For too many years at academic institutions and some companies, health, safety, and the environment have been something extra. It's time that they become part of the process. 

University's safety policies are a helpful framework for many labs.

There are surely going to be times when experiments must continue running on their own while you do other things (go out to lunch or home to sleep). At these times, it’s important to consider all the things that could go wrong in your absence and to prepare for them.

Signing a rules agreement does several things. It makes you decide what the rules and policies are going to be. It shows everyone that you are concerned about health and safety. It keeps a permanent record of your safety standards.

Inspections get people involved in thinking about hazards and unsafe practices in the workplace. These should be done at least four times a year (monthly is better).

Large organizations involved in research and production typically handle large volumes of chemical inventory that require different types of storage and tracking. When a laboratory environment is part of the mix, managing the chemical inventory used by the lab presents a challenge to lab managers and environment, health, and safety (EHS) professionals, who must submit regulatory reports that accurately reflect the status of chemicals on-site. Ensuring that the chemical inventory data is accurate is challenging; providing that information in regulatory reports can be a time-consuming and frustrating task if it is not automated.

Everyone likes to receive a reward for good performance. It can be a merit raise, it can be a promotion, or it can be praise from a superior. Good performance deserves to be recognized and rewarded. Safety performance is no different. When it’s done right, it should be recognized.

There’s a tendency to think that if someone is appointed safety coordinator, they have to do all the work for the rest of us. False! A coordinator is just that. He or she is not a “parent.” Each person needs to be responsible for safety in general and for a specific part of the program in particular. Here’s a list of a number of different specific assignments:

Employees, faculty, staff, and students need to be encouraged to develop a genuine concern about their own health and safety. It’s too easy to care less and become careless.

 All new employees, students, faculty, and staff should receive a specially designed introduction to your safety program.