VSRA News

By JON W. GLASS, The Virginian-Pilot © December 20, 2006 PORTSMOUTH -- Congress is working to bring stability to the ship repair industry, a critical link in the nation's defense, said U.S. Rep. Thelma Drake, R-2nd District. Speaking to the Virginia Ship Repair Association on Tuesday, Drake called workers in the local shipyards a "national treasure to America" and said the country "can't afford to lose" them. "We're serious about maintenance on our Navy ships," said Drake, re-elected last month to a second two-year term. The Navy is the biggest customer for most of the shipyards lining the Elizabeth River waterfront, and that work in the past has often been feast or famine. "It's one of the first things I recognized," Drake said. "We seem to have you in these cycles." A move by the Navy to begin awarding multiyear, multiship contracts that offer shipyards steadier work and a chance to partner with each other has shown initial promise for smoothing those cycles. Drake said Congress is pushing the Navy to do more. In the fiscal year 2007 defense spending bill passed in September, Congress approved language requiring the Navy to issue annual reports outlining its plan to keep ships operational and maintained, Drake said. Because of a steady decline in the fleet's size in the past 20 years, she said, the Navy too often has to defer maintenance on ships to keep them deployed. A potential longer-term worry for local shipyards is the planned retirement of the conventional-powered aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy, homeported in Mayport, Fla. It's unlikely the Navy will want to spend money upgrading the Florida port to handle one of the Norfolk-based nuclear carriers, but it may be willing to move some of the region's large-deck amphibious ships there, Drake said. That could affect local shipyards, which now maintain those ships under the Navy's new multiship contracts. "I'm not saying that's going to happen, but it would be much easier to do" than move a nuclear-powered carrier to Florida, Drake said. "We don't want to lose any of them." Reach Jon W. Glass call (757) 446-2318 or at jon.glass@pilotonline.com.

Contact: Elaine Fraser of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, 202-693-1999 WASHINGTON, Dec. 14 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Employers and employees involved in hurricane cleanup and recovery efforts will benefit from a new Web-based resource, Hurricane eMatrix: Hazard Exposure and Risk Assessment Matrix for Hurricane Response and Recovery Work, unveiled today by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. "This is an important new tool to help educate employees and employers on how to address the most common and significant hazards that they may encounter during hurricane response and recovery work," said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Edwin G. Foulke Jr. "It provides practical information to employers so they can better assess risks and choose the appropriate control measures, work practices, personal protective equipment and training to protect their employees working in hurricane-impacted areas." Response and recovery work encompasses a wide range of specific tasks and operations that can present serious occupational safety and health hazards to employees. The Hurricane eMatrix is a tool that incorporates occupational hazards information, observations, recommendations and data that OSHA gathered and distributed during its response effort to hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma. The eMatrix offers users access to general recommendations, sampling and monitoring data, and employer/employee responsibilities applicable for any employers conducting response and recovery operations after a disaster. It also features 29 individual task- and operation-specific activity sheets that help employers evaluate hazards and provides guidance on reducing employee exposures during disaster operations like debris collection, tree trimming, utility restoration, building demolition and others. Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing a safe and healthful workplace for their employees. OSHA's role is to assure the safety and health of America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards; providing training, outreach, and education; establishing partnerships; and encouraging continual process improvement in workplace safety and health. For more information, visit the OSHA website.

The SSRAC Final Report FY-08 announces the SSRAC website posting of the FY-08 NAVSEA Standard Items and Appendix 4-E to the SOM. The letter states that the FY-08 Standard Items shall be invoked for all CNO availabilities with an availability start date in FY-08 and in all other (CMAV and emergent) new procurements issued after 1 April 2007. Please read the attached letter and visit the SSRAC website and follow the "What's New" link to view/download the items. Recommend you clear your browser cache and/or refresh the page if you do not see the update. SSRAC Coordinators are responsible for advising users within their respective activities and MSR contractors under their cognizance of the availability of these products. The requirements of this letter do not authorize any change in terms, conditions, delivery schedule, price, or amount of any existing Government contract. Linda D. Mayle Asst NAVSEA SSRAC Coordinator SERMC Business Office/Standards Coordinator Ph: 904-270-5593 FAX: 904-270-5729 linda.mayle@navy.mil

In accordance with NAVSEA's letter (FY-07 Standard Items Change 2 Posting), Change Two (CH-2) to the FY-07 NAVSEA Standard Items has been posted on the SSRAC website. I recommend you clear your browser cache and/or refresh the page if you do not see the update. The requirements of this letter do not authorize any change in terms, conditions, delivery schedule, price, or amount of any existing Government contract. Linda D. Mayle Asst NAVSEA SSRAC Coordinator SERMC Business Office/Standards Coordinator Ph: 904-270-5593 FAX: 904-270-5729 linda.mayle@navy.mil

Itasca, Ill. (December 15, 2006)—The National Safety Council has awarded its Distinguished Service to Safety Award to VSRA member DeWitt "Dee" Davis IV, an independent marine consultant in Virginia Beach, VA. The award, which was presented during the National Safety Council’s 94th Annual Congress and Expo, is the highest honor bestowed on an individual safety professional by the NSC in recognition of outstanding service to the field of safety. “Some of the most innovative advances in safety and health today are the result of individual ingenuity and initiative in various fields of safety,” said Alan C. McMillan, President and CEO, National Safety Council. “This award is just one of the ways the Council is encouraging individuals to strive for excellence and serve as pioneers in the quest for creating a culture of safety in businesses, homes and communities, and on our roads and highways. Mr. Davis is one of these individuals who understands this new safety paradigm and has made tremendous contributions to the field of safety. We are honored to present Mr. Davis with this prestigious award.” A safety leader and vital VSRA member and volunteer committee member, "Dee" has been a member of the National Safety Council for 23 years. Now the General Chairman of the NSC Marine Section, he has been active in the Industrial Division and Business & Industry Division’s serving as Marine Section Membership chairman, Recognition chairman, Section Division Chairman of Ship Repair and Construction, Marine Section General Vice Chairman. He has also served on the Business & Industry Division Executive Committee, and on several committees including the Business & Industry Division committee for Safety Training, Safety and Health Training, Engineering and Ergonomics. Mr. Davis planned and developed a series of workshops on "Safety through Ship Design," edited and revised Safety and Health Guides for ship repair workers and supervisors, developed with others a Workshop on Operational Risk Management (ORM) for the American Society of Naval Engineers. He also developed and conducted safety and health training for over a thousand shipyard workers and is a frequent presenter for technical sessions at National Safety Council’s Annual Congress and for other associations. Mr. Davis practices as a Certified Safety Professional and Certified Industrial Hygienist, retired as a Commander from the Navy after 28 years serving at the Naval Safety Center, and as a civilian at the Navy Environmental Health Center. Following the Navy he was a Safety Director for a ship repair firm in Hampton Roads, Virginia. He was recently nominated by ASSE, the National Safety Council and the Virginia Ship Repair Association to the Maritime Advisory Committee Occupational on Safety and Health for OSHA in recognition of his work in marine safety. He was also selected by the National Academy of Sciences as a presenter on worldwide maritime accident statistics. The Distinguished Service to Safety Award, which symbolizes and recognizes individual innovation and service in the field of safety, is among the ways the National Safety Council is honoring individuals who take a lead in creating initiatives that support and promote a corporate culture of safety. “It begins with an individual who understands the critical importance safety plays in their organization and that one person then serves as a catalyst for expanding safety to the level where it is a part of their mission, a core corporate value,” added McMillan. “Individual by individual, business by business, we are recognizing leaders who are relentless in making safety a way of doing business. A hearty congratulations, Dee, for this most pretigious and well earned recognition.

OSHA published in the August 24 Federal Register revisions to its respiratory protection standard. The changes incorporate new Assigned Protection Factors (APFs) into agency rules. The additional provisions, those OSHA says are necessary for a comprehensive workplace respiratory-protection program, address selection and use of respirators, training, medical evaluation, and fit testing. The rules are effective November 22, 2006. According to OSHA, APFs are numbers that indicate the level of protection that a respirator or class of respirators is expected to provide employees when used as part of an effective program. An APF table was included in the final standard to guide employers in the selection of air-purifying, powered air-purifying, supplied-air (or airline respirator), and self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) respirators. The agency requires employers to follow the new requirement and use APFs to choose the appropriate respirator based on the exposure limit of a contaminant and the level of that contaminant in the workplace. Employers select respirators by comparing the exposure level and the maximum concentration of the contaminant in which a particular type of respirator can be used. Known as the Maximum Use Concentration or MUC, this is generally determined by multiplying the respirator's APF by the contaminant's exposure limit. If the level of contaminant is expected to exceed the MUC, the employer must choose a respirator with a higher APF. Noted OSHA chief Edwin G. Foulke, Jr., "This standard helps employers and employees select the right respirator for the job. And with the right respirator employees will have adequate protection to be safe and healthy at work."

On October 18th, two teams from Blair Middle School in Norfolk were given the rules of their competition. The Robotics Team will pit their skills against the IT Team. Over the next six month, each team will design a ship or portion of a ship using LEGO design software. The competition is organized by the Virginia Ship Repair Foundation in partnership with Norfolk Public Schools. Michelle Carrera, VSRA Director of Workforce Development and Training, is the creative energy behind the project to raise awareness of one of our region's most important economic drivers - major ship repair. This is the inaugral year of the competition. In subsequent years, competition will be expanded to other middle schools in Norfolk and surrounding cities in Hampton Roads. There are three parts to the competition. First, the teams must research real ship designs, from which they will design their model. The new design must include at least one element of innovation not seen in their research of current designs. They will each then create the ship or portion of a ship in the LEGO software. The second element will be research into the various trades from the ship repair industry that are necessary to build their design. The third element will be a presentation to a panel of experts, who will choose the winner. Engineers from AMSEC, a member of the Virginia Ship Repair Association, have volunteered to be technical advisors to each team. They will be available to provide guidance and advise as the teams progress on their designs. Pictures of the teams can be seen at LEGO Competition Kickoff

Jim Babcock, Planning Officer for the Regional Structure Project of the Future of Hampton Roads, will address the members of VSRA at their General Membership meeting on Tuesday, November 21st. Jim is a distinguished leader in our region and is the former Chairman and CEO of First Virginia Bank of Hampton Roads. The Regional Structure Project is a multi-year, in-depth analysis aimed at "Improving the Competitiveness of Hampton Roads." The project is developing possible reforms to our regional institutions to improve decision-making, encourage shared services, and create a stronger political voice for the region. The title of his presentation is "Approaching the Third Rail without Actually Touching It."

RADM Rob Reilly, Jr., Commander of the Military Sealift Command, was the guest speaker for the October General Membership held Tuesday, October 17th at the Portsmouth Renaissance Hotel. This was the first time an MSC Commander had addressed the association's members in many years. Responsible for all the logistics ships that service the U.S. Navy fleet and deliver equipment in time of crisis for the other combat serveces, Admiral Reilly has a world-wide reach. In that role, he is the contracting authority he for the maintenance and repair of those ships. Within the Department of Defense he has unique command relationships by reporting to three commanders (TRANSCOM, the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and Fleet Forces Command). In his contingency role, he oversees the 36 ships in the prepositioning program. Admiral Reilly gave a very thorough overview of his command. His remarks were both timely and well received. They came at a time when efforts from many fronts are being exerted to insure all significant ship repair on MSC and MSP ships will be accomplished in U.S. shipyards. RADM Reilly's MSC Presentation is available here for your review.

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR Occupational Safety and Health Administration 29 CFR Part 1915 [Docket No. S–051A] RIN 1218–AC16 Updating National Consensus Standards in OSHA’s Standard for Fire Protection in Shipyard Employment. ACTION: Direct final rule. SUMMARY: On September 15, 2004, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) promulgated a new fire protection rule for shipyard employment that incorporated by reference 19 National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards. Ten of those NFPA standards had been updated by NFPA since the fire protection rule was proposed and an additional NFPA standard has been updated since the final rule was published. In this direct final rule, OSHA is replacing the references to those eleven NFPA standards by adding the most recent versions. View 29 CFR Part 1915.