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At many workplaces, industrial hygiene, safety, and environmental professionals work side by side. Too often, however, their physical proximity doesn’t result in meaningful collaboration. One reason for this disconnect, as Abby Holovach explained during a Synergist Webinar last week, is that the three professions use different systems, produce different findings, and respond to different regulations, even when they’re managing a common problem. For example, the same respiratory hazard will prompt concern from an IH about exposures, from the safety pro about respirator use, and from the environmental pro about air permits. Unless their organization encourages and facilitates teamwork, the three professionals might address different aspects of the problem—a redundant, inefficient approach at best and a recipe for confusion at worst. As Holovach said, “If all of these parties aren’t talking, then something’s going to get missed.”

The common term for this situation is siloed, which indicates the presence of organizational and systemic barriers that prevent ideal outcomes. Holovach’s presentation, “Connecting the Dots: Breaking Down the Silos Between Industrial Hygiene, Safety, and Environmental Programs,” explained how silos develop and what can be done about them. Joining Holovach on the webcast was Jim Albright, the marketing director for webinar sponsor Frontline Data Solutions, a company that provides EHS management software.

For Holovach, siloed means that “everyone is doing their job, but no one’s connecting the dots.” The best intentions yield less-than-ideal results, thanks to the stifling effects of silos. A silo is a “delay machine,” Holovach said: “It takes everything and slows it down.”

Silos prevent information from flowing when and where it’s needed, Holovach explained. Findings such as IH sampling results, work orders, safety observations, and environmental records reside in different systems. Everyone has a piece of the answer, but no one has all of it. The same problems persist over time. Often, changes to processes or materials catch one or more professions off guard. Something as simple as the introduction of a new safety data sheet—indicating, perhaps, the addition of a new component to an existing chemical—can have consequences that affect multiple programs. “If there’s no way for us to have that one single view, there’s no way for us to truly see the hazard and the risk for what it is,” Holovach said. The siloed professionals are forced to arrive at their own conclusions based on the limited information available to them.

Siloing is a matter of degree, and organizations can move from one level to another over time. But none will go from completely siloed to entirely connected overnight. Holovach advises starting small, focusing on gaining a holistic view of a single hazard. For her suggestions on how to identify silos and specific changes that can help overcome them, watch “Connecting the Dots.” As with all Synergist Webinars, registration and attendance are free.