A breath of fresh air ... Print 21 magazine article
Working with chemicals can be a deadly experience. In the past, countless printers have fallen prey to chemical-related injuries but with the launch of a new package aimed at helping printers to use chemicals correctly, it seems that the industry has finally come clean. Or has it? Mitchell Jordan investigates.
The printing faculty at RMIT University's Brunswick campus is quiet when I arrive. It's the launch of the Australian Safety and Compensation Council's (ASCC) Essential Chemicals Control Package for Printers, much hyped and hailed as an Australian first. I expect a room full of swarming printers and industry enthusiasts and instead count roughly 15 people and wonder if I've arrived at the correct location. I have.
Bill Scales, chairman of the ASCC, welcomes the crowd and thanks them for coming. And indeed, those who have made the effort to turn up seem genuinely excited and interested about what today means.
Pictured (l-r): Philip Andersen with Bill Scales.
Four years in the making, the Essential Chemicals Control Package for Printers is an online package that provides practical guidance materials to assist the printing industry with the control of hazardous substances. Scales lists benefits such as helping employees and employers comply with relevant practices for using chemicals, along with information and advice on appropriate training, clothing, choice of chemicals and the maintenance of equipment.
"It's meant to be practical to address things that people in the printing industry face everyday. It's a step-by-step guide for printing companies," Scales says. 'It's nothing more than building on good, plain leadership."
A moment later, Scales adds that, though the information contained in the package was specifically designed with printers in mind, it is still relevant for all businesses, such as chemical suppliers and other workplaces throughout Australia, regardless of whether or not they are printers.
"This can improve the health of people in all industries," he says. "There's no doubt that this will help to further protect the health of our printers across the country."
Like most business circles and networks, the printing industry is one that suffers from divisions and its own internal conflicts, but when it comes to matters of safety, Scales urges printers to dismiss their differences and disputes.
"What we've learnt is that these packages are only able to work if we all come together and put aside our politics in a coherent and cognitive way," he says. "This will only work if we, as a community, can bring people together. This package is an important step in workplace health and safety for printers. You can never be too careful with these things."
True as his words may be, there is also some irony to Scales' statement when you think of how many printers are out there, working away at their respective sites, possibly oblivious to what is going on today.
Fellow guest speaker, Philip Andersen, CEO of Printing Industries, reiterated Scales' message in his own speech to the crowd.
"It is important for the industry to show that it takes its responsibility seriously in this regard," he says. "The project is a first for the Australian industry, and likely to be a model for future industries."
Keep it simple, stupid
A couple of weeks later, I speak to other printers and chemical suppliers, keen to gauge their reaction to the launch and see just how significant this Australian first was. Interestingly, when I mention the Essential Chemicals Control Package for Printers, most people are a little vague and seem unsure as to what I'm speaking about.
Communications theorist Marshall McLuhan hit the nail on the head when he wrote that: 'The medium is the message' and perhaps that is why not everybody is familiar with this new package, albeit still being early days. Mitch Mulligan, director of Böttcher, agrees with me when I suggest this.
"A lot of guys are busy and don't have a lot of time to work their way through information," he says. "For them, they think 'Don't tell me, show me'. They prefer practical information."
Hailed as being a 'practical' guide, the package still has far to go, according to Mulligan.
"I think it's a wonderful thing for the industry to be collectively embracing," he says. "But it's at the embryonic stage; it's a little clunky at the moment and could be a bit too daunting for people to embrace. People like simple things and I think we could simplify it a bit more somehow."
Soon after, Mulligan reasserts that the initiative has the full support of both himself and all those at Böttcher, who are committed to continuing safe workplaces and safe products for customers.
"Hallelujah, we say," he adds.
One medium, different messages?
Böttcher aren't the only suppliers to sing the package's praises; others in the industry also believe this launch is well-deserved.
"We congratulate them," says James Ackland, associate director (technical) of DS Chemport.
But when it comes to the medium, Ackland shares a different view to Mulligan. "The internet is fantastic," he says. "This package is an interactive module. The best way to change people's ways is through education rather than imposing stricter practices through legislation."
In Ackland's experience with both chemicals and printing, most people are actively looking to improve their wellbeing.
"There's been a dramatic improvement over the years," he says. "Whatever we can do to make our life safer we will do and we need to educate the wider end of the industry to the benefits. This package is a good way to do that."
As an industry, printers still have far to go. On a scale of one to ten, Mulligan considers printers to "still be on the high side; probably sitting at about 6-7".
"It's more a question of understanding the chemistry which people are operating more than anything else," he says. "Once you lead them to a cleaner understanding then they're more willing to change."
Pictured (l-r): Philip Andersen, Peta Miller, Bill Scales and Howard Morris.
No quick fix
Smaller companies are the greatest offenders when it comes to incorrect or inappropriate chemical use, according to Ackland.
"Big users like Fairfax and News Limited are very good in terms of their compliance," he says. "There's still a mass of small users who don't apply the same discipline due to cost pressures."
"What people can't see are things like the vapours they're breathing in that are also going into the atmosphere and increasing chances of a fire in the plant - they just think about the cost. The dangers aren't always obvious, so people are tempted to take the quicker route."
Changing attitudes is a journey, and Mulligan admits that a 'gentle' approach has had a better success rate for Böttcher.
"Our basic approach has been to get involved with our customers almost like a silent partner," he says. "We use very simple supporting tools that give a clear message and then use these discussion points to raise awareness."
"Change is always the hardest thing but once you've given them the background on what they're doing and what they could be doing better then it all opens up. At the end of the day, we offer things like discounts when they upgrade to safer products. And we want them to because it's a win-win situation: they use less, the environment is safer and the products last longer."
The time is now
Currently, there are no figures to indicate just how many people are logging on and using the Essential package.
"To date, we have received positive feedback on the launch and the package," Scales says. "Unfortunately it is too early to know how many people are using the package."
But Scales is still confident that it is being actively used and sought out.
"Due to its practical application throughout the industry and the support of Printing Industries, we envisage that the package will continue to receive positive feedback and be embraced in the future," he says.
To find out more about the Essential Chemicals Control Package for Printers, go to www.ascc.gov.au/ascc/HealthSafety/OHSstandards/EssentialChemicalControls/