Hand Protection
According to the International Safety Equipment Association (ISEA), nearly 20 percent of industrial workplace injuries involve cuts and lacerations to the hands and fingers. To assist employers and employees alike in selecting the appropriate gloves to protect against workplace hazards, ISEA recently released ANSI/ISEA 105-2011, Hand Protection Selection Criteria.
ANSI/ISEA 105-2011 covers gloves, partial gloves, and mittens used to provide protection against specific hazards such as chemicals, cuts, or burns. The standard provides a numeric scale to rate product contaminant and exposure properties against a variety of performance assessments related to chemical and industrial applications. With this scale, users can make better-informed decisions about which gloves are most suitable for the task at hand.
The updated American National Standard (ANS) supersedes the 2005 edition and includes test methods to determine abrasion resistance, a cut resistance performance calculator for use in classifying gloves designed to protect against cuts, as well as a section describing how fit, function, and comfort factor into proper selection. ANSI/ISEA 105-2011 also includes reference information on special considerations such as biological protection, extreme temperature applications, cleanroom applications, hazardous materials response applications, electrical protection, and radiation hazards.
ISEA, an ANSI organizational member and accredited standards developer, seeks to protect the health and safety of people worldwide exposed to hazardous and potentially harmful environments through developing and advocating for safety equipment standards, promoting the proper use of protective equipment, and fostering cooperation and dissemination of information across the industry.
Green Chemicals
In an effort to help chemical manufacturers and their customers reduce the environmental footprint of chemical products and processes in a socially responsible manner, NSF International and the American Chemical Society's (ACS) Green Chemical Institute (GCI) recently published NSF/GCI/ANSI 355-2011, Greener Chemicals and Processes Information.
To help chemical manufacturers, their customers, and consumers make greener choices, this ANS provides a way to define and report the hazards associated with chemical products and the impacts of their manufacturing processes.
The standard outlines a framework for developing standardized data reports that provide information to consumers and businesses throughout the supply chain. The report can be used to evaluate products and processes in several key categories including physical chemical properties; human health and ecological effects; chemical, water, energy efficiency, and waste prevention; bio-based carbon content; and innovative technology and process safety.
NSF International, an ANSI accredited standards developer and audited designator, is a non-profit organization dedicated to the protection of food, water, and indoor air through standards development, product certification, education, and risk-management for public health, safety, and protection of the environment.