European Information System for Occupational Safety and Health (EISOSH)

Status:

completed 02/2000

Aims:

A successful strategy for the protection of workers´ health at the workplace requires appropriate risk assessment and the selection of means of protection based upon the results of such risk assessment. However, the plethora of legal documents and guidance papers from various sources (e.g. the European Commission, national authorities, notified bodies, standardization institutes, etc.) and discrepancies between individual European countries make it difficult for manufacturers and users of protective devices to keep abreast of all relevant regulations and protection methods. The EISOSH system is to combine straightforward information provided by easy and rapid access to documents with applications that offer solutions for risk assessment situations and selection processes. The EISOSH project creates the basis for such a comprehensive information network.

Activities/Methods:

Within the EISOSH project the focus is upon the area of personal protective equipment (PPE); further areas and applications can easily be added to the system after the term of the project has ended. The document management application is designed to support users, authorities, manufacturers of PPE, notified bodies, research institutes and market control by providing access to the following types of documents: EC reference documents, notified body co-ordination documents (e.g. member lists of horizontal and vertical committees, Recommendations for Use sheets published by the European co-ordination of notified bodies PPE), information on certified products, on-going activities, scientific conferences and meetings. The first applications available as expert systems are related to the assessment of noise-induced hearing loss, the selection of hearing protectors and the selection of respiratory protective devices.

Results:

The basis for a comprehensive information network for the area of risk assessment and the selection of personal protective equipment, as described above, has been available for some years. The approach described was found to be unsuitable for assuring that information is kept up to date in the long term. For this reason, other approaches are now being taken.

Further informations:

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