Course Syllabus

Course Description

Explores an in-depth study of advanced air quality control science and management practices. Addresses health effects, environmental impacts, monitoring, modeling, and treatment.

Course Textbook(s)

Godish, T., Davis, W. T., & Fu, J. S. (2014). Air quality (5th ed.). Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.

Course Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, students should be able to:

1. Describe methods for monitoring air pollution. 2. Critique air pollutant modeling equations and software. 3. Assess health effects of air pollution. 4. Examine causes of indoor and outdoor air pollution. 5. Evaluate health risks of air pollution exposure. 6. Estimate the impact of air pollution on the environment. 7. Evaluate air pollution control technologies.

Prerequisite(s)

No prerequisite courses are required for enrollment in this course.

Credits

Upon completion of this course, the students will earn 3 hours of college credit.

CSU Online Library

The CSU Online Library is available to support your courses and programs. The online library includes databases, journals, e-books, and research guides. These resources are always accessible and can be reached through the library web page. To access the library, log into the myCSU Student Portal, and click on “CSU Online Library.” You can also access the CSU Online Library from the “My Library” button on the course menu for each course in Blackboard.

The CSU Online Library offers several reference services. E-mail (library@columbiasouthern.edu) and telephone (1.877.268.8046) assistance is available Monday – Thursday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. The library’s chat reference service, Ask a Librarian, is available 24/7; look for the chat box on the online library page.

Librarians can help you develop your research plan or assist you in finding relevant, appropriate, and timely information. Reference requests can include customized keyword search strategies, links to articles, database help, and other services.

LibGuides

Think of a LibGuide (a Library Guide) as a mini-website to help you with your assignments. It has relevant information such as databases, e-books, and websites specific to your courses. If you have any questions, please reach out to your friendly

MEE 6501, Advanced Air Quality Control

MEE 6501, Advanced Air Quality Control 1

library staff.

Click here for the LibGuide for this course.

Unit Assignments

Unit I Journal

We are about to work through Godish, Davis, and Fu’s (2014) textbook related to air quality. As such, we are going to be discussing engineering principles related to how we can engineer air quality as a means of controlling air quality. Consequently, we must first consider what constitutes air pollution. What do you believe qualifies as air pollution? Why?

Your journal entry must be at least 200 words in length. No references or citations are necessary.

Unit II Journal

In our first unit, we learned about chemical redox reactions that take place in the environment and that often create outdoor air pollution. In our reading, we were introduced to the term sink.

What is the significance of an atmospheric chemical sink—specifically when studying methods to engineer outdoor air quality? How would you explain this in layman’s terms to a company hiring you to help with the permitting process for a new facility?

Your journal entry must be at least 200 words in length. No references or citations are necessary.

Unit II Mini Project

Over the course of the next six units, you will be developing a course project. You will complete a single section of the course project in every unit by completing one section of the course project, and then you will add to it with the subsequent work in the following unit. This unit work will be in the form of unit mini projects.

Our course project will be to develop a document titled “A Permit by Rule (PBR) Evaluation for a Painting Operation” and will serve as a simulation of our work as a contract environmental engineer to an industrial organization planning a painting operation within the United States.

The Scenario:

You have contracted with an industrial organization to engineer and write a state air Permit by Rule (PBR) evaluation for a painting operation facility. According to the local state laws and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) laws, the facility must have an air permit before construction begins. Once the facility is completed, the construction air permit will then become the operational air permit for the facility.

As a result, your client wants the air permit to automatically align the painting operation facility into operational compliance with state and federal air quality laws. Consequently, it is extremely important for you to evaluate the planned painting operation against the PBR requirements in order to meet the air permit criteria, using the state guidance document and considering the equipment and chemicals already planned for the facility operations.

You have tabulated the following information from what you have gleaned from the material SDS documents and equipment technical data sheets plan (depending on your scenario selection, each “unit” represents a single aircraft, rail tank car, or vehicle):

Interior Liner Coating Material

10 gallons coating/unit 2 gallons of solvent/unit

Unit Lining Application Apply interior liners to two (2) units/day Work five (5) hours/day and four (4) days/week

Unit Lining Curing Cure interior liners of two (2) units/day Work five (5) hours/day and four (4) days/week

Interior Liner Cure Heater fuel source is natural gas-fired drying oven

Heater generates 2.1 million (MM) Btu/hr at maximum 2,500 hrs/year

Unit Lining Design Cross-draft air plenum Unit interior is the spray area

Exhaust Fan 10,000 ft3/min (CFM) 1 exhaust fan

MEE 6501, Advanced Air Quality Control 2

Air Makeup Unit 5760 ft3/min (CFM) 1 air makeup system

Filter Openings 20.0 ft2 each Two (2) filter openings

Coating WV VOC content 2.8 lb/gal coating

Coating VM Coating volume 1.0 gal

Water Content Per gal/coating 1.0 lb/gal

Water Density Per gal/water 8.34 lb/gal

Coating VW Water volume Calculation

Exempt-solvent Content Per gal/coating 0.5 lb/gal

Exempt-solvent Density Per gal/exempt solvent 6.64 lb/gal

Coating Ves Exempt solvent volume Calculation

Additionally, your state’s department of environmental quality (DEQ) has provided you the following PBR limits:

Potential to Emit (PTE) 100 tons VOC/year

Face Velocity 100 ft/min

Filter Velocity 250 ft/min

VOC/5-hour period 6.0 lbs/hr

Short-term Emissions 1.0 lbs/hr

Long-term Emissions 1.0 tons/yr

From your first visit with your client, these are your notes and process flow sketch reflecting the intended operational design:

The client has designed an interior coating spray painting system that allows the interior of each unit to be coated. The operations will involve a stripped-down unit being brought into the facility’s shop. The shop is a steel building with a finished concrete floor and a paint booth for each unit. The unit will be placed in the spray booth. The booth will be opened at one end of the booth for makeup air. The exhaust air will flow through an exhaust chamber at the other end of the unit. For each unit, once the liner application operations are completed, the forced curing (drying) operations will immediately commence.

Instructions:

1. Closely read the required reading assignment from the textbook and the unit lesson within the study guide, and consider reading the suggested reading.

2. Select the PBR evaluation document to be for only one of the following: (a) an aircraft manufacturing exterior coating paint booth, (b) a rail tank car interior lining process, or (c) a vehicle exterior coating paint booth. You will continue with this scenario selection for the remaining six units, to complete the entire document.

3. Using APA style (title page, abstract page, body with level 1 headings, and a reference page) for a research paper,

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begin drafting a PBR evaluation document. You will add to this document in every subsequent unit with another prescribed level 1 heading, building out the entire document one section at a time.

4. Make your Unit II work the first level 1 heading (center, bold) titled “General Considerations for Operation,” and describe the scenario that is presented above, while specifically describing the scenario that you selected (aircraft, tank car, or vehicle). While describing your scenario, you must include the environmental, health, and safety (EHS) implications of the work system while pulling from the textbook as well as any other relevant sources that are presented in the unit lesson in the study guide. In your description of the EHS implications of the system, be sure to discuss the natural and anthropomorphic variables causally related to outdoor air pollution. You are required to describe the scenario in at least 200 words (minimum). You may find it convenient to summarize the tabulated information in your General Considerations section of the permit for future reference throughout the rest of the course, but do not attempt to tabulate the information in the exact order as what is presented here (to avoid a high match in SafeAssign).

5. Also under the first level 1 heading, present a box and line process flow diagram (PFD) drawing of the selected scenario. See the drawing on page 375 of the textbook as an additional example of a PFD if you need assistance understanding how to draw one; do not draw the same system that is provided on that page. Do not hand-draw this, but use the “insert” and “shapes” features within Microsoft Word to construct the PFD. Simple labeled boxes and lines are adequate for this preliminary work, so it is not necessary to present specific shapes in your PFD for your selected scenario.

6. In your abstract section (page 2 of the document), write one or two sentences that reflect your work for this unit. We will be adding one sentence per unit to reflect our work as we go, with the final abstract length being about 8 to 10 sentences long.

In following units (Units III through VII), the unit lessons will contain information related to the interior surface coating operation by means of practical mathematical calculation examples. Consequently, it is imperative that you read the unit lessons within the study guide in every unit, use the math calculation examples provided in each unit lesson, and consider the current (as well as previous) material from the textbook and the additional information cited and referenced in the study guide for every unit. This project will serve as a comprehensive demonstration of your applied learning of engineering air quality.

Your completed mini project should be a minimum of one page, not counting the title page, abstract page, and reference page. You are required to use at least one outside source, which may be your textbook. All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying APA citations.

Unit III Journal

Which do you think poses a greater risk to the overall population in U.S. homes: radon or biological contaminants? Why? Do you think it could vary by region? Why?

Your journal entry must be at least 200 words in length. No references or citations are necessary.

Unit III Mini Project

As a continuation of our course project due in Unit VII (a Permit by Rule (PBR) Evaluation for Painting Operation Facility), complete the next section—VOC and ES Content per Unit—of your proposal by following the instructions carefully, and then submit your continued draft of your evaluation document into Blackboard for grading.

1. Closely read the required reading assignment from the textbook and the unit lesson in the study guide, and consider reading the suggested reading.

2. Open your proposal draft from Unit II, and make any improvements to your draft using your professor’s feedback from the Unit II Mini Project.

3. Open the Unit III Study Guide, and review the calculations demonstrated and explained (specifically regarding VOC and ES weights per gallon and per unit for our given scenario data). Be sure to use the scenario data instead of the data used in the study guide examples.

4. Make your Unit III work the second level 1 heading, titled “VOC and ES Content per Unit.” Describe the environmental, health, and safety (EHS) implications of VOCs in the work system while pulling from the textbook as well as any other relevant sources that are presented in the unit lesson in the study guide. In your description of the EHS implications of the system, be sure to discuss the natural and anthropomorphic variables causally related to indoor air pollution. Perform and present (not hand-written, but neatly typed) the calculations for both the VOC and ES values (in lbs) in this section of your project.

5. In your abstract section (page 2 of the document), write one or two sentences that reflect your work for this unit. Remember that we are adding one sentence per unit to reflect our work as we go, with the final abstract length being about 8 to 10 sentences long.

Your narrative and calculations for the VOC and ES content per unit must be presented in at least 200 words (minimum). You are required to use at least one outside source, which may be your textbook. All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying APA citations.

Unit IV Journal

Consider that an employee within a company-sponsored (OSHA required) medical monitoring program for your industry has just had an annual work physical and now reports to have pulmonary stress, hearing damage, and elevated blood lead (Pb) concentrations that were not previously reported on the employee’s pre-employment exam. As a result, the human resources manager has asked you to help determine what work-related variables may have contributed to the employee’s impacted health. What variables would you need to consider from within the work system, and what questions would you need to ask the worker to consider from within the worker’s area of residence? How would you attempt to delineate the air quality impacts from the employee’s work system and home?

MEE 6501, Advanced Air Quality Control 4

Your journal entry must be at least 200 words. No references or citations are necessary.

Unit IV Mini Project

As a continuation of our course project due in Unit VII (A Permit by Rule (PBR) Evaluation for Painting Operation Facility), complete the next section—Operational Air Emission Rates—of your proposal by following the instructions carefully, and then submit your continued draft of your evaluation document into Blackboard for grading.

1. Closely read the required reading assignment from the textbook as well as the unit lesson in the study guide. 2. Open your proposal draft from Unit III, and make any improvements to your draft using your professor’s feedback from

the Unit III Mini Project. 3. Open the Unit IV Study Guide, read the Unit IV Lesson, and then review the calculations demonstrated and explained

regarding the operational air emission rates, 5-hour average period, and potential to emit (PTE) statistical model calculations for our scenario. Be sure to use the scenario data instead of the data used in the study guide examples.

4. Make your Unit IV work the third level 1 heading, titled “Operational Air Emission Rates.” Describe the environmental, health, and safety (EHS) implications of VOCs in the work system while pulling from the textbook as well as any other relevant sources that are presented in the unit lesson in the study guide. In your description of the EHS implications of the system, be sure to discuss the natural and anthropomorphic variables causally related to adverse health effects on humans. Perform and present (not hand-written, but neatly typed) the calculations for the following in this section of your project: (a) calculating maximum hourly and annual emission rates, (b) reporting the emission rate averaged over a five-hour average period compared to the DEQ permit limits, and (c) reporting the potential to emit compared to the DEQ permit limits.

5. In your abstract section (page 2 of the document), write one or two sentences that reflect your work for this unit. Remember that we are adding one sentence per unit to reflect our work as we go, with the final abstract length being about 8 to 10 sentences long.

Your narrative and calculations for operational air emission rates must be presented in at least 200 words (minimum). You are required to use at least one outside source, which may be your textbook. All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying APA citations.

Unit V Journal

Oil field companies are often known for keeping a well-serviced fleet of trucks for their staff employees, including often replacing these trucks for aesthetic purposes in order to maintain a strong marketing position within their competitive marketplace of client oil and gas producers. One of the most notable deteriorations of oil field service vehicles with relatively little age and mileage is the exterior paint coating of the vehicle. What air pollutants might be responsible for the deterioration of the vehicle paint color, luster, and integrity? Carefully explain your answer from a chemical perspective.

Your journal entry must be at least 200 words in length. No references or citations are necessary.

Unit V Mini Project

As a continuation of our course project due in Unit VII (A Permit by Rule (PBR) Evaluation for Painting Operation Facility), complete the next section—Operational Air Emission Rates—of your proposal by following the instructions carefully, and then submit your continued draft of your evaluation document into Blackboard for grading.

1. Closely read the required reading assignment from the textbook as well as the unit lesson in the study guide. 2. Open your proposal draft from Unit IV, and make any improvements to your draft using your professor’s feedback

from the Unit IV Mini Project. 3. Open the Unit V Study Guide, read the Unit V Lesson, and then review the calculations demonstrated and explained

regarding the operational air emission rates, five-hour average period, and potential to emit (PTE) statistical model calculations for our scenario. Be sure to use the scenario data instead of the data used in the study guide examples.

4. Make your Unit V work the fourth level 1 heading titled “Operational Face and Filter Velocities.” Describe the environmental, health, and safety (EHS) implications of VOCs in the work system while pulling from the textbook as well as any other relevant sources that are presented in the unit lesson in the study guide. In your description of the EHS implications of the system, be sure to discuss the variables causally related to adverse health effects on both ecological systems and physical structures. Perform and present (not hand-written, but neatly typed) the calculations for the following in this section of your project: (a) calculate the face velocity and (b) filter velocity of your scenario’s work system.

5. In your abstract section (page 2 of the document), write one or two sentences that reflect your work for this unit. Remember that we are adding one sentence per unit to reflect our work as we go, with the final abstract length being about 8 to 10 sentences long.

Your narrative and calculations for operational air emission rates must be presented in at least 200 words (minimum). You are required to use at least one outside source, which may be your textbook. All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying APA citations.

Unit VI Journal

Consider Godish, Davis, and Fu’s (2014, p. 250) Figure 7.5; the fact that the reported industry practice is to accept sample data within 10% of the true value for statistical sampling methods and within 25% of the true value for passive sampling methods.

What problems do you perceive that this practice could pose when attempting to generalize air quality study outcomes? If you were the environmental engineer for a company tasked with monitoring emissions, reflect on how you would explain to management the benefits of stricter tolerances in your company’s monitoring.

MEE 6501, Advanced Air Quality Control 5

Your journal entry must be at least 200 words in length. No references or citations are necessary.

Unit VI Mini Project

As a continuation of our course project due in Unit VII (A Permit by Rule (PBR) Evaluation for Painting Operation Facility), complete the next section—VOC Content Minus Water and Exempt Solvents—of your proposal by following the instructions carefully, and then submit your continued draft of your evaluation document into Blackboard for grading.

1. Closely read the required reading assignment from the textbook as well as the unit lesson in the study guide. 2. Open your proposal draft from Unit V, and make any improvements to your draft, using your professor’s feedback

from the Unit V Mini Project. 3. Open the Unit VI Study Guide, read the Unit VI Lesson, and then review the calculations demonstrated and explained

regarding VOC content minus water and exempt solvent calculations for our scenario. Be sure to use the scenario data instead of the data used in the study guide examples.

4. Make your Unit VI work the fifth level 1 heading titled “VOC Content Minus Water and Exempt Solvents.” Describe the environmental, health, and safety (EHS) implications of the work system while pulling from the textbook as well as any other relevant sources that are presented in the unit lesson in the study guide. In your description of the EHS implications of the system, be sure to discuss the methods for sampling, quantitatively analyzing, and evaluating air quality.

5. Perform and present (not hand-written, but neatly typed) the calculations for the following in this section of your project: (a) gallons of water in one gallon of coating, (b) gallons of exempt solvent (ES) in one gallon of coating, and (c) pounds of VOC in one gallon of coating (less the water and ES) per day. Determine if the work system is still going to need any administrative controls to keep it is compliance with the state requirements.

6. In your abstract section (page 2 of the document), write one or two sentences that reflect your work for this unit. Remember that we are adding one sentence per unit to reflect our work as we go, with the final abstract length being about 8 to 10 sentences long.

Your narrative and calculations for operational air emission rates must be presented in at least 200 words (minimum). You are required to use at least one outside source, which may be your textbook. All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying APA citations.

Unit VII Journal

Consider the looping plume form due to windy conditions, and recall that the Gaussian model presumes a normal curve distribution. What problems do you perceive that a Gaussian model might pose when attempting to exclusively use this model in variable wind areas? How do you think the shape of the looping plume could affect the statistical model assumptions inherent in the Gaussian model?

Your journal entry must be at least 200 words in length. No references or citations are necessary.

Unit VII Course Project

To finish our course project (A Permit by Rule (PBR) Evaluation for Painting Operation Facility), complete the last section— Heater and Oven Combustion Emissions—of your proposal by following the instructions carefully, and then submit your continued draft of your evaluation document into Blackboard for grading.

1. Closely read the required reading assignment from the textbook as well as the unit lesson in the study guide. 2. Open your proposal draft from Unit VI, and make any improvements to your draft using your professor’s feedback

from the Unit VI Mini Project. 3. Open the Unit VII Study Guide, read the Unit VII Lesson, and then review the calculations demonstrated and explained

regarding heater and oven combustion emissions calculations for our scenario. Be sure to use the scenario data instead of the data used in the study guide examples.

4. Make your Unit VII work the sixth level 1 heading titled “Heater and Oven Combustion Emissions.” Describe the environmental, health, and safety (EHS) implications of the work system while pulling from the textbook as well as any other relevant sources that are presented in the unit lesson in the study guide. In your description of the EHS implications of the system, be sure to discuss the methods for statistically modeling air quality mathematically and with modeling software options.

5. Perform and present (not hand-written, but neatly typed) the calculations for the following in this section of your project (a) nitrous oxides (NOx), (b) carbon monoxide (CO), (c) particulate matter (PM), (d) volatile organic compounds (VOC), and (e) sulfur dioxide (SO2) for BOTH hourly emissions(short-term) in lb/hr AND annual (long-term) emissions in ton/year.

6. In your abstract section (page 2 of the document), write one or two sentences that reflect your work for this unit. This now completes your abstract for this document.

Your narrative and calculations for operational air emission rates must be presented in at least 200 words (minimum). You are required to use at least one outside source from the CSU Online Library. All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying APA citations.

Unit VIII Journal

We have just spent the last seven units engineering air quality to meet federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and state air quality control limits. How will you be able to apply what you learned in this course to your current or future work within your own state within the United States, or within a different country (if you do not reside in the United States)?

Your journal entry must be at least 200 words in length. No references or citations are necessary.

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APA Guidelines

The application of the APA writing style shall be practical, functional, and appropriate to each academic level, with the primary purpose being the documentation (citation) of sources. CSU requires that students use APA style for certain papers and projects. Students should always carefully read and follow assignment directions and review the associated grading rubric when available. Students can find The CSU Citation Guide by clicking here. This document includes examples and sample papers and provides information on how to contact the CSU Writing Center.

Grading Rubrics

This course utilizes analytic grading rubrics as tools for your professor in assigning grades for all learning activities. Each rubric serves as a guide that communicates the expectations of the learning activity and describes the criteria for each level of achievement. In addition, a rubric is a reference tool that lists evaluation criteria and can help you organize your efforts to meet the requirements of that learning activity. It is imperative for you to familiarize yourself with these rubrics because these are the primary tools your professor uses for assessing learning activities.

Rubric categories include (1) Journal, (2) Assessment (Written Response), and (3) Assignment. However, it is possible that not all of the listed rubric types will be used in a single course (e.g., some courses may not have Assessments).

The Journal rubric can be found within Unit I’s Journal submission instructions.

The Assessment (Written Response) rubric can be found embedded in a link within the directions for each Unit Assessment. However, these rubrics will only be used when written-response questions appear within the Assessment.

Each Assignment type (e.g., article critique, case study, research paper) will have its own rubric. The Assignment rubrics are built into Blackboard, allowing students to review them prior to beginning the Assignment and again once the Assignment has been scored. This rubric can be accessed via the Assignment link located within the unit where it is to be submitted. Students may also access the rubric through the course menu by selecting “Tools” and then “My Grades.”

Again, it is vitally important for you to become familiar with these rubrics because their application to your Journals, Assessments, and Assignments is the method by which your instructor assigns all grades.

Communication Forums

These are nongraded discussion forums that allow you to communicate with your professor and other students. Participation in these discussion forums is encouraged but not required. You can access these forums with the buttons in the Course Menu. Instructions for subscribing/unsubscribing to these forums are provided below.

Once you have completed Unit VIII, you MUST unsubscribe from the forum; otherwise, you will continue to receive e-mail updates from the forum. You will not be able to unsubscribe after your course end date.

Click here for instructions on how to subscribe/unsubscribe and post to the Communication Forums.

Ask the Professor

This communication forum provides you with an opportunity to ask your professor general or course content questions. Questions may focus on Blackboard locations of online course components, textbook or course content elaboration, additional guidance on assessment requirements, or general advice from other students.

Questions that are specific in nature, such as inquiries regarding assessment/assignment grades or personal accommodation requests, are NOT to be posted on this forum. If you have questions, comments, or concerns of a non- public nature, please feel free to e-mail your professor. Responses to your post will be addressed or e-mailed by the professor within 48 hours.

Before posting, please ensure that you have read all relevant course documentation, including the syllabus, assessment/assignment instructions, faculty feedback, and other important information.

Student Break Room

This communication forum allows for casual conversation with your classmates. Communication on this forum should always maintain a standard of appropriateness and respect for your fellow classmates. This forum should NOT be used to share assessment answers.

Schedule/Grading

The following pages contain a printable Course Schedule to assist you through this course. By following this schedule, you will be assured that you will complete the course within the time allotted.

MEE 6501, Advanced Air Quality Control 7

Unit I The Atmosphere and Atmospheric Pollutants [ Weight: 11% ]

Read/View: Unit I Study Guide Chapter 1: Atmosphere, pp. 1-23 Chapter 2: Atmospheric Pollution and Pollutants, pp. 25-73

Submit: Unit I Journal Unit I Assessment

2% 9%

Unit II Engineering for Outdoor Air Quality [ Weight: 12% ]

Read/View: Unit II Study Guide Chapter 4: Atmospheric Effects, pp. 101-150

Submit: Unit II Journal Unit II Mini Project

2% 10%

Unit III Engineering for Indoor Air Quality [ Weight: 13% ]

Read/View: Unit III Study Guide Chapter 11: Indoor Air Quality, pp. 389-432

Submit: Unit III Journal Unit III Mini Project

2% 11%

Unit IV Engineering Air Quality for Human Health [ Weight: 13% ]

Read/View: Unit IV Study Guide Chapter 5: Health Effects, pp. 155-197 Chapter 12: Environmental Noise, pp. 437-459

Submit: Unit IV Journal Unit IV Mini Project

2% 11%

Unit V Engineering Air Quality for Ecological and Structural Health [ Weight: 13% ]

Read/View: Unit V Study Guide Chapter 6: Welfare Effects, pp. 203-236

Submit: Unit V Journal Unit V Mini Project

2% 11%

Unit VI Engineering Air Quality Monitoring Systems [ Weight: 13% ]

Read/View: Unit VI Study Guide Chapter 7: Air Quality and Emissions Assessment, pp. 239-269 Chapter 8: Regulation and Public Policy, pp. 283-326

Submit: Unit VI Journal Unit VI Mini Project

2% 11%

MEE 6501, Advanced Air Quality Control 8

Unit VII Engineering Air Quality Monitoring Systems, cont. [ Weight: 14% ]

Read/View: Unit VII Study Guide Chapter 3: Atmospheric Dispersion, Transport, and Deposition, pp. 77-98 Chapter 7: Air Quality and Emissions Assessment, pp. 269-277

Submit: Unit VII Journal Unit VII Course Project

2% 12%

Unit VIII Utilizing Pollution Control Technologies for Engineered Air Quality Control [ Weight: 11% ]

Read/View: Unit VIII Study Guide Chapter 9: Control of Motor Vehicle Emissions, pp. 331-352 Chapter 10: Control of Emissions from Stationary Sources, pp. 355-385

Submit: Unit VIII Journal Unit VIII Assessment

2% 9%

MEE 6501, Advanced Air Quality Control 9

1

Course Learning Outcomes for Unit III

Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to:

2. Evaluate how accountability affects performance management in safety management programs. 2.1 Assess the importance of establishing safety accountability measures for managers,

employees, and safety professionals.

3. Analyze the importance of clarity in assigning safety-related job tasks. 3.1 Appraise the assignment of safety-related job tasks.

6. Relate continuous improvement principles to safety management concepts. 6.1 Apply the Plan-Do-Check-Act framework to resolve a safety deficiency.

Reading Assignment

Chapter 6: Safety Professionals as Culture Change Agents

Chapter 7: The Plan-Do-Check-Act Concept (PDCA)

Chapter 8: Management Leadership and Employee Participation: Section 3.0 of Z10

Chapter 9: Planning: Section 4.0 of Z10

Chapter 10: Implementation and Operation: Section 5.0 of Z10

Unit Lesson

In this unit, we will be considering a key, central concept of safety and health management systems. Given that safety and health management approaches are based on the central tenets of Total Quality Management (TQM), this unit lesson is reminiscent of what one might read in a quality management class. In essence, management systems are based on a continuous improvement cycle that involves planning, self-evaluation, and acting set forth in a particular sequence. As you read through the materials for this unit, you will see that this cycle works in a fashion that allows organizations to base decisions and actions on information in order to improve.

Planning is an essential part of our daily activities. We plan on what time to get up in the morning, what to prepare for breakfast, and what route we will take to get to work. The remainder of the day usually follows a similar pattern of planning. Sometimes our plans do not work the way we intended. We planned to have eggs for breakfast, but there were no eggs in the refrigerator, so we had cereal. The point is that effective planning requires the right information at the right time. If we knew that we did not have eggs, then they would not have been included in the choices. Did we know we had English muffins? They might have been a better choice than cereal.

A recurring framework in ANSI/AIHA Z10 is Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA). The four steps in the process are not linear but represent a continuous cycle for continuous improvement. Indeed, one does not necessarily have to

UNIT III STUDY GUIDE

Planning, Leadership, and Employee Involvement

2

UNIT x STUDY GUIDE

Title

start at a given point in the cycle. One could start on any of the four points. For instance, one could choose to check on the preliminary results of a project, choose to plan how to improve a project that has been implemented, or decide to move forward with implementation of an agreed upon plan. Going back to the breakfast example, if I already have eggs because of good planning in making the grocery list, then I could cook them for breakfast, or Do. If I find I do not have them, that is, Check, then I can pick some up later in the day, or Act. That will make planning for the next day’s breakfast a bit easier. This is a simplified example, but I hope you get the point. Continuous improvement requires that one apply a systematic means of evaluating the situation and acting on the findings. The Plan, Do, Check, Act approach helps to provide a system that has proven to work well in the management world.

The bottom line here for our purposes is that the PDCA cycle, although borrowed from other successful management systems efforts, is important for an effective safety management system (SMS) as well. Also, it is important to remember that the purpose of an SMS is to reduce the risk of occupational injuries, illnesses, and fatalities.

In applying this concept to evaluating a given workplace, first, we need to determine if there is a management system in place. At this point, we have already moved over to Check. If there is a system, and usually there is some kind of system though it may only cover the basics, we then need to evaluate how well it identifies, analyzes, prioritizes, and controls workplace conditions that can cause injuries, illnesses, and fatalities. If there is no SMS or if the SMS is not particularly

sophisticated, then we will need to establish processes that identify, analyze, prioritize, and control these unwanted conditions.

Two very important components of any successful safety management system are management leadership and employee participation (Manuele, 2014). In essence, management leadership is significant to the success of the safety and health efforts because it is critical that the leadership of the organization makes it clear that safety and health is a core value of the organization. This is often accomplished when key leaders consistently stress the importance of safety in the organization. They walk the talk, support the efforts of employees and employee committees on safety related issues, and provide funding necessary to assure implementation of hazard control measures. Celebrating success of the program with employees can also go a long way toward building a culture that embraces safety. Employee involvement is important because allowing employees to have input and control over safety related policies and practices helps to ensure their buy-in of the program. Consider something as simple as selecting safety glasses for workers. If employees are offered a number of styles to choose from and have input on what styles are made available, it just makes sense that they will be more likely to wear them as compared to purchasing the cheapest, nerdiest looking safety glasses on the market.

While it is recognized that management leadership and commitment must come first, the management system cannot succeed without employee involvement. Together, management and employees define the system of expected behavior, or culture, that drives the occupational safety and health (OSH) program. Committed leadership that leads by example and engaged, empowered employees can take the organization where it needs to go with respect to both safety and quality.

The PDCA Cycle (Karn-b, 2009)

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With all this said, where does the safety professional fit in? The safety professional has a number of critical roles to play to ensure the success of the organization’s safety and health efforts. He or she serves as the resident subject matter expert on more technical aspects of safety and health. There is also a coordinating role, however, in keeping the organizational leadership and employees involved and engaged in the safety effort. Thus, the safety professional acts as a rudder and recommends adjustments in activities that will keep the safety culture moving in the desired direction. Again, this can be considered a part of Check in the PDCA cycle. The safety professional will likely play other routine, typical functions as well such as overseeing and coordinating compliance and training efforts.

Manuele (2014) stresses that a successful safety culture starts with a clearly defined set of expectations for all levels of an organization in regards to the OSH program. Responsibility and authority must be clearly defined, and all must be held accountable for their actions or inactions. As previously discussed, opportunities for employee involvement are critical. Opportunities to participate through activities such as hazard reviews, incident investigation, health and safety committees, inspections and audits, and the development of training programs and procedures should be given to employees. Once again, making workplace safety a participative activity will encourage employees to take ownership of their own safety and the safety of those around them.

Inadequate management, leadership, and employee involvement have been identified as critical causal factors in a number of serious incidents in recent years, most notably the BP refinery explosion in Texas in 2005 and the Columbia shuttle disaster in 2003. Lessons learned from these and other incidents should be incorporated into every safety management system.

The importance and effect of participation was demonstrated in the 1920s in what are now called the Hawthorne Studies (Roughton & Mercurio, 2002). What started out as research into employee productivity related to various working conditions revealed that the simple act of management allowing employees to participate in discussions regarding work-related improvements improved productivity even if no changes were made. This

led researchers down a new path to investigate the social environment in the workplace. The full implications of the Hawthorne Study results continue to be debated, but the essence remains true: employee involvement improves the culture.

This far, this unit lesson has discussed employee involvement, management commitment, and the PDCA approach. There were some allusions to the relationship between the two, but a clear explication of the relationship is worth exploring further. In essence, organizational leaders must be committed not only to the day-to-day routine of a given facility’s safety and health efforts, but they must also be committed to continuous improvement, and the PDCA approach has been demonstrated time and time again to serve as a useful tool for organizational self-evaluation and improvement. Likewise, the need for employee involvement in order to make the safety program a success is also closely tied to the PDCA approach because it is the employees themselves who are doing a good portion of the work with respect to safety and health program implementation. This high level of involvement makes them key players in the PDCA process, which also helps to ensure a safer workplace in return for their efforts.

This unit lesson has focused on the importance of leadership commitment and the involvement of employees in successful safety management systems based programs. These observations were also integrated with a discussion of the Plan-Do-Check-Act approach common to management systems-based continuous improvement efforts. These are all important, closely related approaches necessary for safety cultures to take hold in organizations. They are also responsible for successful quality and safety efforts implemented by many companies throughout the world.

Extinguishing fires at the BP refinery in Texas City following a 2005 explosion (Chemical Safety and Hazards Investigation Board, 2005)

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Karn-b. (2009, February 5). PDCA-Cycle [Image]. Retrieved from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PDCA-Cycle.png

Chemical Safety and Hazards Investigation Board. (2005, March 23). BP plant explosion-1 lowres2 [Image]. Retrieved from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BP_PLANT_EXPLOSION-1_lowres2.jpg

Manuele, F. A. (2014). Advanced safety management: Focusing on Z10 and serious injury prevention (2nd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.

Roughton, J. E., & Mercurio, J. J. (2002). Developing an effective safety culture: A leadership approach. Boston, MA: Butterworth-Heinemann.

Suggested Reading

In order to access the following resources, click the links below.

The articles and webpages below are suggested readings or resources that can provide further information on operational safety and training:

Hansen, L. L. (2005). Stepping up to operational safety excellence. Occupational Hazards, 67(5), 43–47. Retrieved from https://libraryresources.waldorf.edu/login?auth=CAS&url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?dire ct=true&db=bth&AN=17425351&site=ehost-live&scope=site

Occupational Safety & Health Administration. (2001). How to plan for workplace emergencies and evacuations (OSHA Publication No. 3088, Rev. ed.). Retrieved from https://www.osha.gov/Publications/osha3088.pdf

Occupational Safety & Health Administration. (1998). Training requirements in OSHA standards (OSHA Publication No. 2254, Rev. ed.). Retrieved from https://www.osha.gov/Publications/osha2254.pdf

Learning Activities (Non-Graded)

Non-graded Learning Activities are provided to aid students in their course of study. You do not have to submit them. If you have questions, contact your instructor for further guidance and information.

Evaluating Management Leadership and Employee Participation

Note: This activity can be used as one of the building blocks of the Unit VIII Project.

Using Chapter 8 of the course textbook and the other readings in this unit as guides, evaluate management leadership, OHSMS policy, responsibility and authority, and employee participation at your current organization or an organization with which you are familiar. For objective evidence to support your evaluation, look for organizational documents such as safety manuals and instructions, safe operating procedures, and job hazard analyses and records such as emails or letters from management to employees, safety meeting minutes, mishap logs, audit reports, OSHA citations, inspection reports, risk assessments, and training records. Interview management personnel, supervisors, and employees, and walk through some workplaces to observe conditions for yourself.

Prepare a report to management that summarizes the positive and negative results of the evaluation and provides recommendations for improvement.

Unit Scholarly Activity

You were recently hired as an Occupational Safety and Health consultant for Gemstone Fabricators, which is a medium sized manufacturing facility that makes stainless steel counters, containers, and carts for the food prep and restaurant industries. Several years ago, Gemstone decided it wanted to become an OSHA VPP site. It also wants to send the application to OSHA in the upcoming year. Further, there is a keen interest to align with the ANSI/AIHA Z10 standard.

In going through the application submission materials, you noticed something that threw up a red flag, however. Although there was an accountability requirement specified in front-line workers’ performance evaluation documentation for safety performance, there was no such requirement in the performance evaluation documentation for supervisors, managers, or executives. Your discussions with employees also suggest that, although the employer wants the front-line workers to be heavily involved in the safety effort, they are not always sure exactly what they are supposed to be doing to help move the company’s safety programs forward.

Another issue that concerns you is that the effort to implement a safety and health management systems approach appears to be somewhat piecemeal. You are finding it difficult to identify a clear Plan-Do-Check-Act approach to continuous improvement.

Please compose a two-page document for your client to include your evaluation of these deficiencies along with an explanation of the significance of these problems in relation to the safety and health management systems approach. Your goal is to help the employer understand why these issues need to be attended to prior to submitting your application. In your response, be sure to do the following things:

Include an introduction that establishes the issues and provides necessary background information. Assess the importance of establishing safety accountability measures for managers, employees, and safety professionals. Appraise the assignment of safety-related job tasks. Apply the Plan-Do-Check-Act framework to resolve a safety deficiency.

Your paper must be a minimum of two pages, and it should be in APA format. You must use a minimum of one scholarly resource. Any information from this source should be cited and referenced in accordance to APA guidelines.