Coal Age Magazine - For more than 100 years, Coal Age has been the magazine that readers can trust for guidance and insight on this important industry.
Issue link: https://coal.epubxp.com/i/640014
M iner Encouragement — Learning From CPDMs When discussing respirable dust exposure with miners, they noted that relevant dust control practices on the job often are not explicitly discussed; however, miners agreed that they should try to remind each other about small things they can do to reduce personal expo- sure, rather than assuming everyone already knows what to do. As one miner said, "We constantly stop to talk about a safety hazard and response; we should do the same for our health." Using the CPDM to initiate some of these positive health responses can be a starting point to encourage such communication. Additionally, miners said that there is more they can do to help reduce each other's exposure. Discussing with work crews what some of these practices may be, could assist with dust maintenance and reduced exposure as well. Getting Over the Technology Learning Curve Initial integration of this technology will require a lot of time, effort and learning, with mine sites all having varying degrees of experi- ence with CPDM sampling and follow-up. If used positively, CPDM feedback can be part of a continuing effort to establish a more inte- grated approach to managing and encouraging miner health. Everyone in the mining community has the opportunity to under- stand the message that, despite the varying roles and responsibilities associated with compliance, the fundamental purpose of the new regulation is to reduce the amount of respirable coal dust that min- ers are exposed to on a daily basis. By communicating about the what, why and how of this new technology, discussing the CPDM dust data cards with miners as soon as possible after their shift, and discussing best practices with work crews based on what is learned from the CPDM data, mine operators can initiate positive communi- cations about miner health. NIOSH intends to continue research efforts to encourage miner discussion and participation in CPDM feedback to identify potential problems and potential solutions to reduce respirable dust exposure in an effort to help sites begin to use and adapt to this new technolo- gy on site. Contact ejhaas@cdc.gov at NIOSH for more information or to participate. Emily Haas, Ph.D., and Dana Willmer, Ph.D., work with the NIOSH Office of Mine Safety and Health Research in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Haas can be reached at wcq3@cdc.gov. JJ Meadows, MS CMSP, is a safe- ty manager for Patriot Coal, in Winchester, Eskdale, West Virginia. Disclaimer The findings and conclusions are those of the authors and do not nec- essarily represent the views of NIOSH. Mention of any company name, product, or software does not constitute endorsement by NIOSH. References 1. Hinds, P. & Kiesler, S. (1995). Communication across boundaries: Work, structure, and use of communication technologies in a large organization. Organization Science, 6, pp. 373-393. 2. Haas, E. J., & DuCarme, J. (2015). A different perspective: NIOSH researchers learn from CM operator responses to proximity detec- tion systems. Coal Age, October, pp. 34-35. 3. Edwards, S. (1983). Quality circles are safety circles. National Safety News, pp. 31-35. 4. Haas, E. J., & Cecala, A. B. (2015). Beyond assessment: Helmet- CAM technology influencing dust exposure awareness and response. Rock Products, November, 28-29. o p e r a t i n g i d e a s c o n t i n u e d February 2016 www.coalage.com 41 ^ƉĞĐŝĂůŝnjĞĚ^ƚĞĞů^ŽůƵƟŽŶƐĨŽƌƚŚĞ DŝŶŝŶŐΘZĞĐLJĐůŝŶŐ/ŶĚƵƐƚƌŝĞƐ Toll-free: 1.866.587.6970 Sales: 724.230.5100 sales@astralloy.com www.astralloy.com ƐƚƌĂůůŽLJ^ƚĞĞůWƌŽĚƵĐƚƐŝƐĂǁŚŽůůLJŽǁŶĞĚƐƵďƐŝĚŝĂƌLJŽĨEƵĐŽƌŽƌƉŽƌĂƟŽŶ the largest producer of steel in the United States. For more than 50 years, Astralloy Steel Products has been ƉƌŽǀŝĚŝŶŐŝŶŶŽǀĂƟǀĞĂŶĚĐŽƐƚĞīĞĐƟǀĞǁĞĂƌŝŵƉĂĐƚĂŶĚĂďƌĂƐŝŽŶ ƌĞƐŝƐƚĂŶƚƐƚĞĞůƐŽůƵƟŽŶƐtĞŽīĞƌƐƵƉĞƌŝŽƌĐƵƐƚŽŵĞƌƐĞƌǀŝĐĞǁŝƚŚ readily available inventory of proprietary and quenched and tempered steel grades. ASTRALLOY PRODUCT LINE Specialized Plate Astralloy-V ® Astralloy 8000 ® Astralloy 4800 ® EB-450 ® dƌŝƉ>dƵī ® Rol-Man ® Alloy Plate ƐƚƌĂtĞĂƌϱϱϬ ƐƚƌĂtĞĂƌϱϬϬ& ƐƚƌĂtĞĂƌϰϱϬ& ƐƚƌĂtĞĂƌϰϬϬ& A-514 Round Alloy Bar Astralloy-V ® Round Bar 4330 V-Mod Round Bar 4145 H-Mod Round Bar KƵƌĐůŝĞŶƚƐĂůƐŽďĞŶĞĮƚĨƌŽŵŽƵƌƵŶƉĂƌĂůůĞůĞĚĞdžƉĞƌŝĞŶĐĞǁŝƚŚ ƚŚŽƵƐĂŶĚƐŽĨĂƉƉůŝĐĂƟŽŶƐĂĐƌŽƐƐǀĂƌŝŽƵƐŵĂƌŬĞƚƐĂŶĚŝŶĚƵƐƚƌŝĞƐ