• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.277-289
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• 2018

Background: Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service (LFRS), the subject of this evaluative research document employs 1400 people. 80% of employees are operational firefighters and officers whom operate across a range of duty systems and support functions, providing prevention, protection and emergency response to the communities of Lancashire. Methods: The overarching purpose of this epidemiological study is to assess the prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) amongst operational LFRS personnel and to analyse the effects upon those who may be suffering from it, whether brought about by a single traumatic event or by repeated exposure to traumatic occurrences over a period of time. A combination of primary and secondary research was carried out. Primary data was collated using two recognised clinical questionnaires and statistical analysis was conducted with the aid of the software package SPSS. Results: The findings and statistical analysis showed that out of the 100 people surveyed, 30% of respondents had signs of probable distress. Of this quota, 4% showed symptoms of PTSD. The study considers how an organisation can recognise and manage PTSD and provides recommendations to assist in better recognising and managing the associated risks. Conclusion: Based upon the findings, the authors conclude that the level of PTSD within LFRS is slightly lower than those found in other studies undertaken within the Fire and Rescue Service sector. The paper provides recommendations for future studies and a series of actions for consideration by LFRS senior management to improve PTSD support services for employees.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.82-90
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• 2019

Meeting the regulations based on the short-term leaching tests may not necessarily assure the environmental and human health safety of reusing mine wastes. This study investigated heavy metal leachability of four metal mine waste samples (e.g., Z, Y, H, and M) and human health risk of reusing them as construction materials. The heavy metal leachability did not depend on the total heavy metal contents. For example, the Z sample contained greater amounts of As and Fe than Zn, but the leachates contained only Zn at a detectable level. This can be attributed to the crystalline structure and heavy metal fractions of the mine wastes. The leaching test results suggested that the four mine waste samples are potentially reusable. But the Z and M samples reused in industrial areas imposed carcinogenic risks. This was largely attributed to As that is exposed via dermal contact. The Y and H samples reused in residential areas imposed carcinogenic risk. The major exposure route was the ingestion of crops grown on the mine wastes and Cr was the major concern. The two-stage assessment involving leaching tests and risk assessment can be used to promote safe reuse of mine wastes.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Industry Convergence
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.701-707
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• 2024

Industry 4.0 has brought about significant changes in the roles of workers through the introduction of innovative technologies. In smart factory environments, workers are required to interact seamlessly with robots and automated systems, often utilizing equipment enhanced by Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) technologies. This study aims to systematically analyze recent research literature on monitoring the physical and mental states of workers in Industry 4.0 environments. Relevant literature was collected using the Web of Science database, employing a comprehensive keyword search strategy involving terms related to Industry 4.0 and health monitoring. The initial search yielded 1,708 documents, which were refined to 923 journal articles. The analysis was conducted using VOSviewer, a tool for visualizing bibliometric data. The study identified general trends in the publication years, countries of authors, and research fields. Keywords were clustered into four main areas: 'Industry 4.0', 'Internet of Things', 'Machine Learning', and 'Monitoring'. The findings highlight that research on health monitoring of workers in Industry 4.0 is still emerging, with most studies focusing on using wearable devices to monitor mental and physical stress and risks. This study provides a foundational overview of the current state of research on health monitoring in Industry 4.0, emphasizing the need for continued exploration in this critical area to enhance worker well-being and productivity.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.40 no.5
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• pp.331-345
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• 2014

Objectives: The exponential growth of chemicals, an area of high concern in developed countries like the US (i.e., the Gore Initiative) and in the EU (i.e., REACH), as well as recent chemical accidents in Korea, have provoked nationwide concerns and resultant legal enforcement. This study aims to compare the laws of the Ministry of Environment (the Chemical Substances Control Act (CSCA), Act on the Registration and Evaluation, etc. of Chemical Substances (ARECS)) with those of the Ministry of the Employment and Labor (Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA)). Methods: Each law pertaining to the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of the Employment and Labor was downloaded from the official legal information system (www.law.go.kr). The objectives of each law and the major contents related to chemical management were compared and summarized. Results: The CSCA and the ARECS are focused on the protection of people and the environment, while the OSHA relates to the protection of workers. The right to know of people and workers has been reinforced. The former two laws emphasize prevention, but the OSHA contains both preventive and post-accident measures. The role of the Ministry of Employment was reinforced with the promulgation of the CSCA and ARECS, which contain regulations such as adjacent area impact evaluation, risk control planning, chemical statistical survey and construction and operation of information, provision of risk control plans, response to chemical accidents and registration of chemical substances. Conclusion: We found that the three laws discussed here have several similar clauses designed to protect people and the environment from risks that may be caused by the use of chemicals, even though there are some differences among them in terms of objectives and contents. This review concluded that several clauses that can be regarded as double regulation should be unified in order to minimize the waste of government administrative resources and socio-economic losses.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.396-416
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• 2021

Objectives: This study was conducted to analyze the trends of government R&D (R&D) projects related to laboratory safety over the past 20 years. Methods: We collected publications from various databases(DBs) with words such as laboratory(ies), lab(s), researcher(s), laboratory worker(s), safety, environment, hazard(s), risk(s), and so on. Selected publications were analyzed by the research funds and the number of projects according to the investment subject and research characteristics. Results: About 93% of the total R&D budget went to government policy projects, not scientific research. Second, from the perspective of 'safety management activities', most of the research is related to management and inspection at the organizational level. Issues that need to be discussed at the national level like policy governance are not included. Third, focusing on the 'safety management cycle', there were few studies related to 'prediction' or 'post-response'. Fourth, when an analysis framework combining the perspectives of 'safety management activities' and 'safety management cycle' is applied, most of the budget is spent on infrastructure such as digital management systems, whereas basic knowledge for prevention and production of evidence was very few. Conclusions: In order to prevent policy planning without policy evaluation, implementation without strategy, and evaluation without evidence, it is necessary to expand investment in empirical research on risks, research on the effectiveness of current application methods, and research on theory development. The government budget for laboratory safety-related projects should be managed separately from the R&D budget for scientific research. Although less than 5% of the budget allocated to scientific research is the total budget, an optical illusion occurs because both the project budget and the scientific research budget are counted as R&D budgets.

• Journal of Auto-vehicle Safety Association
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.106-112
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• 2022

The purpose of this study is to explore ways of improving the motor vehicles safety certification system in preparation for the deployment of Lv.4 or higher autonomous vehicles. In order to effectively achieve the objectives of this study, theoretical and empirical research methodologies were employed, including literature review of prior research, government-published data, etc.; comparative research on legislative cases of other countries regarding motor vehicles safety certification; historical and legal research on domestic systems; legal analysis to explore approaches for improvement, etc. Some argue that the type approval system is needed in preparation for deploying autonomous vehicles, but there are several limitations in moving to the type approval system from the self-certification system currently adopted in Korea. First, there is a possibility that the system may be in conflict with the Korea-U.S. MOU regarding Foreign Motor Vehicles (1988) and the Korea-U.S. FTA (2011); second, there is a risk of undermining the cause of the self-certification system, which is the autonomy of manufacturers; third, the boundary between autonomous vehicles and non-autonomous vehicles is unclear; and fourth, the type approval system may hinder technological competitiveness. On the other hand, considering that the Korea-U.S. FTA and the UNECE IWVTA recognize exceptions to deal with road safety and risks to human health or the environment, and have a pre-certification system for some auto parts such as pressure-resistant containers, it can be said that there is room to introduce the type approval system for supplementation purposes. To improve the motor vehicles safety certification system while ensuring the safety of autonomous vehicles of Lv.4 or higher, the targets of type approval should be defined and the criteria, procedures, etc. for type approval should be established. At the same time, the consistency between motor vehicle-related laws and harmonization with international standards need to be considered.

• Journal of Navigation and Port Research
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• v.41 no.5
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• pp.287-296
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• 2017

The Formal Safety Assessment (FSA) is a structured and systematic methodology developed by the IMO, aimed at assessing the risk of vessels and recommending the method to control intolerable risks, thereby enhancing maritime safety, including protection of life, health, the marine environment and property, by using risk analysis and cost-benefit assessment. While the FSA has mostly been applied to merchant vessels, it has rarely been applied to a DP vessel, which is one of the special purpose vessels in the offshore industry. Furthermore, most of the FSA has been conducted so far by using the Fault Tree Analysis tool, even though there are many other risk analysis tools. This study carried out the FSA for safe operation of DP vessels by using the Bayesian network, under which conditional probability was examined. This study determined the frequency and severity of DP LOP incidents reported to the IMCA from 2001 to 2010, and obtained the Risk Index by applying the Bayesian network. Then, the Risk Control Options (RCOs) were identified through an expert brainstorming and DP vessel simulations. This study recommends duplication of PRS, regardless of the DP class and PRS type and DP system specific training. Finally, this study verified that the Bayesian network and DP simulator can also serve as an effective tool for FSA implementation.

• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
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• v.35 no.5
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• pp.343-359
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• 2016

Objective:In this study, we designed working clothes for livestock farmers to wear in spring and autumn to improve their work efficiency, conducted a physiological test on their performance, and evaluated their comfort. Background: In recent years, livestock farming in Korea has expanded, yet farmers' safety and sanitation levels remain low in hazardous environments that include organic dust, toxic gas, and heat stress, as well as the risk of accidents. Furthermore, most livestock farmers wear ordinary or dust-resistant clothes that are unsuitable for rearing livestock and compromise their safety and health. Thus, it is important to design specialized working clothes for livestock farmers that are comfortable and that minimize their health and safety risks. Method: To this end, we examined the literature on livestock (poultry, swine, and cattle) farmers' safety and sanitation issues, designed appropriate working clothes, and tested them in terms of sensory feel, physiological response, and subjective comfort. Results: The respondents expressed satisfaction with the new working clothes. The results of a physiological test showed a decline in temperature and humidity inside the clothes, a lower pulse rate, and a lower oxygen intake compared to the measurements taken when famers wore their previous working clothes. This indicates a fall in heat stress and fatigue, which was mostly consistent with the results of the assessment of subjective comfort. Conclusion: The results of the analysis show an improvement in the comfort of the new working clothes compared to the dust-resistant clothes that are widely worn. Based on this study, the new working clothes need to be further tested and evaluated to improve the design. Application: This study is expected to contribute to designing better working clothes for livestock farmers.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.47 no.7
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• pp.827-837
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• 2015

Following a severe accident in a nuclear power plant, iodine is a major contributor to the potential health risks for the public. Because the amount of iodine released largely depends on its volatility, iodine's behavior in containment has been extensively studied in international programs such as International Source Term Programme-Experimental Program on Iodine Chemistry under Radiation (EPICUR), Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)-Behaviour of Iodine Project, and OECD-Source Term Evaluation and Mitigation. Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety (KINS) has joined these programs and is developing a simplified, stand-alone iodine chemistry model, RAIM (Radio-Active Iodine chemistry Model), based on the IMOD methodology and other previous studies. This model deals with chemical reactions associated with the formation and destruction of iodine species and surface reactions in the containment atmosphere and the sump in a simple manner. RAIM was applied to a simulation of four EPICUR tests and one Radioiodine Test Facility test, which were carried out in aqueous or gaseous phases. After analysis, the results show a trend of underestimation of organic and molecular iodine for the gas-phase experiments, the opposite of that for the aqueous-phase ones, whereas the total amount of volatile iodine species agrees well between the experiment and the analysis result.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.21 no.8
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• pp.342-347
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• 2020

Recently, as the collaborative robot has been introduced into the domestic industrial robot market, it is installed mainly in the manufacturing industry. Collaborative robots are subject to the safety regulations of industrial robots by Article 93 of the Safety Inspection of the Industrial Safety and Health Act. The sites where collaborative robots are to be installed must perform risk assessments for robots-humans, work environments, and work methods and reduce the risks according to ISO 10218-2 and ISO 12100. On the other hand, because it is early in the introduction of collaborative robots, new risks for collaborative robots have not been issued, and risk assessments are unfamiliar and difficult to apply in the workplace. The risk assessment of collaborative robots aims to identify and reduce the risk of a high probability of occurrence by focusing on the abnormal behavior of humans, human errors, equipment defects, and interlock functions. In this study, a risk assessment was applied to a domestic automobile parts production plant, and improvement measures were drawn. This risk assessment is expected to be useful for improving the safety of small businesses by continuously discovering risk assessment examples of collaborative robots.