Safety Regulations

The Steel Coalition was created in 1997 by the American Iron and Steel Institute, American Institute of Steel Construction (a former member), Metal Building Manufacturers Association, Metal Construction Association, National Coil Coating Association, Steel Deck Institute, and Steel Joist Institute to study whether walking and working on steel decking and roofing could be made safer during construction. Our objective was to present related recommendations to the Steel Erection Negotiated Rulemaking Advisory Committee (SENRAC) and Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) by the year 2004.

One aspect of the Steel Coalition’s research was assigned to a Lubricant Task Group that included members of the Steel Coalition and SENRAC. The Lubricant Task Group produced its final report and recommendations in November 2002. This research led the Task Group to focus on the following objective: To dramatically reduce or eliminate the presence of liquid lubricant on steel decking and roofing products as shipped to the job site.

The Lubricant Task Group’s report includes both general and specific recommendations. The general recommendations regard the use of highly evaporative forming lubricants and establish revised nomenclature for lubricants. The specific recommendations regard roll forming lubricants used on unpainted galvanized sheet, Galvalume® sheet, painted roofing, and visible liquid lubricants and their dry residues on decking and roofing products.

The goal of the Steel Coalition is that all U.S. decking and roofing manufacturers carefully evaluate the Task Group’s final recommendations within their own manufacturing processes to determine what is effective and what is not effective in achieving the objective. After collecting and analyzing these evaluations, the Coalition can make practical and effective recommendations to SENRAC and OSHA in 2004. Any manufacturers who have comments on the Task Group’s final recommendations or are willing to support this critical final phase of the steel roofing and decking industry’s work with OSHA and SENRAC may contact Helen Chen at hchen@steel.org.

In June 2011, the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) endorsed legislation which will codify and strengthen OSHA’s Voluntary Protection Program (VPP), a cooperative government-industry effort to improve worker health and safety. Several AISI member companies are participants in the VPP, and the industry recognizes the importance of cooperation between all stakeholders in meeting the shared national goal of workplace safety and health. Read more here.