Key Takeaways: 1) Roofing contractors should consider using a slide guard as a supplemental means of fall protection when working on roof slopes that are 34 degrees (8 in 12) or less, but a slide guard should never be considered as the sole means to achieve work site fall protection compliance. 2) Using a slide guard on a 45 degree roof slope (12 in 12) would not be an effective fall protection supplement to comply with OSHA's fall protection requirements. 3) Contractors should consider purchasing and using synthetic underlayment materials with higher coefficient-of-friction values. This type of information may be available from the suppliers of underlayment materials that are used on steep-sloped roofs.

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)-approved respirators are required by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) when personal respiratory protection is used in US occupational settings. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the demand for NIOSH-approved N95 filtering facepiece respirators overwhelmed the available supply. To supplement the national inventory of N95 respirators, contingency and crisis capacity strategies were implemented and incorporated a component that endorsed the use of non-NIOSH-approved respiratory protective devices that conformed to select international standards. The development and execution of this strategy required the collaborative effort of numerous agencies. The Food and Drug Administration temporarily authorized non-NIOSH-approved international respiratory protective devices through an emergency use authorization, OSHA relaxed their enforcement guidance concerning their use in US workplaces, and NIOSH initiated a supplemental performance assessment process to verify the quality of international devices. NIOSH testing revealed that many of the non-NIOSH-approved respiratory protective devices had filtration efficiencies below 95% and substantial inconsistencies in filtration performance. This article reports the results of the NIOSH testing to date and discusses how it has contributed to continuous improvement of the crisis strategy of temporarily permitting the use of non-NIOSH-approved respirators in US occupational settings during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This study evaluated the effectiveness of a commercial rollover protective structure (ROPS) and size-extended ROPS in protecting a 95th percentile male operator during tractor overturns. Six rear upset tests (commercial ROPS) and ten side upset tests (commercial and size-extended ROPS) were conducted. A 95th percentile instrumented male manikin was used in all tests. Head injury criterion (HIC15), 80 g limit on resultant head acceleration, neck injury criterion (Nij), and peak axial force (extension-compression) were employed to evaluate injury potential. In all rear tests, the manikin's head impact with the ground was within the tolerance limits for head/neck injuries. Based on limited trials in the side tests, the study observed a small to moderate chance of neck injuries under the commercial and size-extended ROPS conditions; the injury risk was not statistically significant between these two test conditions. This study identified a risk of non-fatal injuries for large-size operators in side overturns, although the prevention effectiveness of commercial versus size-extended ROPS cannot be determined without further testing. These findings may have implications for future ROPS designs.

PROBLEM: Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) data indicate 306 aerial lift fatalities between 1992-2003. Seventy-eight of these fatalities specifically involved scissor lifts. Members of standards committees have requested that NIOSH conduct research to determine the effects of safety-control practices related to using fall-protection systems for scissor lifts. METHOD: This research examined the structural and dynamic stability of a scissor lift subjected to fall arrest forces. This was accomplished by conducting drop tests from a scissor lift. Anchorage locations evaluated included manufacturer-supplied anchorage points on the scissor lift platform as well as mid-rail and top-rail locations. RESULTS: Preliminary drop tests determined that a 2400lb maximum arrest force (MAF) could be generated by dropping 169lb through a fall height of 36" using Nystron(R) rope as a lanyard. The scissor lift maintained structural and dynamic stability for all drop tests when fully extended and on an incline. DISCUSSION: Anchoring a fall arrest system to either the mid-rail or top-rail is not a recommended practice by the scissor lift manufacturer. Anchor points are provided on the platform floor of the scissor lift for this purpose. However, our results demonstrate that the mid-rail and top-rail absorb substantial energy from an arrested fall and may have potential as appropriate anchorage points. IMPACT TO INDUSTRY: Employers and workers should consider implementing fall arrest systems when using scissor lifts as part of their overall risk mitigation plan for fall injury prevention.

Most hydraulic stump cutters do not have an operator presence system, which could help prevent injuries that can occur when an operator approaches the cutter wheel with the clutch still engaged. NIOSH and Vermeer Corp. partnered to develop a technology to detect the operator at the machine's controls. The development of this safety system provides an example of how a research to practice partnership can benefit all.