Industrial hygiene offers opportunity to protect workers
By Susan Kreimer
THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS
August 29, 2005
Marion Armstrong credits Dad with steering her toward a fulfilling career.
It all began "with a simple father-daughter conversation about what I wanted to be when I grew up," the Dallas resident recalled. "Standard stuff, really – work with people, make a difference in my world, make lots of money. His advice? 'You need to be an industrial hygienist.'"
That's exactly what Armstrong became, following in her father's footsteps.
In 1980, industrial hygiene as a profession was still in its youth, she said. Her father described it "as the science and art devoted to the recognition, evaluation and control of environmental stressors."
Now, she calls it "fabulously satisfying" – if you're cut out for this line of work, and she is.
"To be truly successful, you must have the skill-set of a great investigator – a Sherlock Holmes, if you will," she explained.
As companies downsize or eliminate health and safety departments to cut
costs, the need for competent consultants is picking up.
The way Armstrong sees it, the greatest demand for industrial hygienists
will continue in this arena. And that empowers consulting firms such as
Armstrong Forensic Laboratory Inc. in Arlington, Texas, to capitalize
on the outsourcing boom. "Industrial hygienists are traditionally
found in manufacturing facilities, where there is a known or possibility
for workplace exposure to chemicals or systems that may injure the employee,"
said Armstrong, 42, president of the company that her parents, Andrew
T. and Kay Armstrong, co-founded in 1978.
"We have provided services to the raw-goods mining company, the steel foundry, the automobile manufacturer, the computer chip company and the hazardous waste site"
Before the U.S. Occupational Health and Safety Administration began in 1970, industrial hygienists worked mainly in petroleum and chemical plants and in other large industries.
"Now they are found in nearly every type of workplace globally as well as nationally," said Rod R. Larson, director of industrial hygiene programs at the University of Utah's Rocky Mountain Center of Occupational and Environmental Health. These experts help employers minimize risks. First, they study the workplace to assess potential hazards. Second, they monitor noise levels, ventilation, airborne contaminants, radiation and other elements to determine whether additional exposure controls are needed.
Then, Larson said, they make recommendations, such as implementing a hearing-conservation program or using protective respiratory equipment.
"Workplaces with the leadership of an industrial hygienist have fewer injuries, are usually rated as better places to work and have more satisfied, more productive employees who are less likely to change jobs," said Roy M. Buchan, president of the American Industrial Hygiene Association in Fairfax, Va., and professor emeritus at Colorado State University.
Preparation typically begins with a four-year education in engineering, chemistry, biology or industrial hygiene. Many students obtain a master's or doctoral degree in industrial hygiene, Buchan said.
Some colleges offer an associate's degree and a certificate program qualifying students as industrial hygiene technicians. A technician assists industrial hygienists and other occupational health professionals.