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PS:Describe your professional back-ground and your position as director ofengineering and administration for Mid-

west Steel Inc.William:I am responsible for safety compliance,estimating, engineering, quality compliance andoverall administration. I have more than 40 yearssafety experience and hold a B.S. in Civil Engi-neering from Michigan State University.

PS:What is your role on the A10.13 stan-dard subcommittee for steel erection?William:As chair, I lead the A10.13 subcom-mittees efforts to develop a revised standardperiodically to keep it current with the latesttechnological advancements and safety strategies.I submit the efforts to the full A10 committee for

ballot and work through all negative ballots for fi-nal publication of the standard. I also obtain inputfrom the committee on any interpretation issuesand report it to the A10 committee secretary.

PS:What SH&E hazards can workers en-counter during the handling and disman-tling of structural steel?William:Erecting structural steel creates manysafety issues. Fall protection is the biggest chal-lenge, but there are many ways to get hurt. Siteconditions also present major challenges as onlystable ground conditions can support equipmentand steel members set on the ground until they

can be raised into the air. Electrical wires in theerection area also can be a hazard if they cannotbe shut down.

PS:On average, how many of the occupa-tional injuries that occur in the construc-tion industry each year are related toworking with structural steel? What typesof injuries are most common?William:No real reliable data exist on the num-ber of injuries or fatalities in steel erection, andany available data are many years old. In 2001,OSHA estimated that 35 ironworkers are killedeach year and that another 2,300 suffered lost

workday injuries.Since that time, I hope we are doing a much

better job, but I always question any publisheddata due to a poor data collection system. Fallsgenerally cause the most severe injuries fol-lowed by caught-in-between-type injuries, suchas getting limbs caught in between man-basketsand steel, and beams rolling over due to unstable

ground conditions. Strains are also an issue,as iron work is similar to an athletic endeavorwhere one must push or pull to get something in

place when the ironworkers body is in a difficultposition. Eyes and hands are a concern whenone pounds on something and it slips or breaks.Walking and working surfaces cause their shareof injuries (e.g., slips or strained knees, backs),especially during inclement weather conditions,such as rain or snow.

PS:The A10.13 standard, Safety Require-ments for Steel Erection, was recently re-vised. What new changes does the revisedstandard include?William:Most of the changes were related tobest safety practices, such as defining equipment

used in steel erection, emphasizing better precon-struction planning and elimination of concreteand anchor rod problems that result in severe in-juries, use of both the English and metric systems,adding more decking requirements, such as windtacking, and upgrading the language to reflectcurrent safety terms and ideas.

PS:What challenges did the A10.13 sub-committee encounter during the revisionprocess and how did it resolve them?William:Part of thesubcommittee wantedto allow specially trained

steel connectors to ridethe headache ball undervery limited and controlledcircumstances. We finallygot the subcommittee togo along with it but thendid not sell this to the fullcommittee.

The headache ball is around ball of steel locatedjust above the hook on acrane. Ironworkers oftenstand on it, allowing thecrane operator to raise

them to the steel in the air.It was outlawed becausethere were no rules andsometimes several work-ers would climb on theball, which creates a dangerous situation.

Riding the headache ball is allowed in Michi-gan, again under some very limited and controlled

Safety Requirements for Steel Erection

Standards Insider

William H. Treharne

William H. Treharne, P.E., is director of engineering and administration for Midwest Steel Inc. and chair of the A10.13 stan-dard subcommittee for steel erection. Throughout his career, William has held the positions of structural engineer, chiefengineer, erection manager, general manager (fabrication division), general manager (construction division), chief estima-

tor and vice president of operations. He also has experience in structural steel erection, steel and aluminum mill building,design and build projects, structural alterations to industrial plants, bridge erection and repairs, material handling system

installation, including extensive experience in crane runway repairs and alterations and automated storage and retrievalsystem rack building design and build projects. He holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Michigan State University.

HotlinksAISC American Institute of SteelConstruction www.aisc.org

ANSI American National StandardsInstitute www.a.org

Ironworkers International Associationof Bridge, Structural, Ornamental andReinforcing Iron Workerswww.ironworkers.org

MW Steel Inc.Midwest SteelInc.www.midweststeel.com

http://www.asse.org/http://www.asse.org/http://www.aisc.org/http://www.a.org/http://www.a.org/http://www.ironworkers.org/http://www.midweststeel.com/http://www.midweststeel.com/http://www.midweststeel.com/http://www.asse.org/http://www.midweststeel.com/http://www.ironworkers.org/http://www.a.org/http://www.aisc.org/

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circumstances. It is a safe procedurewhen used properly and will preventinjuries and fatalities. But this is a

consensus document, and other peopleprevailed.

PS:What do you considerto be the most impor-tant revision made to the

A10.13 standard and why?William:The emphasis onpreplanning or building safetyinto the construction of steelstructures will result in saferjobs and jobsites. This leads tohaving the equipment on thejob when it is needed, and it leads to

training and communicating to peopleon the specific task they perform at thattime.

PS:How will the A10.13 subcom-mittee work to have the revisedstandard recognized by govern-ment agencies?William:This task is way above the

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subcommittee, as the subcommitteeconcentrates on the technical aspects ofthe standard. The full A10 committee

relies on the secretariats expertise to

market and sell the standard. This stan-

dard covers much more than OSHASubpart R on Steel Erection.

PS:How can the revised A10.13standard best be incorporatedinto construction SH&E practic-es? At what point in a construc-tion project should the A10.13standard be used?

William:The A10.13 standard iswritten and developed for companiesand craftspeople so that they may erect

steel structures and metal deck in a safeand effective manner. Whenused, it can prevent injuries andfatalities. Effective, safe erectionmethods must be planned. Allequipment and personnel safetyprotection systems should beissued and used properly bytrained and skilled craftspeoplewith safe behaviors.

PS:What are your long-term expectations for the

revised A10.13 standard?

William:The industry continues toimprove with better equipment andsafety systems and the craftspeople aregetting better trained and educated (atleast in the union sector, with whichI am familiar), so I see a continuouslyevolving standard that reflects currentsafety thinking and new technology.

Standards Insider

The craftspeople are getting bet-ter trained and educated, so I seea continuously evolving standard

that reflects current safetythinking and new technology.

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