, and develop diabetes or other metabolic disorders, according to a study from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.

Kuopio, Finland – Longer breaks between shifts can help nurses bounce back from the demands of work, according to research from the University of Eastern Finland.