The Safety and Health Technology Committee (SHTC) met in Pittsburgh, Pa., before AIST’s annual Safety Specialty Training Conference on Oct. 27, 2008. Because registration for the conference closed at 232 participants, the SHTC decided to schedule an annual training conference. The next Safety Specialty Training Conference will be held in Charlotte, N.C., on Oct. 26–28, 2009. Donovan Marks, Nucor corporate safety, and Matt Moore, Gerdau Ameristeel corporate director of safety and health, will assist the SHTC in planning the 2009 conference. David Ross will contact AIST’s Southeastern Member Chapter to participate jointly with this training conference. The AIST Safety & Health Annual Award will be presented at AISTech 2009. The SHTC Award nomination panel includes Chad McClimans (chair), Bernie Quinn (vice chair), Butch Collins (AIST board of directors), Brad Bray, Dave Hilvers, Vic Tatone and David Ross. The SHTC began the “Safety First” montly article in this issue of Iron & Steel Technology. Representing the SHTC at AIST’s Leadership Conference was Bernie Quinn and Dave Hilvers. The SHTC decided not to schedule a separate Safety and Health session at AISTech 2009, instead working in conjunction with the other Technology Committees in hopes of increased exposure to specific safety presentations. The SHTC will investigate the possibility of sharing a safety Web site with SMA that a number of SHTC members have helped to develop. Increased safety communications will always be this committee’s top priority.

The Safety and Health Operating Committee (SHOC) met at AISTech 2008 in Pittsburgh, Pa., on May 5. Butch Collins welcomed committee members to the conference. Bill Albaugh of AIST reviewed the convention agenda. Committee membership stood at 24 members, with five new members since the last committee meeting. David Hilvers of U. S. Steel, Jennifer Ray of Wheatland Tube, Steven Lona of Siemens, Thomas Taylor of E Trax Inspection Tracking, and Greg Scalf of SMS Millcraft are the new committee members. The Safety Conference Presentation Award form was approved by the committee. New AIST Technology Committee mapping document was discussed. As a result of the AIST/AISI committee integration, this committee is now the Safety and Health Technology Committee (SHTC). The 2009 Call for Papers was discussed. The committee then reviewed the 2008 YTD Industry Fatality Summary, which is posted in the Members Only area of www.AIST.org for any committee member to review. The agenda for the AIST Safety Conference was discussed and approved. Election of 2008–2009 SHTC officers took place, with Chad McClimans of V&M Star elected as the new chair and Bernie Quinn of AM Health and Safety as vice chair. Robin Birk presented a plaque of appreciation to Mr. Collins as past chair for his dedication and direction in developing this committee. Mr. Collins will now serve on the AIST board of directors. The next SHTC meeting will take place in Pittsburgh, Pa., at the beginning of the Safety Conference on Oct. 27.

January 22 , 2008 - The Safety and Health Operating Committee (SHOC) met Jan. 22 in Palm Beach, Fla. The meeting began with a review of the SHOC Specialty Conference that will be held in October in Pittsburgh, Pa. They discussed the presenters who are already confirmed and identified contacts for those not confirmed. Tim White of Nucor proposed scheduling the Nucor safety coordinators’ annual meeting in conjunction with the conference, which would enable those individuals to attend. This schedule change was confirmed and will provide an added benefit to the conference. The committee has been discussing an SHOC safety award, including whether it should be a company award or an individual award, and this will be addressed by the next meeting. Butch Collins, the committee chair, passed around a list of fatalities in the steel industry and discussed the trend compared to previous years. He also requested that SHOC members consider succession planning for committee leadership, since his term will end in May. A round table discussion included topics such as OSHA inspections, serious accidents and near misses, and future committee programs and activities. Jim Stanley encouraged each SHOC member to identify four new people who could get involved in the committee to further promote the committee’s mission.

November 5 , 2007 - The Safety and Health Operating Committee (SHOC) met at Gallatin Steel on Nov. 5, 2007. Butch Collins of Gallatin Steel welcomed everyone, and Chad McClimans of V&M Steel volunteered to take the meeting minutes. The committee decided that the Safety Specialty Conference will be held Oct. 27–29, 2008, in Pittsburgh, Pa.

August 29 , 2007 - The Safety and Health Operating Committee (SHOC) held a conference call on Aug. 29. Butch Collins of Gallatin Steel (chair) and Robin Birk of U. S. Steel (vice chair) welcomed everyone and thanked them for joining the call. The group focused on plans for the upcoming Safety and Health Specialty Conference scheduled for October 2008 in Pittsburgh, Pa. Development of SHOC award recommendations and the AIST Awards and Recognition Program were discussed, including establishment of criteria for Safety Awards. The committee decided that a safety questionnaire will be developed and distributed. Finally, an interesting discussion on safety initiatives, programs, serious accidents, fatalities and OSHA activity ensued. The next SHOC meeting is scheduled for Oct. 29–30 and will include a tour of Gallatin Steel’s Ghent, Ky., facility.           

May 8, 2007 - The Safety and Health Operating Committee (SHOC) met during AISTech 2007 on May 8 in Indianapolis, Ind. Butch Collins of Gallatin Steel welcomed everyone and thanked them for making time for the meeting. The membership agreed that the Steel Industry Safety and Health Conference, held in Pittsburgh, Pa., in October 2006, was a success, as was the conference call held Jan. 23, 2007. The consensus was to continue having conference calls once or twice a year to allow more participation without the time and expense required for physical meetings. An interesting discussion related to safety in the steel industry took place, with emphasis on truck loading operation training and preventing fatalities. Nominations for new officers were postponed until the next meeting, due to the lack of a quorum. The mission statement — “To promote loss prevention principles in the steel industry through the sharing of information and expertise of health and safety professionals” — was reviewed and approved without modification. The SHOC presented Mr. Collins with a plaque for their appreciation of his leadership and service to the committee as chair this past year. The next meeting was tentatively scheduled for a conference call in July and a possible meeting in the fall.

January 23, 2007 - The Safety and Health Operating Committee (SHOC) held a teleconference on Jan. 23, 2007. Butch Collins of Gallatin Steel, the committee chair, welcomed everyone to the conference call. The Safety Training Conference, which was held in October 2006, was discussed and evaluated. The committee decided that it would be best to have the training seminar every other year. The members discussed any safety issues that their facility and/or other facilities in the industry have recently experienced. The committee then agreed to hold a conference call once a year to alleviate the expense and time involved in traveling to meetings. The next meeting will be at AISTech 2007 in Indianapolis, Ind., on May 8.

October 2, 2006 - The Safety and Health Operating Committee met in Pittsburgh, Pa., on Oct. 2, leading into the “Steel Industry Safety and Health Conference.” Last-minute details before the conference and the duties of the chairs were reviewed. Plans for sessions at AISTech 2007 in Indianapolis, Ind., were discussed. The committee members also watched a moving video testimonial of how a fatality at a steel plant impacted the life of the family left behind. A round table discussion on safety updates, OSHA inspections, and new safety initiatives and programs followed.

July 25, 2006 - The Safety and Health Operating Committee met at U. S. Steel Irvin in Dravosburg, Pa., on July 25. The initial focus of the meeting related to their upcoming Steel Industry Safety and Health Specialty Conference, which will be held in Pittsburgh, Pa., on Oct. 2–4. Some modifications were made to the program to ensure it reflects best practices. This was followed by the presentation, “Using SPC to Monitor Safety Events.” This presentation provided a different method to look at safety data and was followed by a discussion period. The presentation will also be offered to other Operating Committees as an abstract that can be selected for AISTech 2007. A review of upcoming meeting dates was held, and a tentative schedule was developed for the upcoming year. Ideas were considered for ways to increase membership on the committee. A round table discussion was held on serious accidents and near misses, fatalities, OSHA inspections and activities, new initiatives and programs, project scope assessment, manlifts, heat illness and cures, and lime burns. The committee also considered including a “best practices” safety article in a future issue of Iron & Steel Technology.

May 2, 2006 - The Safety and Health Operating Committee met during AISTech 2006 on May 2 in Cleveland, Ohio, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel. New officers of the Safety and Health Operating Committee were nominated and approved. Members discussed the Safety and Health Specialty Conference, which will be Oct. 3–4 at the Sheraton Station Square in Pittsburgh, Pa.

October 4, 2005 - The Safety and Health Operating Committee held a golf outing on Oct. 4 at the Tam O’Shanter Golf Course in Hermitage, Pa. The committee meeting was hosted by V&M Star in Youngstown, Ohio, on the following day. The meeting focused on sponsoring a specialty conference in Pittsburgh, Pa., in October 2006. Several topics were outlined for the conference, and a group of members volunteered to follow up with the topics in preparation for the conference. The committee participated in a round table discussion on safety-related benchmarking topics in the steel industry. Chad McClimans provided a tour of the V&M Star facilities. The meeting concluded with a tour of the Youngstown Historical Center of Industry and Labor, which centered around the history of the steel industry in Youngstown. The next committee meeting will be held at AISTech 2006 in May at the Cleveland Convention Center.

June7, 2005 - The Safety and Health Operating Committee held a meeting on June 7 in Indianapolis, Ind. The members discussed government regulatory updates, serious and fatal accidents, and best practices. The committee agreed to sponsor a Specialty Conference in October 2006 in Pittsburgh, Pa. The next meeting will be Oct. 5, 2005, near Youngstown, Ohio, and will include a tour of V&M Star and the Youngstown Historical Center of Industry & Labor Steel Museum.

March 8, 2005 - The Safety and Health Operating Committee conducted its winter meeting at the ISG Deerfield Woods Training Center in Burns Harbor, Ind., on March 8. The committee reviewed the 2004 Steel Industry Safety and Health Conference and discussed plans for another specialty conference in the spring of 2006. Members discussed safety issues relating to the steel industry and different ways to publicize these issues through AIST. The meeting concluded with a tour of ISG Burns Harbor Inc. and ISG Burns Harbor Plate Inc. The Safety and Health committee is scheduled to meet June 7 in Indianapolis, Ind., to finalize the structure and content for a spring conference in 2006.

June 8, 2004 - The Safety and Health Operating Committee met in Belterra, Ind., on June 8 to finalize their plans for the Steel Industry Safety and Health Conference and to tour Gallatin Steel. The conference will be held Oct. 18–19 in Pittsburgh, Pa. The committee is planning to sponsor an art tour the first evening of the conference and a tour of U. S. Steel’s Mon Valley Works – Irvin Plant on Oct. 20. John P. Surma Jr., president and chief operating officer of U. S. Steel, will be the opening day guest speaker for the conference. The conference will feature a number of experts who will present information and solutions to those responsible for health and safety in their plants. The committee members then concluded the meeting with discussion on hot-work permit procedures, accident reporting and information sharing.

April 13, 2004 - The Safety and Health Operating Committee gathered in Pittsburgh, Pa., for their initial meeting on April 13. Committee members discussed best practices on several topics, including accident reports, equipment isolation and hot work permits. The committee also discussed hosting a Web page through the AIST Web site to post relevant safety and health issues. The committee had a strong interest in continuing to develop the specialty conference that began under AISE. The conference schedule was reviewed, revamped and enhanced to create the “AIST Steel Industry Safety and Health Specialty Conference,” to be held Oct. 18–19, 2004, in Pittsburgh, Pa.