The Access Board has organized an advisory committee to promote access to courthouses as part of an overall plan for targeted outreach on different aspects of accessibility.
The Courthouse Access Advisory Committee will explore issues related to the accessibility of courthouses, particularly courtrooms, including best practices, design solutions, promotion of accessible features, educational opportunities, and the gathering of information on existing barriers, practices, recommendations and guidelines. This information will supplement design guidelines the board previously issued for judicial facilities.
For more information on the committee, call (202) 272-0042 or e-mail.
A new report spotlights new technologies and practices with the greatest potential to save energy. Two distribution system improvements — leakproof ducts and duct sealing — and two practices — the design of high-performance commercial buildings and retrocommissioning — offer the greatest savings potential and are cost effective, according to the report, Emerging Energy-Saving Technologies and Practices in the Buildings Sector as of 2004.
“Not surprisingly, many technologies from earlier editions of this report have spread through the marketplace,” says Dr. Harvey Sachs, lead author of the study and building program director for the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy. “Fortunately, innovators continue to introduce new (technologies) that enable the careful building owner to measure and manage energy consumption, and to ratchet down energy bill in the face of rising fuel prices.”
Download the report for free.
A revised standard provides safety requirements to protect workers from the unexpected release of hazardous energy from machines, equipment or process. The American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) announced the availability of the revised American National Standards Institute Z244.1-2003 standard “Control of Hazardous Energy — Lockout/Tagout and Alternative Methods.”
Required by law, lockout/tagout procedures ensure that machines or equipment under maintenance, construction, inspection or repair are properly locked out and tagged out from use to prevent injury from the unexpected startup or energizing of these machines and equipment.
The revised standard addresses required elements of hazardous energy control and lockout/tagout programs, communication, training and program measurement. It also includes a new section covering lockout/tagout design responsibilities for manufacturers and those involved with the integration, modification or remanufacturing. For the first time, the standard provides for the use of alternative methods for controlling hazardous energy when traditional lockout/tagout prohibit task completion.
For a copy of the standard, call ASSE at (847) 699-2929 or visit online
