• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.1 no.1
• /
• pp.19-28
• /
• 2010

Industrial Safety and Health Law (ISH Law) of Japan requires abnormalities identified in evaluations of worker health and working environments are reported to occupational physicians, and employers are advised of measures to ensure appropriate accommodations in working environments and work procedures. Since the 1980s, notions of a risk assessment and occupational safety and health management system were expected to further prevent industrial accidents. In 2005, ISH Law stipulated workplace risk assessment using the wording "employers shall endeavor." Following the amendment, multiple documents and guidelines for risk assessment for different work procedures were developed. They require ISH Laws to be implemented fully and workplaces to plan and execute measures to reduce risks, ranking them from those addressing potential hazards to those requiring workers to wear protective articles. A governmental survey in 2005 found the performance of risk assessment was 20.4% and common reasons for not implementing risk assessments were lack of adequate personnel or knowledge. ISH Law specifies criminal penalties for both individuals and organizations. Moreover, under the Labor Contract Law promulgated in 2007, employers are obliged to make reasonable efforts to ensure employee health for foreseeable and avoidable risks. Therefore, enterprises neglecting even the non-binding provisions of guidelines are likely to suffer significant business impact if judged to be responsible for industrial accidents or occupational disease. To promote risk assessment, we must strengthen technical, financial, and physical support from public-service organizations, encourage the dissemination of good practices to reduce risks, and consider additional employer incentives, including relaxed mandatory regulations.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
• /
• v.23 no.2
• /
• pp.137-147
• /
• 2013

Objectives: This study was conducted in order to evaluate the limitations of the regulations on the safety and health standards for special management materials(SMM) under the Industrial Safety and Health Act in Korea. Methods: Hazardous chemicals management systems in Germany(Hazardous Substances Ordinance), the UK(Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations), Japan(Ordinance on Prevention of Hazards due to Specified Chemical Substances) and Korea(Regulation of Occupational Safety and Health Standards, ROSHS) were investigated and compared in terms of 14 items. Results: Among the 14 items, we eventually found seven items which should be amended: 1) definition and scope, 2) general duties clause, 3) principles of management, 4) preventive measures, 5) control measures, 6) risk assessment, and 7) record keeping. The principal limitations of Korean regulations in comparison with those of other countries were that there were no preventive measures such as substitution, and no principles of good practices for the control of exposure to SMM. In terms of control measures, there were no regulations on suitable workplace design, reducing the number of exposed workers, reducing the level and duration of exposure, and reducing the quantity of hazardous substances in ROSHS. Conclusions: Based on the results of this study, ROSHS should be complemented with preventive measures and the principles of management related to SMM. According to the suggestions, an employer who deals with SMM should preferably consider the possibility of substitution and perform substitution so far as is reasonably practicable.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
• /
• v.31 no.4
• /
• pp.440-450
• /
• 2021

Objectives: This study aims to investigate whether working environment measurement institutions(WEMIs) are conducting safety and health education, risk assessment, and oversight of special management materials, and whether working environment measurement and special medical examinations are being conducted as prescribed in the Occupational Safety and Health Act(OSHA). Methods: In of February 2021, a questionnaire was prepared and distributed to 33 WMEIs registered with the Ministry of Employment and Labor(MoEL) in Busan and Gyeongsangnam-do Province. The responses were collected and then analyzed. Results: The findings show that 5 WEMIs(15%) complied fully with OSHA. Risk assessment was conducted by 13 WMEIs(39%) and safety education by 11 WMEIs(33%). Eighteen WMEIs(55%) conducted working environment measurement, and 29 WMEIs(88%) conducted special medical examinations. The implementation rate of the risk assessment in the health industry(85%) was higher than the one in the special technology industry(11%)(p<0.05). The implementation rate of the special medical examination in the examiners(54%) was not as high as the one in the analysts(91%)(p<0.05). Conclusions: The MoEL needs to check whether basic OSHA requirements are being observed during regular inspections by WEMIs. These findings indicate that it is necessary to prepare a plan to improve the rate of compliance with OSHA regulations.

• Journal of Korean Society of Disaster and Security
• /
• v.15 no.4
• /
• pp.57-69
• /
• 2022

During the 10 years from 2011 to 2021, a whopping 2,800 people were killed or injured during port work. Among them, the frequency of occurrence at the port loading and unloading business is high. Container terminal operators must conduct risk assessments and establish reasonable safety measures in accordance with laws and regulations. As a research method, the contents of risk assessment presented in the Industrial Safety and Health Act, the Serious Accident Punishment Act, and the Special Act on Port Safety are presented through literature analysis. In this study, previous studies were analyzed to examine the risk assessment method and risk factors of container terminals. The purpose is to present 'industrial safety AI chatbot technology' that can improve the risk of safety accidents.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
• /
• v.55 no.3
• /
• pp.289-296
• /
• 2022

Objectives: Integrating retail and manufacturing enables limitless potential for food businesses, but also creates challenges for navigating within complex food safety regulations. From public health inspectors' (PHIs) perspective, this study aimed (1) to describe the characteristics of crossover businesses in Louisiana, and (2) to evaluate regulation awareness and food safety education needs for business owners and PHIs who inspect crossover businesses. Methods: A self-administered questionnaire was administered to Louisiana Department of Health PHIs using Qualtrics^®. A descriptive analysis was performed, focusing on the frequency of each item. Results: In total, 1774 retailers were conducting or planned to conduct specialized processes, while 552 food manufacturers were performing or planned to perform retail functions. Reduced oxygen packaging, the use of additives such as vinegar as a method of preservation, and smoking food as a method of preservation were observed by 62%, 36%, and 35% of the PHIs, respectively. The PHIs perceived crossover businesses as "not aware" or "somewhat aware" of the food safety regulations. The current food safety training level for these businesses was reported to range from "no training" to "some training but not sufficient." When asked for a self-assessment, the majority of PHIs reported themselves as being "familiar" with the variance requirement for specialized processing. Their confidence in inspecting crossover businesses, however, leaned towards "not confident" or "somewhat confident." Conclusions: To better guard public health, food safety training is needed for crossover food business owners, as well as PHIs, on regulations and conducting or inspecting specialized processes.

• Proceedings of the Korea Institute of Fire Science and Engineering Conference
• /
• 1997.11a
• /
• pp.345-352
• /
• 1997

We could analyse the fire behavior using the developed software for fire safety assessment in a large space such as atrium. But Korean building law hasn't admitted the result of fire risk assessment in atrium. In the legislation fire resistant wall or shutter must be required between atrium and office rooms, That has obstructed development of building design and fire protection technique in Korea. From this point of view, we made scenarios of fire spread between atrium and office rooms, and then computed fire spread and fire phenomena using FASTLite and Breakl. In this study, we can decide that fire compartmentalization between atrium and office rooms doesn't require in Atrium building if the material and fire protection system were reliable. Consequently, Korean Fire Protection Regulations have to consider in direction of increasing freedom of building.

• Food Science and Industry
• /
• v.54 no.1
• /
• pp.2-10
• /
• 2021

Microplastics with a size of less than 5 mm have emerged as an important environmental and food safety issue, as they have been detected not only in marine but also in terrestrial ecosystem and drinking water. Although many studies have been conducted on the exposure of microplastics and the effects on human health, the lack of standardized experimental methods for microplastics has been reviewed as a major problem. In order to overcome this, European countries such as the Netherlands and Germany are conducting a project to develop detection methods for microplastics as well as to establish the risk assessment methodologies for microplastics. Being the microplastics suggested to have a substantially potential risk on human health, reliable risk assessments should be conducted considering the various sources of microplastics, chemical pollutants and biological factors. In addition, international standards and regulations should be applied.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Automotive Engineers
• /
• v.25 no.2
• /
• pp.190-200
• /
• 2017

In general, an assessment of the benefits and costs with regard to vehicle safety standards are validated before regulations are implemented. This paper performs this validation for the mandatory automobile safety devices requirement for new micro-mobility. The reviewed car safety standards involved the installation of seat belts, airbags, ABS, crash speed standards, and pedestrian warning system. The benefit was estimated as the cost of accident reduction due to the installation of vehicle safety standards. As a result, the safety belt showed a B / C of 4.0 or higher, and it was found that the seat belt should be installed from 2017. After the seatbelt regulation in 2017, the results of the scenarios with the airbag, ABS, crash speed of 40 km/h, and the pedestrian warning system showed B / C of 1.0 or more according to the year of regulation. This study can be useful as a tool in the decision-making process with regard to the timing and type of vehicle safety standards requirement of micro-mobility in the future.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.1 no.1
• /
• pp.29-36
• /
• 2010

This article describes a systematic roadmap master plan for advanced industrial safety and health policy in Korea, with an emphasis on. Since Korean industries had first emergence of industrial safety and health policy in 1953, enormous efforts have been made on upgrading the relevant laws in order to reflect real situation of industrial work environment in accordance with rapid changes of Korean and global business over three decades. Nevertheless, current policy has major defects; too much techniques-based articles, diverged contents in less organization, combined enforcement and punishments and finally enforcing regulations full of commands and control. These deficiencies have make it difficult to accommodate changes of social, industrial and employment environment in customized fashion. The approach to the solution must be generic at the level of paradigm-shift rather than local modifications and enhancement. The basic idea is to establish a new system integrated with a risk assessment scheme, which encourages employers to apply to their work environment under comprehensive responsibility. The risk assessment scheme is designed to enable to inspect employers' compliances afterwards. A project comprises four yearly phases based on applying zones; initially designating and operating a specified risk zone, gradually expanding the special zones during a period of 3 years (2010-2012) and the final zone expanded to entire nation. In each phase, the intermediate version of the system is updated through a process of precise and unbiased validation in terms of its operability, feasibility and sustainability with building relevant infrastructures as needed.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
• /
• v.25 no.1
• /
• pp.93-101
• /
• 2010

As safety-related regulations for signaling systems are standardized to IEC 61508/62278/62425, and others at the international level, safety activities and its assessment are required to be performed. And also there is the need to develop technologies for safety improvement to secure safety signaling systems in terms of technologies for safety activities on each life-cycle. In this paper we have developed the safety activity processes and technologies each steps of proposed processes respectively for railway signaling systems. And the proposed process and technologies are applied to the safety activities for mock-up signaling systems.