A) OSHE ANNOUNCEMENTS: (Email dated 1/12/04)

SUBJECT: SAFETY & HEALTH MANAGEMENT IMPLEMENTATION OF POLICIES, SOPS AND SCHEMES

1. Safety & Health Policies

The President has signed the NUS Safety and Health Policy and the Policies on Chemical, Radiation, BioSafety, Fire Safety and the Safety & Health Policy concerning tenants. The Policies can be found at http://www.nus.edu.sg/osh/NUS_Policies.htm.


2. Standard Operating Procedures and Guidelines

OSHE has also developed University wide safety and health procedures that staff, students and contractors are to comply with. The effective date for the SOP is 1 Dec 2004. These SOPs can be downloaded from our website at http://www.nus.edu.sg/osh/prog_Guidelines.htm. We have also released a series of guidelines that departments are strongly encouraged to adopt.


3 Risk Assessment SOP

a. I would like to bring your attention to the SOP for risk assessment. A risk assessment would be required for all new lab-based research or teaching projects. For non-lab based projects, a declaration by the PI to be submitted to ORE, through the HOD is required. The declaration form is located at: https://aserv.nus.edu.sg/osh/nus_manuals/sop/OSHE-F-RA-03.pdf.

b. Only the risk assessment of approved or shortlisted projects need to be submitted for review by the Institution Biosafety Committee or the Institution Lab Safety Committee through OSHE. OLS or ORE will be inform you when you are to submit the risk assessment forms. PIs are however strongly encouraged to conduct the risk assessment at the project design stage so that appropriate budget can be set aside to implement the control measures for safety, health and waste disposal.

c. The Risk Assessment SOP can be found at:
http://aserv.nus.edu.sg/osh/nus_manuals/sop/SOP_U05_Risk_
Assessment.pdf.
The form for RA is located at:
https://aserv.nus.edu.sg/osh/nus_manuals/sop/OSHE-F-RA-01.pdf

4. Consultation & Advice

OSHE's programme managers are available for consultation. Together with your faculty safety officer (FSO), they will assist you in conducting the risk assessment and implementing these SOPs. If your faculty / dept does not have a faculty safety officer, please contact OSHE Program Managers directly. I have also requested my Program Managers to visit your departments and brief the Faculty / Department Safety Committees and your staff.

The assigned safety & health staff for each faculty is as follows:
SCIENCE: Mr Annamalai S (Fos) & Mr. N. Venkataraman (OSHE)


5. Accident and Incident reporting

All accidents and incidents are to be reported to OSHE via the online reporting system. (https://aserv.nus.edu.sg/osh/airs/). OSHE will then disseminate the information to the respective Faculty Safety Officers / Committee.


7. New Schemes

I would also like to take this opportunity to promote new schemes OSHE has initiated for departments. More details can be found at the weblinks:

a. An online system for generating laboratory door signage: (https://aserv.nus.edu.sg/osh/doorsign/)

b. A reward scheme for staff who implement training concepts: (http://nus.edu.sg/osh/prog_training.htm#sirc)

c. To assist laboratory based departments in implementing these SOPs, we also have prepared a Self-Help Starters' Checklist. The checklist is a simple guide that helps you make your lab a safer place. It can be downloaded at (http://www.nus.edu.sg/osh/prog_cat.htm).


8) External Safety Audit December 2004.

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B) DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCEMENTS:

Make sure that you have complied with the following items. You can approach the safety committee for assistance.

1) Certain Equipment/User Licence (Already implemented)

a) Lasers Equipment and user's licence (yearly), see Ng T H (x2632) and link to Home Page Licence Application).

b) Ultrasonics with 1 W output power (yearly), see link to Home Page Licence Application)

c) Pressure vessels (inspection/licence: 2 years once), see Ng T H and link to Home Page Licence Application).

2) Mandatory Maintenance/Certification- Yearly (Implemented).

a) Fumehood Hood
b) Crane
c) Bio-safety cabinets
d) Autoclave
e) Explosive power tool (EPT) user cert/licence.
f) pellet truck.
g) TIG Welding Set

3) Physics Safety Promotion:

1) Logo design competition.

LOTUS Safety Committee Logo Design Competition

LOTUS, the department Safety Committee extend an invitation to staff and graduate students to submit designs for consideration.

Prize
The winner will receive a prize worth $50

Competition Dates
The competition is open from 15 Nov 2004 to 20 Dec 2004

Design Criteria:
The design shall meet one of the following criteria:

:- A symbol depicting the motto of LOTUS - Let Our Team Uphold Safety
:- A logo based on the letter form of the acronym "LOTUS" Submission details

Participants may submit more than 1 entry.
All designs are to be printed with colour on A4 size paper and delivered to any one of the following committee members:

a) Mr Teo Hoon Hwee (S12-01-6E )
b) Mr Wu Tong Meng (S11-04-03 )
c) Mrs Lee Soo Mien (S13-03-14)

Announcement of winning entry
Result will be announced on 4 Jan 2005.

4) Safety Posters

Can be seen at S12L2 notice board, opposite lift and S12-02 (outside Graduate room). Let us know if your lab needs some of these posters.

5) Chemical Disposal

Compile and submit a list of chemical wastes to Mr. Wong How Kwong before 1 Dec 04.

6) Safety Inspection

Future safety inspections will be not be announced. We look forward to your full cooperation to make our department a safe and pleasant place to work. Safety violation penalties are stated in In-house Rules and Regulations.