About This Archive  | DCHAS-L 2022 Index   | DCHAS-L Yearly Index
person wearing a disposable face shield and surgical style mask

Check out Safety Emporium for your N95, N99, and face shield needs.

Previous by Date:
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Article
Date: Sunday, January 23, 2022 at 8:01:16 AM
Author: Richard Palluzi <000006c59248530b-dmarc-request**At_Symbol_Here**LISTS.PRINCETON.EDU> 		Next by Date:
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines (19 articles)
Date: Mon, 24 Jan 2022 06:41:37 -0500
Author: Ralph Stuart

From: Ralph Stuart <ralph**At_Symbol_Here**rstuartcih.org>
Subject: Re: [DCHAS-L] Article
Date: Sun, 23 Jan 2022 09:17:55 -0500
Reply-To: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**Princeton.EDU>
Message-ID: 4B655620-0C00-49D6-9D04-2E1D4734E858**At_Symbol_Here**rstuartcih.org
In-Reply-To <003f01d81059$4f438b30$edcaa190$**At_Symbol_Here**verizon.net>


> >Alarms versus Automatic Interlocks in Research Units
>
Thank you for addressing the human factors elements of automated process controls. I have seen ventilation alarms and interlocks become increasingly confusing over the last several decades as ambiguous lights and buzzers are added to fume hoods, thermostats and pressure indicators.

These changes occur not only in settings such as labs with highly educated, potentially stable workforces, but also in public occupancies with high turnovers, such as hotel rooms and dorms. These design 'features' are often added in the name of energy conservation, based on the back of the envelope calculations which assume perfect human behavior over a 20 year period. These assumptions are quickly violated, leading to significant operational and comfort problem which are beyond the scope of the facility maintenance staff to address. This often means that the facility's operating costs are higher than they would have been without the innovations that helped gain the LEED credits when the building opened.

The bottom line is that the success of these design elements is determined more by their sociological aspects than they are be the mechanical and control systems they rely on. I haven't seen a lot of mechanical design teams that include that expertise, however.

- Ralph

Ralph Stuart, CIH, CCHO
ralph**At_Symbol_Here**rstuartcih.org

---
For more information about the DCHAS-L e-mail list, contact the Divisional membership chair at membership**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
Follow us on Twitter **At_Symbol_Here**acsdchas

Previous post   |  Top of Page   |   Next post


The content of this page reflects the personal opinion(s) of the author(s) only, not the American Chemical Society, ILPI, Safety Emporium, or any other party. Use of any information on this page is at the reader's own risk. Unauthorized reproduction of these materials is prohibited. Send questions/comments about the archive to secretary@dchas.org.
The maintenance and hosting of the DCHAS-L archive is provided through the generous support of Safety Emporium.