OHS risks can’t be ignored by any company, regardless of its size. These risks must be addressed as an integral part of every organisation’s business management process.

South Australian steel-profile cutter Ferrocut boosted both efficiency and operator safety when it recently installed Konecranes CXT overhead cranes at its new factory and warehouse complex in the Techport Australia industry hub near Adelaide.

Komatsu Australia’s facilities cover the whole of Queensland, from Brisbane in the south to Cairns in the north, and west to Mt Isa, including heavy-duty mining equipment such as loaders, excavators and bulldozers. As a major manufacturer and supplier of mining and construction equipment, the company fosters an ongoing program of continuous improvement in safety performance.

Forecasts of extreme temperatures for summer have prompted a warning from WorkSafe for employers and workers to plan their work to minimise exposure in hot conditions.

People are injured and killed when working in confined spaces, despite all of the warning, detection and protection equipment available. Safety regulators all around the world can accurately pinpoint how people are injured or die and the most common environments in which injuries and deaths occur. So with all those statistics about working in confined spaces and control measures, why do injuries and deaths still occur?

Safe Work Australia recently released three guidance publications to help improve materials handling safety in the transport and storage industries in stevedoring applications on the waterfront. The material aims to reduce the incidence of fatalities and injuries in this type of workplace by addressing environmental, physical, mechanical and psychosocial risks associated with stevedoring operations.

Greater transparency and public engagement about the potential opportunities and risks presented by nanotechnology is required, according to a new report by The Australia Institute.

At a recent Workplace Relations Ministers’ Council meeting, government Ministers finalised the harmonisation of model work health and safety laws.

Some important amendments to the model Safe Work Act 2009 were recommended by Safe Work Australia to the Workplace Relations Ministers’ Council (WRMC) when the WRMC met on 11 December 2009.

A mobile skin cancer practice has released a new report with alarming statistics about the high risk of skin cancer to outdoor workers in Australia.

The updated industrial fall arrest standard AS/NZS 1891.4 2009 contains an appendix that provides valuable additional information and guidance on the provision of training and competence.

Workplace injuries are a serious factor that every business, manager and staff member must think about. Not only do injuries impact on workers' health but on absenteeism, loss of income and even loss of jobs.

Many workers have to regularly access elevated points on buildings or structures to perform routine maintenance or other tasks using fixed ladders that are built into or onto a structure. In these situations, it’s common for building owners or designers to install a cage around the ladder, mistakenly believing this will mitigate the risk of injury from workers falling off the ladder.

All humans differ in size and shape, so PPE can’t be designed under the assumption that we’re all physically identical. Some PPE, such as footwear, clothing and gloves, is available in a wide choice of sizes and styles to suit individuals. Safety professionals are aware of these choices and select styles and sizes according to individual wearers. However, when it comes to other categories, like respiratory protection, this biological fact often may be overlooked.

Safety apparel must be selected to suit the applications and hazards that the workers who wear them need protection against. While it’s quite common to purchase ‘one-size-fits-all’ safety coveralls, for example, we can’t assume that one size fits all applications. There are situations where a single type of garment or coverall suits only specific purposes, just as there are situations where disposable coveralls are better than full-blown safety suits.