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The ARSC Advisor

The ARSC Reciprocal Confined Space Construction Standard Course

By David Womack, Ph.D.
Safety and Health Manager, HSEQ & ARSC Owners Advisory Committee Chair 

In 2010 the ARSC Owners Advisory Committee (OAC) requested that ARSC develop a new course on the Confined Space Construction standard that was recently published by OSHA (Subpart AA of 29 CFR 1926). ARSC members along with input from the OAC developed the course which was approved by the ARSC Board of Directors in August 2012. The course was revised in 2018.

The target audience for the course is contract employees that will act as confined space entrants and/or attendants. Many owner companies require all contract employees that will enter a confined space or act as an attendant to take this course to ensure they have the basic training to perform these tasks.

ARSC Welcomes New Members in Illinois and Alaska

By Trevonna Hayle
Administrator, Association of Reciprocal Safety Councils

The Association of Reciprocal Safety Councils is pleased to announce new members, Three Rivers Manufacturers’ Association (TRMA) and Alaska Safety Alliance (formerly known as Alaska Process Industry Careers Consortium). Both members will begin offering ARSC’s reciprocal courses soon. ARSC now has a total of 26 members and a total of 57 locations offering reciprocal training courses across the United States. You can visit our website to view a full list of ARSC member locations.

According to the National Association of Manufacturers, there was an average of 587,930 manufacturing employees in Illinois in 2018 with an average annual compensation of $87,393.54 in 2017. Since 1933, Three Rivers Manufacturers’ Association has served the needs of manufactures in Will and Grundy counties. TRMA is located in Joliet, Illinois and is now one of two Illinois ARSC member locations. TRMA offers instructor-led training courses, computer-based training courses, as well as hands-on fall protection and scaffold user training. TRMA is dedicated to the community and partners with Joliet Junior College to host an annual MFG Day to introduce students to careers in the manufacturing industry. TRMA will begin offering ARSC reciprocal courses in December.

Using Consensus Standards Such as ANSI and ISO to Enhance Your Program

By Trish Ennis, CSP, ARM, CRIS
Executive Director, Colorado Safety Association 

We live in a world of data and information. Sometimes things change so fast it can be hard to keep up. However, there is one thing that we know does not change with any frequency, and that thing is the frequency by which the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) updates workplace safety regulations. The mechanism to change regulations is burdensome, and can take many years. Fortunately, there is another source of information for the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) professional to access for best practices and guidance. Consensus standards such as those developed by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) are good sources of information for professionals who are looking to advance an organization’s safety and risk management programs.

The ARSC Owners Advisory Committee

By David Womack, Ph.D.
Safety and Health Manager, HSEQ & Owners Advisory Committee Chair

Early in the development of the Association of Reciprocal Safety Councils (ARSC) it was understood that to be successful the organization needed input from their stakeholders including Owners. Owners are representatives from petrochemical or other manufacturing companies that make decisions about contractor training requirements. Input comes to ARSC through the member councils and though the Owners Advisory Committee (OAC). Each ARSC member council is required to name an OAC representative to be a member in good standing.

The OAC Chair and co-Chair are appointed by the ARSC Board of Director Chair. David Womack from Covestro LLC representing the Industrial Safety Training Council is the current Chair. Connie Fabre’ from the Greater Baton Rouge Industrial Alliance representing the Alliance Safety Training Council is the co-Chair.