Where can you go to find information about available federal programs without having to waste time and resources navigating the federal bureaucracy?BusinessUSA
Find opportunities to sell to the Federal Government.
BusinessUSA is a platform for you to access services you may need to grow your firm and succeed: technical assistance to start a business, access to financing, assistance in exporting and more.
BusinessUSA combines information and services from 10 different government agencies through one consolidated website and coordinated telephone support through a single 1-800 number.
The BusinessUSA website already presents hundreds of business resources, in one place.
Looking for opportunities to supply your products to the US government, its agencies, or contractors?
(Guest post by PMPA MemberDarlene Miller. BusinessUSA is a result of proposals made by the Presidents Council on Jobs and Effectiveness, of which Ms. Miller is a member.)
I’d be very careful trying “Facetime” when this “Apple iPhone” Single Gas Burner Stove is working!
It says it's an iphone right on the label!
The good news is that these ‘Apple iphone’ stoves are being confiscated by Chinese Government officials.
But not because of Intellectual Property Law Violations.
They are being pulled because they are UNSAFE.
So when someone starts to tell you about how things are improving in China for IP protections and that China is becoming more a nation ruled by ‘law”- my advice is to maintain a healthy sense of skepticism.
From what we see when laws are enforced, they are enforced selectively, and almost always against the ‘foreigner’ with the deepest pockets.
We were priveleged to have had a face to face meeting with Director Michaels of OSHA earlier this year.
We brought up the topic of harsh regulatory tone.
Director Michaels characterized the agency as ‘small and needing strong means to remain effective.’
We congratulated him on the agency’s success at portraying themselves as aggressive regulators.
The OSHA website has this to say:
“OSHA is a small agency; with our state partners we have approximately 2,200 inspectors responsible for the health and safety of 130 million workers, employed at more than 8 million worksites around the nation – which translates to about one compliance officer for every 59,000 workers.”
Before getting too sympathetic, a review of some facts might be in order:
Penalties doubled!
Actually average proposed penalties are up by 102%
Both Bark and Bite are big! OSHA statistics reveal that the average proposed penalty for a Serious violation doubled from $1,053 in 2010 to $2,132 in 2011- a 102% increase!
OSHA Budget is up!
FY 2011: $573,096,000
FY 2012: $583,386,000
Although by Washington DC standards a little over half a billion dollars and an increase of $10.3 million dollars probably doesn’t seem like much money at all.
“Dr. David Michaels, Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA, recently stated that the higher penalties are still too low when compared to other regulatory agencies. He defended the higher penalties as an important tool in OSHA’s overall efforts to increase enforcement. In our view, this increase comes as no surprise and employers can expect even higher penalties in 2012 and beyond. “
OSHA seems to be taking this size thing to heart!
Since higher penalties remain an important tool and are still too low, and since OSHA cannot practically visit all 7 million workplaces it makes sense for employers to proactively address OSHA compliance.
When OSHA arrives, they will be itchin’ to do a great job.
The first place to start would be how does a small agency prioritize its enforcement resources?
Inspection Priorities!
1. Imminent danger situations—hazards that could cause death or serious physical harm— receive top priority.
2. Fatalities and catastrophes—incidents that involve a death or the hospitalization of three or more employees—come next.
3. Complaints—allegations of hazards or violations also receive a high priority.
4. Referrals of hazard information from other federal, state or local agencies, individuals, organizations or the media receive consideration for inspection.
5. Follow-ups—checks for abatement of violations cited during previous inspections—are also conducted by the agency in certain circumstances.
6. Planned or programmed investigations— inspections aimed at specific high-hazard industries or individual workplaces that have experienced high rates of injuries and illnesses— also receive priority.
For more on these inspection priorities consult the OSHA Fact Sheet link below.
Back to Basics!
Train your people in
Personal Protective Equipment,
Lockout- Tagout,
Right To Know Haz Comm,
Slips Falls Tripping Hazards,
Machine Guarding,
Powered Industrial Trucks ,
Electrical- Wiring and General,
You can intelligently manage your risk of OSHA Enforcement and penalties by asking yourself these three questions and then doing something about them:
Do you have a process for managing safety?
Is it followed?
Is it effective?
As employers we have a general duty to maintain a safe workplace. Let’s take our duty seriously. You know the folks from OSHA will.
Certain materials and design features are more prone to the creation of burrs, especially ductile materials, intersections of machined features, and sometimes threads.
Can you really afford to remove these by hand from 50,000 parts produced?
Burrs are unwanted raised material remaining on a machined part as a result of prior manufacturing operations.
Burr removal is important because burrs can:
Prevent proper assembly of components;
Create a safety hazard (Cuts) for employees handling the parts;
Interfere with or prevent proper functionality of parts after assembly;
Contaminate systems when they break off after assembly and in use.
PMPA member Vectron Deburring uses thermal or electrochemical processes to assure burr removal.
Thermal deburring is a batch process involving very intense heat in very short durations. It’s like being inside an explosion.
Electrochemical deburring applies an electrical current to the areas where the burrs are located. The current carried by the electrolyte actually dissolves the burr material. This process can actually create a controlled radius on the workpiece by its action.
At 5:45 P.M. on February 7, a PMPA member posted a question about how to to get rid of burrs on the threads of his 304 stainless parts on PMPA’s members only Quality Listserve.
By 8:00 A.M. on February 8th, he had received 4 responses from companies located in three states and one province in Canada- all naming Vectron Deburring as their preferred source.
PMPA Listserves- Quality, Manufacturing and Technical, Corporate, Human Resources and others- connect members with solutions to problems and tools they can use.
Vectron loves to deburr.
PMPA would love to connect you with the answers that you need to stay sustainable and successful.
The mechanical properties of 17-4 PH must be fully developed by age hardening from Condition A in order to reduce risk of failure and to take full advantage of the material’s capabilities.
Dodge Viper Throttles made by Bouchillon feature 17-4 PH shafts
17-4 PH is a martensitic precipitation hardening (age hardening) stainless steel that can provide both high strength and excellent corrosion resistance.
In the annealed (solution treated condition- Condition A) the density of this material is 0.280 lb/in^3.
H 900 density is 0.282 lb/in^3.
H 1075 density is 0.283 lb/in^3.
H 1150 density is 0.284 lb/in^3.
These changes in density values show that this alloy undergoes a volume contraction when it is hardened. This volume contraction is predictable and must be taken into account if you are trying to hold close tolerances.
The contraction factor for the change from Condition A to Condition H 900 ranges from 0.0004 to 0.0006 in/in or (mm/mm).
Hardening from Condition A to Condition H 1150 contracts in the range of approximately 0.0009 to 0.0012 in/ in or (mm/mm).
Here are three reasons to NOT use 17-4 PH in the Condition A state:
The structure is untempered martensite. This means low fracture toughness.
The structure is untempered martensite. This means low ductility.
Without age hardening, this material is more susceptible to stress corrosion cracking.
17-4 PH martensitic stainless steel can achieve high strength and superior corrosion resistance when precipitation hardened from Condition A to one of the Condition H tempers. It is used in many high performance applications made by our industry including valve parts for oilfield and chemical plant use; Fittings for aerospace and aircraft use; Jet engine componentry; Fasteners; Shafts for pumps; Dodge Viper carburetors! Many others.
In applications where high performance is mandatory, it is also mandatory to follow needed thermal treatment practices to assure the development of the full range of material properties that the material can provide.
For the savvy machinist, that also means understanding the pootential effect of that thermal treatment on final size due to dimensional contraction when hardened.
The money saved by not training won’t begin to coverthe direct and indirect costs of failing to train, let alone actual damages, consequential damages, potential liability, and possible loss of customers or even the business itself.
What is your training budget this year?
How does it compare to your cost of claims last year?
29th Edition of Machinery's Handbook now available.
I have relied on my 20th Edition copy since I entered the metalworking industry as a supervisor in the early 1980’s. It has served me well through the years, and while respectfully used, is showing evidence of ‘serious use’- missing thumb tabs, dust jacket in tatters, a host of bookmarks…
Here are 5 reasons why I’ll probably upgrade to the new 29th Edition:
New sections added on Micromachining, Statistics, and Calculating Thread Dimensions;
Expanded Metric content. The jobs we see in our shops today are increasingly metric as we serve a growing global market;
Easier to use- they have added tables of contents at the beginning of each section;
Extensive revisions to key sections including Mathematics, Gaging and Dimensioning, and Machining Operations
It has been re-typeset (including tables and equations) and many figures redrawn.
Now the problem for me is choice: Do I get the ‘regular edition’ to replaceaugmentmy current 20th edition handbook? Do I jump into the electronic age with the CD version? Or do I acknowledge I no longer have the eyes of a younger man and buy the “larger print” edition?
It’s time for me to buy. My investment in the 20th Edition sure paid off. How about you?
Which would you choose? What other books have you found critical to your practice in our precision metalworking field?
Machinery’s Handbook 29th Edition can be purchased direct from Industrial Press.
The FMCSA has posted an FAQ page about the ban on hand held cellular phones by commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers.
Multitasking is against the law.
“When you are at the wheel, driving safely should be your only focus.”
Here are some highlights:
Are holders of a commercial driver’s license (CDL) subject to the regulation only when driving a CMV, as defined in 49 CFR 383.5, or any vehicle?
CDL holders are subject to the Federal rule only when driving a CMV.
What is required of the employer in terms of company policy or training?
The rule does not require motor carriers to establish written policies in terms of company policy or training programs for their drivers. However, employers are prohibited from allowing or requiring their drivers to use hand-held mobile phones. A motor carrier may establish policies or practices that make it clear that the employer does not require or allow hand-held mobile telephone use while driving a CMV in interstate commerce. The carrier is responsible for its drivers’ conduct.
“In the minutes before the 5:14 a.m. crash, the driver made three phone calls, the last one at 5:14.”
Is dialing a phone number allowed under this rule?
No. Dialing a mobile telephone while operating a CMV in interstate commerce is prohibited by the rule. A driver can initiate, answer, or terminate a call by touching a single button on a mobile telephone, earpiece, steering wheel, or instrument panel – comparable to using vehicle controls or instrument panel functions, such as the radio or climate control system.
Can a driver reach for a mobile telephone even if he/she intends to use the hands-free function?
No. In order to comply with this rule, a driver must have his or her mobile telephone located where the driver is able to initiate, answer, or terminate a call by touching a single button while the driver is in the seated driving position and properly restrained by a seat belt. If the mobile telephone is not close to the driver and operable while the driver is restrained by properly installed and adjusted seat belts, then the driver is considered to be reaching for the mobile phone, which is prohibited by the rule.
