The University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Environmental Health and Safety Office (EHSO) has implemented a new laboratory safety software platform, UH Safety Solutions (UHSS). The system provides a group of tools (assessment, inspection and chemicals) that guides principal investigators through a formal process of identifying and communicating known hazards to their laboratory teams. The system was first made available to the campus in January 2018.
The key elements of the system create a robust partnership between research groups and EHSO, allowing for more accurate and faster systems to:
- create lab groups and assess lab hazards
- streamline inspections
- manage chemicals
- identify trends and target resources accordingly
The original platform was developed by the University of California nearly 10 years ago and has been used by its system campuses to address managing chemical and physical hazards in academic research laboratories with a high degree of accuracy.
“I am excited about where we are with UHSS and what it provides to the scientific community,” said EHSO Occupational Health and Safety Program Manager Hans O. Nielsen. “We spent a lot of time with our developers building the tools to work in a way that is meaningful, and I am glad we have this system. But a system only works to its highest potential if we have good data going in and a straightforward user interface, so we are working closely with the various research units to educate them about the system and walk them through the process of getting started.”
For more information and training in UHSS, see the program website.
