Environmental and Safety Regulations IncreaseLaboratory managers share insights in overcoming new obstacles.by Erin P. T. Canning
James Ball
Inorganics Supervisor/Special Projects Coordinator, McCoy & McCoy Labs | In a survey conducted in February 2007, 71.3% of Laboratory Equipment's readers reported an increase in safety and environmental regulations. Given the demands these regulations put on labs, we asked a number of our "Great Laboratory Managers" to share their experiences in handling these new challenges.
Double the workloadGoing into effect in 2008, the EPA Stage 2 Disinfectants and Disinfection Byproducts Rule was created for the purpose of strengthening protection against microbial contaminants. While imposed for good reason, the rule also will increase the number of trihalomethane (THM) and haloacetic acid (HAA5) compounds in drinking water samples that need to be tested.
For McCoy & McCoy Laboratories in Madisonville, Ky., this means that instead of testing samples from five locations, the lab will now have to test samples from between ten to 12 locations. "This will come close to doubling the number of samples we get for those tests," says James Ball, the labs inorganics supervisor/special projects coordinator.
Other laboratory managers share Ball's concern. "The continued addition of drinking water analytes and the enforced monitoring of those analytes have added daily demand to our current workload. Specifically, monitoring for disinfection byproducts (HAA5s/THMs) and reduction in detection levels of currently regulated parameters has impeded our output," reports another lab manager.The EPA announced the rule a few years ago, so Ball's lab has been preparing by purchasing more equipment and hiring more analysts to handle the increased workload. "As a lab, we try to stay ahead of new methods and regulations so that once they are in place we are ready for them. This helps us provide our customers with the new testing they need and maintain our quality of service," says Ball.
To handle the additional samples required, one lab purchased an ICP-MS for lower detection limits on regulated drinking water metals, as well as an additional GC-MS for detection of disinfection byproducts. McCoy & McCoy Labs also invested in a new GC to handle the larger sample load. Ball explains, "With the automation these give, we can increase our capacity without a large increase in the manpower needed."
Ernest (Ernie) J. Gemeinhart
Research Specialist and Lab Manager, Biomedical Polymer Science Laboratory, University of Illinois at Chicago | In addition, Ball has explored more efficient ways to use pre-existing equipment and manpower to handle the larger sample load while still providing customers with quality results on a timely basis. Such innovative thinking is necessary as regulations continue to evolve.
Optimizing procedures For some labs, the greatest challenge has been workplace safety regulations and the training they involve. However, these increased requirements have had little impact on the daily operations of at least one lab.
Ernie Gemeinhart has been laboratory manager of the Biomedical Polymer Science Laboratory at the University of Illinois at Chicago, Ill., since it opened in 2001. Because the lab is young and Gemeinhart has been involved from the start, this manager has had little difficulty with additional regulations. Whereas some established labs may have "hidden" safety issues that need to be addressed, Gemeinhart and his associates are able to make the appropriate adjustments to their operations as the safety office implements new rules. "This makes a huge difference," says Gemeinhart.
To handle these mandates, other labs have hired safety officers to boost efficiency and reduce redundant efforts. These individuals manage many aspects of safety and environmental regulations, including safety training. "Training is completed as part of our new hire orientation," adds one manager.
Sue Mecham, laboratory manager of Polymer Solutions in Blacksburg, Va., felt it necessary to promote one of her senior laboratory technicians, Suzanne Hamm, to the role of safety coordinator after relocating to a larger facility in early 2007.
Sue Mecham
Laboratory Manager, Polymer Solutions, Inc. | In moving from a two-lab operation to a five-lab operation, "the added space and equipment, as well as the change to more dedicated spaces, provided us with many new issues to deal with," Mecham explains. "We had multiple instances where we could not get equipment fixed fast enough, chemicals were used up and not replaced, and safety and housekeeping controls were not documented correctly." But the safety coordinator solved these and other problems by developing new systems and procedures concerning issues such as fire safety and prevention, chemical inventory, and biohazard sample handling and waste disposal.
But in the end, whether a lab has a dedicated safety officer or purchases new, more efficient equipment, "Quick action, response, and persistent monitoring are key to relieving the burden of these regulations," reminds Gemeinhart.
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