Attempts at standardization work in this area – and indeed the KAN workshop held in November 2000 on the ISO 10075 series of standards: „Ergonomic principles related to mental work-load” – have drawn attention to the difficulties associated with it.

Structural changes in the world of work have been accompanied by changes in the stresses arising at the workplace. In many cases, heavy physical work or other physical stresses formerly typical of the work environment have been replaced by time pressure, overtaxing of personnel, and similar factors – in other words, mental stress.

The standards governing mental work-load must be made more user-friendly if they are to reach the group for which they are intended, namely persons responsible for work organization. This was the main conclusion of a workshop on the subject of standardization in the area of mental stress, held in November 2000 by KAN in conjunction with the German Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (BAuA) and the DIN “Ergonomics” standards committee.

Interview with Dipl.-Ing. Hartmut Müller

KAN held a colloquium on this subject in November 2000. Decision-makers in the public and private sectors had the opportunity to hear first-hand of current developments in international harmonization.

The central safety facility in a laboratory is the fume cupboard. Its applications are wide-ranging, its protective function extremely important. In addition to protection against explosions and fragments of flying glass, it must also provide reliable containment of vapours, gases, dusts and aerosols.

Increasing globalization makes the worldwide elimination of barriers to trade a pressing issue. The WTO/TBT agreement has focused attention upon the significance of international standardization as an effective instrument for the elimination of barriers to trade.

The first meeting between members of the Governing Board of EUROGIP (presented in KANBRIEF 4/00) and the Executive Council of KAN, held in Brussels on 16 January 2001, revealed wide agreement between German and French OH&S representatives on topical standardization issues.