Aggregates Manager Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/548151
AGGREGATES MANAGER August 2015 3 by Therese Dunphy, Editor-in-Chief tdunphy@randallreilly.com WORKPLACE EXAM? F or those operators responsible for tracking their site's regulatory requirements and recordkeeping, be forewarned: you may be about to get a significant increase in workload. During a July 22 stakeholder call, the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) introduced a new program policy letter for workplace exams, and it creates a two-fold impact on recordkeeping. The guidance, 30 CFR §§ 56/57.18002, includes requirements that an operator "shall examine each working place at least once each shift for conditions which adversely affect safety or health, that the examination must be conducted by a competent person, and that a record of the examination must be maintained and made available for review by the Secretary or his authorized representative." In addition, it requires that an operator "promptly initiate appropriate action to correct" conditions which may adversely affect safety or health. And, if there are conditions that present an imminent danger, the operator "shall withdrawal all persons from the area affected…until the danger is abated." Records of these examinations must be maintained for one year, and MSHA will no longer accept an alternative to the 12-month retention period. MSHA advises that a best practice would be for a foreman or other supervisor to conduct the examination, but an experienced non-supervisory miner may also be considered "competent." In a July 23 quarterly training call, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health Joseph A. Main reiterated that ensuring workplace examination is tasked to someone who can truly ensure a work area's safety is a high priority for the agency. In fact, evidence of inadequate training could be the basis upon which MSHA may require training plan revisions — and the subsequent recordkeeping of that training — under Part 46 (30 CFR §§ 46.3(a) and (b)(3)) or Part 48 (30 CFR §§ 18.3(c)(8)/4823(c)(8)). Finally, program policy notes "if a trained competent person fails to identify multiple safety hazards or if multiple trained competent persons fail to identify similar safety hazards, this may indicate that task training as required under Parts 46 and 48 was inadequate or did not occur." Once an inspector visits your site and shares elements of this program policy letter, it can be enforced upon the next inspection. So, get your training plans updated as needed, and keep good records of those workplace examinations. This is an exam you'll want to pass with flying colors. August 2015 Vol. 20, No. 8 aggman.com /AggregatesManager @AggMan_editor Editorial Editor-in-Chief: Therese Dunphy Editorial Director: Marcia Gruver Doyle Online Editor: Wayne Grayson Online Managing Editor: Bobby Atkinson editorial@aggman.com Design & Production Art Director: Sandy Turner, Jr. Production Designer: Timothy Smith Advertising Production Manager: Linda Hapner production@aggman.com Construction Media VP of Sales, Construction Media: Joe Donald sales@randallreillyconstruction.com 3200 Rice Mine Rd NE Tuscaloosa, AL 35406 800-633-5953 randallreilly.com Corporate Chairman: Mike Reilly President and CEO: Brent Reilly Chief Operations Officer: Shane Elmore Chief Financial Officer: Russell McEwen Senior Vice President, Sales: Scott Miller Senior Vice President, Editorial and Research: Linda Longton Vice President of Events: Stacy McCants Vice President, Audience Development: Prescott Shibles Vice President, Digital Services: Nick Reid Vice President, Marketing: Julie Arsenault For change of address and other subscription inquiries, please contact: aggregatesmanager@halldata.com. Aggregates Manager TM magazine (ISSN 1552-3071) is published monthly by Randall-Reilly, LLC copyright 2015. Executive and Administrative offices, 3200 Rice Mine Rd. N.E., Tuscaloosa, AL 35406. Subscription rates: $24 annually, Non-domestic $125 annually. Single copies: $7. We assume no responsibility for the validity of claims of manufacturers in any advertisement or editorial product information or literature offered by them. Publisher reserves the right to refuse non-qualified subscriptions. Periodical circulation postage paid at Tuscaloosa, Alabama and additional entries. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by an information storage retrieval system, without written permission of the copyright owner. POSTMASTER: Send all UAA to CFS. (See DMM 507.1.5.2); NON-POSTAL AND MILITARY FACILITIES: send address corrections to Aggregates Manager, 3200 Rice Mine Road N.E., Tuscaloosa, AL 35406. Ready for a Tougher