Stakeholders who are interested in contributing their opinions to OSHA’s Cranes and Derricks in Construction standard are invited to a meeting on April 3, from 1:30-4:30 p.m. in Washington, D.C. (Two meetings already scheduled for April 2 and 3 are full.)

In an effort to improve safety in the oil and gas industry, the American Petroleum Institute (API) and the United Steelworkers International Union (USW) are working together on a standard to prevent fatigue among oil workers -- and the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) wants your comments on those efforts.

The International Safety Equipment Association (ISEA) is seeking public comment on a proposed voluntary consensus standard for PPE conformity assessment. The new standard, ISEA 125, establishes a standardized process by which suppliers – including manufacturers, importers, assemblers and distributors – can provide evidence that their products meet applicable performance standards.

In the United States, heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women, killing about 600,000 people each year. Voluntary consensus standards can play an important role in supporting both healthy lifestyle choices that reduce the risk of heart disease, and effective medical responses for those already suffering from the condition.

The first deadline in the implementation phase of OSHA’s Hazard Communications Standard isn’t fast approaching, but it is approaching. Employers have until Dec. 1, 2013 to train workers on the new label elements and safety data sheet format.

Green Seal™, a non-profit environmental certification organization, has published a new standard designed specifically to address the life cycle impacts of laundry care products for institutional and industrial settings.

The revised ANSI/ASSE A10.32 Standard ‘Personal Fall Protection for Use in Construction and Demolition Operations’ released last week contains new equipment criteria, providing minimum guidelines for fall protection equipment, to establish performance criteria for this equipment in construction and demolition and to make recommendations for use and inspection.

The Safety Equipment Institute (SEI) has announced that the first certifications have been issued to the new NFPA criteria for fire service Thermal Imagers, NFPA 1801, Standard on Thermal Imagers for the Fire Service, 2013 Edition. The revised NFPA 1801 standard was issued by the NFPA Standards Council on May 29, 2012, with an effective date of June18, 2012.

The American Public Health Association (APHA) is throwing its support behind the EPA’s bid for a tough new air quality standard that the organization says will protect the health of all Americans by curbing harmful emissions of fine particulate matter, also known as soot. On the other side of the issue, manufacturers are predicting that it will “crush” growth.

The Labor Department and Exel, Inc. have entered into a settlement agreement that resolves citations issued by OSHA for violations of OSHA’s occupational noise exposure standard and record-keeping regulations at Exel’s facility in Palmyra, NJ.