Author Archives: Dan McLean

About Dan McLean

Dan McLean is a senior content marketing manager for Intelex Technologies in Toronto, specializing in environment, health and safety (EHS) topics. He has been a journalist, market researcher, executive communications specialist and content marketer over his 30-plus year career in information technology.

Worker Engagement in Safety Management Systems Improves Safety Culture and EHS Performance

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Environment, health and safety (EHS) performance significantly improves when workers are actively engaged in a company’s safety culture and practices through a safety management system.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) may have said it best.

“To be effective, any safety and health program needs the meaningful participation of workers and their representatives. Workers have much to gain from a successful program and the most to lose if the program fails,” they say. But as many safety professionals can attest, employee engagement is easier said than done.

Businesses have long accepted that strong employee engagement has a direct link to better productivity and profitability. Likewise, environment, health and safety (EHS) performance significantly improves when workers are actively engaged in a company’s safety culture and practices through an effective safety management system. A Gallop study observed that “engaged employees produce better business outcomes than other employees — across industry, company … Read more...

Should You Be Contesting That OSHA Citation?

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Going down the road of litigation isn’t always the right path to take when your organization is on the receiving end of an OSHA citation.

Your company has just been cited for a safety violation or workplace incident by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). What should you do now?

You have 15 days to respond and according to John Ho, the co-chair of the OSHA workplace safety practice at international law firm Cozen O’Connor, contesting an OSHA citation shouldn’t necessarily be your automatic response. There are many factors to consider when determining a course of action, he says, explaining that a decision should weigh issues that may have significantly greater liabilities than the actual OSHA penalties imposed.  

“Lawyers are expensive and usually you’re going to spend more money on litigation, even if you win,” Ho says. “To fight a $30,000 to $50,000 OSHA (fine) – the cost/benefit … Read more...

Popular Reads – The Top 10 Intelex Blog Posts From 2022

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A look back on Intelex blog posts from 2022 reveals a full gamut of environment, health and safety (EHS) topics: from long-standing challenges and proactive strategies to improve safety performance to the exploration of new ideas, technologies and emerging opportunities.

Our coverage this year featured stories about building and growing safety cultures and safety management best practices, and innovative EHS technologies such as software-as-a-service and artificial intelligence that help organizations improve. We also explored the continued impact of COVID-19 in the workplace and environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria and what it means for EHS.

Stay connected throughout the year to the things that matter in EHS and ESG by becoming a regular Intelex blog reader. And, in case you missed them, check out some of our top 2022 blog posts below.

#1 Lessons from the U.S. Army Climate Change Strategy: The U.S. Army’s first-ever Climate Strategy shows why … Read more...

Blog: Looking Back on 2022 – EHS and ESG Make the Connection

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Concerns and connections between environment, health and safety (EHS) and environmental, social and governance (ESG) were dominant topics of interest for readers of Intelex’s online resources in 2022.

Visitors to intelex.com during this past year most often download reports and research on EHS and ESG, particularly insights that explored important links between the two practices. And it became a hot discussion topic in our blog posts and webinars conducted throughout the year and will continue as a key focus of our insights and analysis in 2023.

Our most downloaded content report for the year was the just-completed research with North American health and safety and ESG professionals that examined trends, top challenges and important opportunities in EHS and ESG. More than 1,200 Intelex website visitors have so far requested the report since it was made available in early November. Upcoming in 2023: stay tuned for our global report.

Other topics … Read more...

Batteries and Charging Stations Stall the Future of Electric Vehicles

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A million chargers for electric vehicles or EVs will be needed along U.S. roadways by 2035, when automakers shift away from manufacturing internal combustion engine passenger vehicles.

Growing popularity and excitement around electric-powered vehicles or EVs point to a major shift for future transportation across the United States. But the road ahead will be challenging.

Much of the world’s environmental future is depending on EVs to reduce the demand for millions of barrels of oil and to help the world meet targets for CO2 emission reductions to minimize the impact of climate change. But a recent panel at the EHS Today Safety Leadership Conference in Cleveland, Ohio revealed roadblocks to the broad acceptance and use of EVs in the U.S. The panel brought together representatives from EV component manufacturers who, while raving about the tremendous business opportunities as the market shifts to EVs, also recognize there’s still much work still … Read more...

Great Ideas to Ignite Your Organization’s EHS Passion

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Seasoned safety pros and newly-appointed novices can benefit from these great tips for becoming a better EHS leader.

William Gibson, a safety specialist for Ohio-based Del-Co Water Company Inc., admits he’s far from being the most seasoned environment, health and safety (EHS) professional. But he is passionate about people and a keen observer who has taken the best ideas from safety veterans he’s encountered and applied those learnings to his own professional journey.

Gibson says he stepped out of his comfort zone to become a safety manager in 2017 when his company called out for someone to manage safety for the growing organization. During a recent presentation at the EHS Today Safety Leadership Conference, he shared many of the great lessons learned during his relatively short five-year career as an EHS professional and outlined what he believes are the building blocks of a great safety program and the key elements … Read more...

ESG’s Growing Importance Will Draw Upon EHS Leadership

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Survey results show intrinsic links between the two practices of ESG and EHS with both areas sharing many common concerns and similar objectives.

The role played by environment, health and safety (EHS) in the development and execution of environmental social and governance (ESG) strategies may depend on who you ask.

A recent Safety + Health Magazine webinar highlighted 2022 research from Vance and Bourne conducted on behalf of Intelex and shed light on how EHS and ESG leadership professionals are dealing with their evolving mutual challenges. The resulting report – Big Ambitions. Complex Data. Limited Visibility – analyzes a survey of 450 professionals who occupy EHS and ESG leadership roles in North American public and private organizations representing 17 business sectors. 

Survey results show intrinsic links between the two practices with both areas sharing many common concerns and similar objectives. During the webinar it was revealed that a vast majority … Read more...

Research Reveals Collection and Quality as Top EHS and ESG Data Challenges

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Organizations are challenged in their efforts to gather EHS and ESG data and poor data quality hinders their ability to improve EHS and ESG performance.

The ability to collect data and be assured it is of high-quality are essential to environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) reporting and compliance success, according to speakers at a webinar outlining recent North American ESG and environment, health and safety (EHS) research.

Traditional and ad hoc ways of collecting ESG and EHS data are not enough, according to one speaker. Virginia Hoekenga, deputy director for the National Association for Environmental Managers (NAEM), says companies must move from Excel [spreadsheets] and paper approaches to systemic and holistic management of ESG and EHS using information technology and digital systems.  

Hoekenga was speaking during a presentation of 2022 research from Vance and Bourne conducted on behalf of Intelex that explores how EHS and ESG professionals are dealing … Read more...

Skilled and Experienced or a Proven Leader – What Type of Safety Manager Would You Hire?

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Here’s one professional who says a true safety leader shows commitment to excellence, a strong work ethic and personal accountability. Skill and experience are things you can teach.

When he was hired 12 years ago, Bill D’Amico wasn’t what most might have considered the predictable and obvious choice as global director of safety and health for pipe-joint manufacturer Victaulic Company of Pennsylvania.

But a 2010 fatality at a Victaulic foundry became a defining event and may have prompted company executives to think differently. Never again, ownership vowed, and was determined to recruit a safety leader who could radically improve safety performance and safety culture. Enter D’Amico.   

“I had zero safety experience, so why in god’s name would a global company of 5,000 people that just had a fatality hire someone who didn’t know a damn thing about safety or foundries,” he said, during an October panel discussion at the … Read more...

Close Calls and Near Misses Target a Safety Improvement Bullseye

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By tracking and analyzing safety close calls and near misses today, organizations are better able to reduce tomorrow’s incidents that might cause injuries as a result of workplace hazards.

American industrial safety pioneer Herbert Heinrich long ago did the math regarding the importance of reporting and tracking of near-miss and close-call incidents. By his calculation, every workplace injury is preceded by up to 29 other minor injuries that may have required first aid and perhaps as many as 300 near-miss incidents where someone narrowly missed injury.   

Reporting, tracking and learning from close calls and near misses – those instances when someone was almost injured, machinery was nearly damaged, productivity could have been lost or a financial loss might have happened – is key to minimizing potentially catastrophic incidents. Near misses should never be ignored and safety professionals must continually track and analyze them, according to Intelex Vice President and … Read more...