Special Report: SPI keeps eye out as government safety agency makes, updates rules

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is in the process of creating numerous rules and regulations that will affect the plastics industry, as well as revising current ones.

The December 2014 Unified Agenda published by the Office of Information & Regulatory Affairs includes 49 rules from eight Department of Labor agencies that are in the rulemaking process. OSHA accounts for 26 of them — seven in the pre-rule stage, nine in the proposed rule stage and 10 in the final rule stage. Not all of them apply to plastics processing directly.

Do you know which of those rules will impact you? Do you know the enforcement deadlines? Do you have time to monitor the OSHA website to stay current? If the answer to any of those questions is "no," take heart. Within the Society of the Plastics Industry is its Advocacy Group, which includes regulatory affairs. SPI monitors the regulators. Moreover, it actively works with them to be sure the plastics industry's positions and needs are known by the agencies before the rules and regulations are finalized, and after revisions are made.

Marie Martinko, SPI's senior technical director for environmental health and safety (EHS) and the association's liaison with its EHS+ committee of member companies, warns that items on the Unified Agenda can shift.

"If you track something on the list over time, you'll see that the date when a proposed rule was planned to be promulgated and when it actually comes out can be very different. The dates slide," she says. For example, a proposed rule regarding combustible dust has been shifted back often. A small-business input panel that was targeted at one point for December 2014 has been re-targeted for February 2016. If the panel convenes then, that will be roughly five years after it was initially proposed. SPI submitted comments along the way.

Martinko says this is an atypical case, so SPI has to stay on top of it. For one thing, there is what she calls an interplay of agencies.

"The activity now in combustible dust is with the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)," she says. The NFPA 654 Standard for Prevention of Fire and Dust Explosions has existed for some time and the current version dated 2013 is being revised for a 2017 version. SPI is watching that process and will decide whether it needs to submit comments again during the next public comments cycle.

Combustible dust is a different kind of animal and a very dangerous one. For a fire, says Martinko, there needs to be a triangle: oxygen, fuel and ignition. A combustible dust explosion needs a pentagon: oxygen, fuel (the dust), ignition, suspension of the dust in the air and confinement. A flash fire needs no confinement, but for dust to explode it must be confined. Martinko describes how housekeeping can play into an explosion. If there is dust on top of a rack and an explosion occurs, the initial shock wave can make that dust airborne. The now-suspended dust can create a second explosion greater than the initial blast, causing more damage and destruction. This applies not only to plastics. Common combustible dusts include flour, sugar, wood dust and coffee.

SPI has weighed in on the NFPA standards — there are two — and will continue to evaluate them. EHS+ is also involved with the issue. Martinko says that at the commmittee's February meeting, one of the members did a presentation on combustible dust and, as is often the case at its meetings, best practices and other information were shared.

SPI is planning to develop a webinar from the EHS+ February meeting to help people in the industry understand what a combustible dust is, the hazards, the components of dust explosions, safeguards that can be used, the NFPA 654 standard and more.

Beryllium, PELs, HazCom, SBREFA

Another pending rule that SPI is watching closely is the Occupational Exposure to Beryllium rule, Martinko says. Beryllium copper alloys in mold cores and cavities are increasingly popular for enabling faster cycle times and reducing mold repair and refurbishment. This one is delayed in the President's Office of Management and Budget, which is required to review certain regulations.

Other OSHA regulatory projects SPI is monitoring include:

Chemical Management and Permissible Exposure Levels (PELs). OSHA made a request for information (RFI) that was due to close in April, giving the industry a chance to weigh in on whether exposure limits are protective enough for worker health and safety. Martinko points out that only a few on the list have been updated since their adoption in 1971. She says OSHA has said there is widespread agreement among industry, labor and others that PELs need to be updated.

"We need to identify any that are no longer valid and also identify those still appropriate," says Martinko. "OSHA has requested information, and SPI's Organic Peroxide Producers Safety Division Group, to which some PELs are relevant, has told the agency it will be happy to work with it."

Process Safety Management and Pre-

vention of Major Chemical Accidents. OSHA issued an RFI in December 2013 related to its

Process Safety Management standard. The EPA issued an RFI on its own Risk Management Practices. Martinko says, "The two agencies need to coordinate on this, but SPI members will be affected by these standards. They are looking for small-business input on that in June. The timing could shift, but we would like to help a member company get involved when the time is right."

Walking/Working Surfaces and Personal Fall Protection Systems. SPI is awaiting a final rule. The target date has shifted several times and is now June. "This one will be interesting for us. For instance, it could affect how mold and die changes are done," she says.

Hazard Communication Standard changes. OSHA first proposed changes to its Hazard Communication Standard Final Rule (HCS 2012) in 2009 to bring the rule into alignment with the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals. Major changes include: hazard classification and labels, which are to be done by chemical manufacturers; employers that use chemicals need to be aware of a new 16-section format for Safety Data Sheets (SDS), formerly known as Material Safety Data Sheets; and chemical users must continue to update SDS when new ones become available, provide training on the new label elements and update hazard communication programs if new hazards are identified.

The first implementation of the changes, on Dec. 1, 2013, required employers to train employees on new label elements and SDS format. The second deadline is June 1, 2015, at which time chemical manufacturers, importers, distributors and employers must comply with all modified provisions of the HCS 2012. One exception: Distributors may ship products labeled by manufacturers under the old system until Dec. 1, 2015. The third deadline is June 1, 2016, when employers must update alternative workplace labeling and their hazard communication programs as necessary, and provide additional employee training for newly identified physical or health hazards.

In addition to these, revisions to OSHA's reporting requirements for fatalities and severe injuries became effective Jan. 1. What must be reported includes:

• All work-related fatalities must be reported within eight hours of learning of them unless death occurs more than 30 days after the work-related incident.

• All work-related, inpatient hospitalizations of one or more employees.

• All work-related amputations that occur within 24 hours of the work-related incident.

• All work-related losses of an eye that occur within 24 hours of the work-related incident.

Reporting can be to the nearest OSHA area office or on the 24-hour OSHA hotline, 800-321-6742. Online reporting at OSHA's website will be available soon. All employers under OSHA jurisdiction have to report, even those exempt from routinely keeping OSHA records due to company size or industry.

SPI is seeking more participation, particularly by plastics processor companies, for EHS+ and its small-business panels. To learn more about this opportunity, contact Marie Martinko at SPI, [email protected].

Rob Neilley, senior correspondent

[email protected]

OSHA safety regulation-related links:

Department of Labor Unified Agenda, Fall 2014, OSHA current activity

http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/eAgendaMain;jsessionid=E689B11DA7A868D10E30DA643F664881?operation=OPERATION_GET_AGENCY_RULE_LIST¤tPub=true&agencyCode=&showStage=active&agencyCd=1200&Image58.x=38&Image58.y=10&Image58=Submit

Updates to OSHA's recordkeeping rule

https://www.osha.gov/recordkeeping2014/index.html

OSHA Hazard Communication home page

https://www.osha.gov/dsg/hazcom/index.html

OSHA hazard communication standard, final rule fact sheet

https://www.osha.gov/dsg/hazcom/HCSFactsheet.html

OSHA plastics industry-specific information (created with SPI)