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Thomas Slavin
International Truck and Engine Corp. |
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“Participation can be an important learning, benchmarking, and networking experience.” |
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Who is your current employer and what is your current position? |
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I'm the manager of occupational safety and health for International Truck and Engine Corp., in Warrenville, Ill., a manufacturer of over the road trucks, buses and diesel engines. |
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Where did you obtain your undergraduate/ graduate degree(s) and in what fields? |
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I have a B.S. in zoology from the University of Illinois in Urbana, an M.S. in occupational and environmental health from Wayne State University in Detroit, Mich., and an M.B.A. with concentrations in finance and labor relations from the University of Chicago. |
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When and why did you become involved in ASTM International? |
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My ASTM International involvement began in 1977 as a somewhat passive participant on Committee E34 on Occupational Health and Safety. More recently, I have become an active participant for three reasons.
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The open ASTM consensus approach to standards adds great value.
- Many other professional organizations and trade associations are backing away from the safety and health standards writing business for a variety of reasons but the need for standards is as great as ever.
- ASTM provides a more efficient and cost effective process for developing consensus standards for an industry. That is why, for example, the American Foundry Society decided to redevelop its former ANSI (American National Standards Institute) standards in a new ASTM foundry safety standard. Also, receiving all E34 standards in one volume free with the annual membership fee is a great bargain compared to the cost of maintaining a library of safety standards developed by other organizations.
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In which committees are you active? Are you a committee officer; if so, what group or groups? |
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I am active in E34 and D22 on Air Quality and am chair of E34.20, the Foundry Safety and Health Subcommittee. |
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How do you apply ASTM standards in your work? |
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I use standards in several ways. Some standards are used as guides to indicate what to do; for example, an E34 health standard may specify what medical tests to use to evaluate exposures. Others are used to describe a standard of care that an employer or industry is expected to follow. In some cases this is used to encourage an employer to make improvements, and in other cases the standard may help defend the adequacy of actions an employer has taken. And, some standards help users select products by providing a method for manufacturers to designate that a product, such as safety-toed footwear, meets certain critical criteria. |
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Apart from using standards, are there advantages to participating in standards development? |
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Participation can be an important learning, benchmarking, and networking experience. It is also important because many participants have unique problems or situations that need to be considered in developing the standard. The broader the review, the stronger the standard will be. |
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What are some of your favorite aspects of your job? |
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I like to solve health and safety problems and make work more enjoyable and rewarding for people. Helping people to be more productive through good safety and ergonomics helps them enjoy their work, enjoy their non-work lives, and contribute to the company's well-being as well. |
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Are there advantages that you can identify that result from having an understanding of standards? |
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Standards provide a vital reference point for how things should be. There is an important difference between minimum requirements and best practice, and between specifications and recommended guidelines; an understanding of standards helps one appreciate the differences. |
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Are there any words of wisdom that you can offer to professionals starting out in your field? |
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Question everything; don't take anything for granted or at face value. And never stop learning.
2005
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