Manufacturing Industry News Archives:
News from the week of Feb. 13, 2006
EPA launches effort to significantly reduce air pollution
Do you know your OSHA terminology?
ISM: PMI dips in January
EPA launches effort to significantly reduce air pollution
A consortium with a mission to significantly reduce air pollution in a large part of the central United States was announced today by EPA and the Central States Air Resources Agencies.
The Blue Skyways Collaborative, consisting of federal, state and local government agencies; nonprofits; and industry, met for the first time this week in Kansas City. It will use public/private partnerships to improve the quality of life in America’s heartland.
The collaborative includes interests from nine states, Canada, Mexico and private partners seeking voluntary solutions, incentives and shared approaches to reducing diesel and other fuel-related emissions and emissions from the energy sector. The states are Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas.
EPA announced at the meeting that it plans to commit an estimated $9 million to finance projects beginning this year. The projects will prevent an estimated 2,300 tons of diesel soot from polluting the air in America’s heartland by adding clean diesel technology to some 10,000 diesel engines based in the heartland.
"The partnerships formed through this collaborative will enable us to leverage resources to reduce diesel emissions," said EPA Region 7 Administrator Jim Gulliford. "We will be able to share technology and pool finances for greater reductions than are possible through individual efforts."
Citizens living and working in the Heartland will realize up to $117 million in public health benefits. These include preventing incidences of lung cancer, lung disease, allergic reactions and asthma attacks, all associated with exposure to diesel soot.
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Do you know your OSHA terminology?
To most people, an apron is a simple garment worn over the front of the body to protect one’s clothes when cooking. But in the world of Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations, a common term like apron can mean something else entirely.
According to construction industry regulation 1926.606, under Subpart O: Motor Vehicles, Mechanized Equipment, and Marine Operations, an apron is: The area along the waterfront edge of the pier or wharf.
Below you will find 10 common terms and their everyday definitions, and in a separate column, their very different OSHA definitions. Can you match the letter of the common term with the number of its OSHA definition?
The OSHA definitions and the standards to which they relate are taken from MANCOMM’s OSHA Dictionary, a one-of-a-kind book containing all the terms and definitions from the 29 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) OSHA parts 1903, 1904, 1910, and 1926 (Inspections, Recordkeeping, General Industry, and Construction).
| MATCH THE DEFINITIONS |
| A. Barrel |
1. A unit of lumber (Standard 1910.265(b)(28)). |
| B. Bite |
2. A machine for cutting or grinding slabs and other coarse residue from the mill (Standard 1910.265(b)(18)). |
| C. Check |
3. A device used to serve as a warning for overhead objects (Standard 1910.265(b)(43)). |
| D. Ground |
4. The nip point between any two inrunning rolls (Standard 1910.211(c)(1)). |
| E. Hog |
5. A conducting connection, whether intentional or accidental, between an electrical circuit or equipment and the earth, or to some conducting body that serves in place of the earth (Standard 1910.269(x), .399; 1926.449). |
| F. Husk |
6. An intermittent motion imparted to the slide by momentary operation of the drive motor, after the clutch is engaged with the flywheel at rest (Standard 1910.211(d)(40)). |
| G. Jog |
7. The effective length of an alloy steel chain sling measured from the top bearing surface of the upper terminal component to the bottom bearing surface of the lower terminal component (Standard 1910.184(b)). |
| H. Package |
8. A head saw framework on a circular mill (Standard 1910.265(b)(19)). |
| I. Reach |
9. A volume of 42 U.S. gallons (Standard 1910.106(a)(33)). |
| J. Telltale |
10. A lengthwise separation of wood, most of which occurs across the rings of annual growth (Standard 1910.21(c)(17)). |
Answers: A.) 9 B.) 4 C.) 10 D.) 5 E.) 2 F.) 8 G.) 6 H.) 1 I.) 7 J.) 3
If you got at least seven right, coZnsider yourself exceptionally well-versed in OSHA matters.
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ISM: PMI dips in January
Economic activity in the manufacturing sector grew in January for the 32nd consecutive month, while the overall economy grew for the 51st consecutive month, according to the Institute for Supply Management's (ISM) manufacturing Report on Business.
"The manufacturing sector had another good month during January as measured by the ISM data," said Norbert J. Ore, chair of the ISM Manufacturing Business Survey Committee. "Both new orders and production remain relatively strong, and the panel of respondents is generally upbeat about their business. It appears that the sector has recovered from the disruptions and dislocations caused by the hurricanes in the Gulf Coast."
The PMI indicates that the manufacturing economy grew in January for the 32nd consecutive month. The PMI for January registered 54.8 percent, a decrease of 0.8 percent when compared to December's seasonally adjusted reading of 55.6 percent. A reading above 50 percent indicates that the manufacturing economy is generally expanding; below 50 percent indicates that it is generally contracting.
A PMI in excess of 42 percent, over a period of time, generally indicates an expansion of the overall economy. The January PMI indicates that both the overall economy and the manufacturing sector are growing.
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