<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by TreeCo:
It seems to me this is a sore point with Tim. I thought the main point was about the safety of the equipment we are using. It looks like from what Tim is saying is that it's about treating the EC standard as unacceptable because they don't accept ANSI standards. I think we, the end users of this equipment are being screwed because of the politics involved. It is just me....or does Tim seem combative every time the EC standards are mentioned?
Tim,
Are you saying the EC standards are unsafe? I don't see anything in your posting that suggest you would even want ansi to accept the EC standards. If ansi says each leg strap needs to be 5k in strength.....how about you trying to get that changed? It sounds like a lot of overkill to me.(no pun intended).
I feel confident that both ansi standards and the EC standards when followed lead to safe equipment for the tree care business. It's how we use our equipment and errors in judgement that cause injuries in arboriculture. Every now and then it's just plain bad luck too.
Dan
Atlanta[/QB]<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
Dan,
I was asked my opinion:
"Tim in your opinion do you think that ANSI should accept CE standards?
Question two. Do you think the Euro standards are not safe?
It’s a small world after all.
Mark I would love to here your opinion on this.
Tony"
I replied:
"No. If an American company wants to sell equipment in Europe, they pay to have the CE test and have the CE label applied. The reverse should hold true for non-US companies. If they want to sell in the US, they should have their gear tested to the appropriate standard, in this case Type II saddle, ANSI A10.14-1991, and should be labeled as dictated by the standard."
I concur that the main point is about safety, and I never suggested that any standard is less safe or promoted unsafe practices or equipment.
The question was specifically about one set of safety standards being accepted by another. Until we have an internationally accepted safety standard, I think that each country/region should continue to follow their current safety standard. If you travel to another country, or even state for that matter, aren’t you bound by those regions laws? If the speed limit in your state is 75 MPH/120 KPH, would you feel justified traveling at that speed in another. Would the state police accept your argument?
My comment about US companies selling in the CE market was not addressed. Why is it acceptable for US companies to get CE approval before selling in the European market, but OK for the European companies to sell in the US without meeting the ANSI Standard?
It is a bit ironical that some people want the ANSI to accept CE ratings that are lower than the ANSI standards, but have never suggested that the CE should adopt ANSI. The same people are also asking about which standard is safer. To me it seems less safe to lower strength ratings than to raise them.
Safety is an extremely important point, and one that I am very passionate about. (Please email me off the forum if you would like me to email you the spreadsheet I put together that summarizes 18 years of OSHA fatality data.) The current US safety standard, the ANSI Z133.1 –2000, is not perfect, but it is a huge step in the right direction. The standard came about in 1968 because of a fatality in the tree care profession. It has been revised and updated about every five years since then by a committee of industry experts the Accredited Standards Committee (ASC Z133). The revisions reflect the experience of the ASC and are often based on actual accidents and fatalities. The standards are influenced somewhat by OSHA regulations as well.
We all need to be working towards zero accidents in our profession. Many of the fatalities and accidents that I have reviewed happened because people did not follow any safety standard. We do have accepted standards (the Z and CE) and I think that we should follow whatever standard applies. If I am climbing/training in Europe, I will follow the CE standard, when I am in the US I follow the Z. There is no shortage of appropriate equipment available to us, so I see no credible reason not to follow the standard. As a former business owner I also do not see a reason to expose myself to a potential violation/fine from OSHA by allowing un-approved equipment to be used.
Sorry for the rant, but I was asked my opinion of the matter.
Thanks,
TMW
PS How well do you all know the safety standard that applies to you? Do you review what you have done during the work day to see if there were any violations?
