Leading companies in cooling and heat relief and workplace safety innovations join The Korey Stringer Institute (KSI) at the University of Connecticut, a heat safety advocate and research institute, to form the National Heat Safety Coalition.
Magid, a manufacturer of industrial workplace safety innovations, Mission, a company specializing in cooling and heat relief, and KSI will serve as an authority and advocate group for heat stress prevention, establishing heat safety solutions and standards for industrial sectors.
The National Heat Safety Coalition said the organization will provide heat-safety research, solutions, education and awareness to eliminate heat-related injuries and illnesses in the workplace. The National Heat Safety Coalition will kick off with a series of virtual roundtable discussions.
The coalition said millions of U.S. workers are exposed each day to heat-related illnesses at the workplace. Thousands are also injured every year from occupational heat exposure, with many cases ending in fatality. The coalition said 50 to 70 percent of outdoor fatalities, whether on the job, from sports, or home improvements, occur in the first few days of working in hot environments.
By forming the National Heat Safety Coalition, the organizations also aim to address the risk factors that may increase the susceptibility of heat-related illnesses on the job and identify current barriers in the industrial sector to help inform best-practice recommendations for the prevention of heat illnesses.
“Heat stress is a constant concern for laborers who are called on to work in hot conditions,” said Dr. Douglas Casa, a national expert on heat safety and CEO of the Korey Stringer Institute. “The formation of this coalition will help develop better methods for heat safety such as body cooling, work to rest ratios, and hydration, which is an important part of our commitment to protecting workers.”
