The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) began its Prevention through Design (PtD) initiative in 2007. NIOSH states that its mission is to reduce or prevent occupational injuries, illnesses, and fatalities by considering hazard prevention in the design, re-design, and retrofit of new and existing workplaces, tools, equipment, and work processes. On March 9, 2018, NIOSH published three documents in its Workplace Design Solutions series. NIOSH recommends...
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February 21, 2018
CPSC Will Continue to Use Agency Collaborations to Focus on the Environmental Health and Safety of Nanomaterials
On February 12, 2018, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) posted its Fiscal Year 2017 Annual Performance Report. According to the Report, in fiscal year (FY) 2017, CPSC exceeded its target of five collaborations by establishing seven research collaborations on the environmental health and safety of nanomaterials. The collaborations “will increase knowledge of the potential exposure to consumers from products that contain nanomaterials and explore methods to...
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) published a Federal Register notice on January 31, 2018, announcing the availability of the final National Occupational Research Agenda for Manufacturing. NIOSH states that the National Occupational Research Agenda for Manufacturing “is intended to identify the knowledge and actions most urgently needed to identify occupational risk factors to prevent avoidable adverse health outcomes among...
January 16, 2018
NIOSH Will Use Experience in Managing Engineered Nanomaterials to Address Advanced Manufacturing
Charles Geraci, PhD, CIH, FAIHA, Associate Director for Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), and Laura Hodson, MSPH, CIH, FAIHA, Coordinator of the NIOSH Nanotechnology Research Center, co-authored an article entitled “From ‘Just in Time’ to ‘Just Next Door’: 21st-century Manufacturing Challenges and Opportunities for Industrial Hygienists.” The American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) published...
January 5, 2018
B&C Publishes Predictions and Outlook for U.S. Federal and International Chemical Regulatory Policy 2018
Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) and its consulting affiliate The Acta Group (Acta®) published on January 4, 2018, their “Predictions and Outlook for U.S. Federal and International Chemical Regulatory Policy 2018.” In the Forecast, the lawyers, scientists, and chemical regulatory specialists at B&C and Acta offer comprehensive and highly useful observations on the fast-changing and nuanced area of domestic and global chemical legal, scientific, and regulatory issues expected...
December 29, 2017
NIOSH Plans to Support Implementation of WHO Guidelines to Protect Workers from Nanomaterials
On December 15, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) posted a blog item entitled “WHO Guidelines to Protect Workers from Nanomaterials.” As reported in our December 13, 2017, blog item, the World Health Organization (WHO) recently published WHO Guidelines on Protecting Workers from Potential Risks of Manufactured Nanomaterials. NIOSH Director John Howard, MD, describes the WHO Guidelines as “an important step in protecting workers worldwide from the...
On September 6, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) published a Program Performance One-Pager entitled NIOSH Engineering Controls Program. The Program’s activities include providing engineering control recommendations to protect workers from emerging hazards in nanotechnology and advanced materials used in additive manufacturing/three-dimensional (3D) printing. The Program is currently working to: Complete laboratory evaluations of ultrafine...
On August 23, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) published a Federal Register notice requesting comment on its draft National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) for Manufacturing for public comment. The NORA Manufacturing Sector Council wrote the Agenda, which “identifies the most important occupational safety and health research needs for the next decade, 2016-2026.” According to NIOSH, the Agenda provides a vehicle...
August 17, 2017
NIOSH Report Highlighting Second Decade of Research Agenda Includes Nano Developments
On August 10, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) published a report entitled National Occupational Research Agenda: Second Decade in Review | 2006-2016. The report outlines the progress and impact made in addressing occupational safety and health research needs over the second decade of the National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA). The 21 cross-sector programs included in the report include the Nanotechnology Program, which...
On July 17, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) published a Federal Register notice announcing it submitted a proposed information collection to the Office of Management and Budget for review and approval. The proposed project is “Survey of Engineered Nanomaterial Occupational Safety and Health Practices.” As reported in our February 14, 2017, blog item, NIOSH invited comment on the proposed survey on February 10, 2017. NIOSH will survey companies...
July 25, 2017
NIOSH Publishes Chapter on Analysis of Carbon Nanotubes and Nanofibers on Filters by Transmission Electron Microscopy
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has published a chapter in the fifth edition of the NIOSH Manual of Analytical Methods (NMAM) entitled “Analysis of Carbon Nanotubes and Nanofibers on Mixed Cellulose Ester Filters by Transmission Electron Microscopy.” The draft chapter provides standardized approaches for the analysis of carbon nanoparticles. The chapter provides detailed guidance on effective means to perform transmission electron microscopic analysis...
On April 27, 2017, Dr. Charles Geraci, Associate Director for Nanotechnology at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), received the Director’s Distinguished Career Scientist Award. Dr. Geraci provides overall strategic guidance to the nanotechnology research program at NIOSH and is recognized internationally for his leadership in the field. Dr. Geraci has more than 40 years of industrial hygiene practice experience. He brings to NIOSH a unique...
April 18, 2017
NIOSH BSC Meeting Includes Presentation on Nanotoxicology
On April 12, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Board of Scientific Counselors (BSC) held its 68th meeting. The BSC’s primary activity is to provide advice on NIOSH’s occupational safety and health research and prevention programs. The BSC also advises on standards of scientific excellence, current needs in the field of occupational safety and health, and the applicability and dissemination of research findings. Dr. Jenny Roberts,...
On March 15, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) published a Federal Register notice announcing the availability of a draft Current Intelligence Bulletin (CIB) entitled The NIOSH Occupational Exposure Banding Process: Guidance for the Evaluation of Chemical Hazards for public comment. Under occupational exposure banding, chemicals are assigned to specific categories or bands based on the chemical’s potency and the negative health...
March 16, 2017
NIOSH Extends Comment Period on Proposed Survey of Engineered Nanomaterial OSH Practices
On March 14, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) extended the comment period on the proposed information collection entitled “Survey of Engineered Nanomaterial Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Practices.” The goal of the project is to assess the relevance and impact of NIOSH’s contribution to guidelines and risk mitigation practices for safe handling of engineered nanomaterials in the workplace. NIOSH invites comment on: Whether the...
February 27, 2017
NIOSH Publishes Draft Chapter on Analysis of Carbon Nanotubes and Nanofibers on Filters by Transmission Electron Microscopy
On February 27, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) announced the availability of a draft chapter to be published in the NIOSH Manual of Analytical Methods entitled “Analysis of Carbon Nanotubes and Nanofibers on Mixed Cellulose Ester Filters by Transmission Electron Microscopy” for public comment. The draft chapter provides standardized approaches for the analysis of carbon nanoparticles. NIOSH states that these standardized...
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) published a Federal Register notice on February 10, 2017, inviting comment on a proposed information collection plan, “Survey of Engineered Nanomaterial Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Practices.” The goal of the project is to assess the relevance and impact of NIOSH’s contribution to guidelines and risk mitigation practices for safe handling of engineered nanomaterials in the workplace. The...
On February 1, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) posted a blog item entitled “The Art and Science of OELs for Nanomaterials.” According to the item, NIOSH searched for proposals for occupational exposure limits (OEL) for new nanomaterials as part of the development of a World Health Organization (WHO) guideline for working safely with nanomaterials. The blog item cites the article “Occupational exposure limits for manufactured...
John Howard, M.D., Director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), authored a January 10, 2017, NIOSH blog item entitled “Occupational Health Issues in the USA.” Howard shares a recent editorial he wrote in Occupational Medicine, “Occupational health issues in the USA,” that highlights some of the occupational safety and health issues identified as needing attention by the industry sector groups of the National Occupational Research Agenda...
November 2, 2016
NIOSH Announces Sampling Strategy to Help Identify Potential Nanomaterial Exposure in an Occupational Setting
On November 1, 2016, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) published a blog item entitled “Never fear! NEAT 2.0 is here! — How to perform nanomaterial exposure assessment in the workplace.” NIOSH notes that in 2009, it developed and was the first to recommend using the nanoparticle emission assessment technique (NEAT). According to NIOSH, NEAT made use of a condensation particle counter to identify tasks that result or can result in the...