Category: design

Montara oil spill report will provide clues for handling BP inquiry

The Montara oil spill in the Timor Sea that lasted for three months in late 2009 was large but affected no countries directly and is certainly a long way from the Gulf of Mexico and BP.  However there are enough similarities for considerable media attention to be focused on the investigative report into the incident that was handed to the Australian Government on 17 June 2010.

The Australian Resources Minister, Martin Ferguson, acknowledged the receipt of the commission of inquiry’s final report but will not be releasing it yet.

Greens Senator Rachel Seiwert has said:

“The release of all information available to date is essential for the development of new regulatory and environmental procedures….  We need to be better prepared to respond to future disasters in our precious marine environment.”

Seiwert has at least acknowledged the global context of the report:

“Halliburton is reported to have carried out cementing work on both the Montara well and the US Deepwater Horizon well in the Gulf of Mexico. The failure of this cementing has been linked in the media to both spills.”

Speculation is that the report will recommend a “single national regulator for off-shore drilling” according to the Australian Financial Review (AFR) on 19 June 2010 (p5. not available online).   Continue reading “Montara oil spill report will provide clues for handling BP inquiry”

What can OHS professionals learn from government program failures?

Marcus Priest of the Australia Financial Review wrote a good article on 2 June 2010 (only available through subscription or hard copy) that illustrates the managerial deficiencies of the Australian Government by looking at the lessons from two governmental investigation reports concerning a large-scale construction program for existing schools and the home insulation scheme.  Priest identifies several issues that should be noted by those who are designing large projects and who need to deal with the government directly

Priest’s opening paragraph is:

“The decisions by the Rudd government to try pull (sic) the country out of a recession by spending billions on schools and free home roofing insulation have come to be regarded as worthy ideas that morphed into a disaster of public administration.”

Marcus says that these reports show an overworked public service, unreasonable government expectations, a disconnection between policy and its real-world application and poor assumptions. Continue reading “What can OHS professionals learn from government program failures?”

The contract for building safe trains is a “dud” according to CEO

The Australian business newspapers and websites are all reporting on the  “dud” contract that Downer EDI has been saddled with over the construction of 78 eight-car trains for New South Wales’ RailCorp.  Market analysts say that company has lost $A1.7 billion in value this year.

CEO Geoff Knox, a man in genuine risk of becoming unemployed, is quoted as saying:

“We do seem to be able to build trains successfully and make good money on other states in this country, but in this state we seem to not do well and others seem to not do well…”

Others can discuss the financial problems of Downer EDI but Knox seems to only look at the contract rather than the reasons behind the “time consuming” design requirements of the contract – The Waterfall rail disaster of January 2003, the commission of inquiry’s reports and the government’s promises.

Continue reading “The contract for building safe trains is a “dud” according to CEO”

Planning for an ageing workforce – statistical clues

There has been a lot of media attention on the potential impact of an ageing population on all aspects of our society, workplaces included.  In terms of OHS, there may be an increased risk of injury as people are encouraged to work longer and past the compulsory retirement age of around 60 to 65.  But it is worth looking beyond the newspaper reports to get a better understanding 0f the level of risk presented by current population trends.

A report by Professor Diane Gibson for the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia is a terrific way to begin to comprehend the reality of the risk.  The report, Beyond life expectancy,  was released in May 2010 and provides an interpretation of the 2006 Australian Census data.  From a cursory scan of the contents there are important facts that challenge us, particularly if we manage, in any way, people in the workplace. Continue reading “Planning for an ageing workforce – statistical clues”

In ROPS we trust

Roll Over Protective Structures (ROPS) are a standard safety design feature on many items of agricultural equipment from tractors to quad bikes.  But ROPS do not prevent a rollover, only minimise the risk of injury from a rollover.

The Workplace Health and Safety Queensland has issued a safety alert over a tractor ROPS that failed.  The background for the safety alert is:

“A 180 hp tractor towing a 7.8 tonne trailer was travelling at approximately 20 km/h along a single lane bitumen road.  To enable a vehicle to pass, the tractor was driven to the side of the road which was corrugated with a sharp drop off and steep drain nearby.  When driven back onto the road, the attached trailer slipped down the steep incline into the drain pulling the rear of the tractor sideways.  This caused the tractor to roll over, which resulted in the failure of the ROPS fitted to the tractor.  The driver suffered fatal injuries.”

Kevin Jones

All exposure standards must consider hours of work

The last sixty years’ of research into the effects of hours of work, shiftwork, associated workload, fatigue and affects on social life and families has produced many findings, but no general detailed agreements.  There are interesting debates about who and what to research, what methods to use, what to measure and how to interpret results.  In the meantime workers and managers continue to work in difficult circumstances that research suggests has an impact on hormone secretion patterns, and, for example, on cardiac health, gastrointestinal health and breast cancer.

Here are a number of specific statements about hours of work, fatigue and fitness for work.  Total agreement on these statements can’t be achieved but they would generally be supported.   Continue reading “All exposure standards must consider hours of work”

Quad bike safety remains a hot topic in Australia

Prominent OHS unionist, Yossi Berger*, has attempted to place the issue of quad bike safety in the greater context of OHS In the latest issue of the Australian Workers’ Union’s Say Safety magazine (only available in hard copy).

Berger says that the current debate between safety advocates and vehicle manufacturers over quad bikes is the latest illustration of a debate that leads nowhere while workers continue to be injured and killed.

A current debate in Australia about quad bike safety

“…unfortunately looks like following a similar pattern. The use of this machine kills hundreds of riders around the world every year, and in Australia – occupationally – about 15 every year, mostly in farming.  It looks like the entire discussion (for improvement) is going to develop into another description of how not to achieve fundamental OHS improvements.” Continue reading “Quad bike safety remains a hot topic in Australia”

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