Chilworth Testifies At U.S. Senate Hearing On Dust Explosion Hazards

Sep 25, 2008

On Tuesday, July 29, 2008, the Employment and Workplace Safety Subcommittee of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) convened a hearing in the Dirksen Office Building of the U.S. Senate. The subject of the hearing was "Dangerous Dust: Is OSHA Doing Enough to Protect Workers?" Among the witnesses who provided expert testimony at the hearing was Richard W. Prugh, a senior process safety specialist at Chilworth Technology. You may view Prugh's testimony here. To take it a step farther, a copy of the full written testimony is available from the company by e-mailing [email protected]. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) led the panel, joined by subcommittee members Senator Johnny Isakson (R-GA) and Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH). Senator Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) also acted as an invited panel member. Other witnesses included OSHA assistant secretary Edwin G. Foulke, Jr.; U.S. Chemical Safety & Hazard Investigation board chairperson and CEO John S. Bresland, National Fire Protection Association senior chemical engineer Amy Spencer and Imperial Sugar Co. vice president of operations Graham H. Graham. In related company news, Chilworth's last 2008 Fire, Explosion and Thermal Hazards training course is being held at the Hampton Inn Tropicana in Las Vegas, NV, the week of October 20 through 24, 2008. The 2008 training series covers the following topics:

Understanding and controlling electrostatic hazards.
Dust explosion prevention and protection techniques (including dust hazard codes and standards, in addition to gas/vapor explosion hazards).
Evaluation and selection of electrical and non-electrical equipment for use in hazardous areas.
Chemical reaction hazards.