Mining Feature: OMSHR Activities at MINExpo 2012

Monday, September 24, 2012

NIOSH at MINExpo

NIOSH’s Office of Mine Safety and Health Research (OMSHR) will showcase some of its most progressive mining safety and health innovations at the 2012 MINExpo International.

The OMSHR exhibit will join more than 1,800 exhibits at one of the largest mine equipment, service, and technology shows in the world. Researchers from OMSHR will also be giving presentations at the event detailing some of the latest technologies being developed in mine safety and health.

OMSHR’s featured elements in the exhibit include:

• The Cap Lamp exhibit will feature the new OMSHR LED lamp and an older incandescent lamp to show their different lighting abilities. The new OMSHR lamp is brighter, offers a wider path of light, and is more resilient when bumped or dropped than older bulb-type cap lamps.
• The Coal Dust Explosibility Meter (CDEM) exhibit will educate visitors on a commercially available device that enables real time measurements of rock dust concentrations used  to prevent coal dust explosions.
• The Personal Dust Monitor (PDM) exhibit will focus on real time measurements of exposure, which allows mine workers to adjust their working situation to reduce respirable coal dust exposure.
• The Black Lung component of the exhibit will display X-rays of healthy lungs and those exposed to years of coal dust.
• Interactive exhibit elements include two sound-based projects. One features a component used to reduce noise overexposure in drilling; the other shows how coating a specific piece of equipment with rubber can have a significant impact on sound levels.

Staff from OMSHR’s Human Resources Office will also be on hand to discuss career opportunities with OMSHR. The staff will be ready to talk about many of the engineering research positions that are currently available.

OMSHR researchers will be at the event for two days presenting on a variety of health and safety topics.

September 25 and 26, 2012-  Presentations on Both Days

Presentation	Presenter	Time
Solutions for Preventing Coal Mine Explosions Video of presentation Related  information: Coal mine explosion prevention	Marcia Harris	1:00-1:45 pm
Training Products- Refuge Chambers Video of presentation Related  information: Refuge chamber training products	Bob Peters	1:45-2:30 pm
Advancements in Lighting for Underground Mines Video of presentation Related  information: Advancements in lighting	John Sammarco	2:30-3:00 pm
Dust Control Handbooks (Best Practices) for Coal Mining, Metal and Nonmetal Mining, and Industrial Mineral Operations Video of presentation - Jim Video of presentation - Andy Related  information: Dust Control Best Practices for dust control in coal mining Best Practices for Dust Control in Metal/Nonmetal Mining Dust Control Handbook for Industrial Minerals Mining and Processing	Jim Rider Andy Cecala	3:00-3:30 pm
Solutions for Noise Control for Coal and Metal and Nonmetal Mining Operations Video of presentation Related  information: Hearing loss prevention	Jim Thompson	3:30-4:00 pm
Improved Design Approach for Underground Stone Mines Video of presentation Related  information: S-Pillar Software	Essie Esterhuizen	4:00-4:30 pm
Cab Filtration Improvements to Reduce Silica Exposures in Mining Operations Video of presentation Related  information: Cab Filtration	Andy Cecala	4:30-5:00 pm