An aging pedestrian walkway on the University of Â鶹´«Ã½ at ²ÑÄå²Ô´Ç²¹ campus got a brand-new look while saving the university thousands of dollars, thanks to the hard work of students.

Located between the Queen Liliʻuokalani Center for Student Services and Saunders Hall, the 100-foot walkway became very uneven and filled with potholes through the years, creating a pedestrian hazard. More than 40 students from a construction materials course, under the guidance of Professor Amarjit Singh, took matters into their own hands.

After approval from Campus Operations and Facilities (COPF), students prepared the layout and structural and pavement design for the new walkway in March. The proposal was approved by the Office of Project Delivery in April. The COPF-Buildings and Grounds Management (BGM) Department helped with excavation, heavy equipment, installation of the rebar and partial placement of the aggregate subbase. The students compacted the subgrade and subbase, specified the concrete mix, and fabricated and installed the formwork. The students procured the rebar and lumber and various tools. Hawaiian Cement donated the aggregate and the concrete. Students arranged for a concrete pump truck and then assisted BGM workers to pour and vibrate the concrete. Hensel Phelps contributed two professional masons to make a perfect surface finish.

In total, the students worked with and gathered approvals from UH ²ÑÄå²Ô´Ç²¹â€™s Office of Planning and Facilities, Office of Project Delivery, ²ÑÄå²Ô´Ç²¹ Sustainability Office, Facilities Management Office, Buildings and Grounds Management, and the Environmental Health and Safety Office.

Project completed under budget

The students initially budgeted $4,300 for a 40-foot walkway project. However, thanks to the Hawaiian Cement donation and other cost saving measures, the students were able to complete the full 100-foot walkway in approximately $3,500. This saved the university an estimated amount upwards of $40,000, if an outside structural engineering consultant and contractor were hired.

Making a difference on campus

Rumesh Senthilnathan, a junior majoring in civil and environmental engineering, was one of the student leads in the project.

“It was a good feeling to learn what it takes to turn an idea into reality in the real world,” Senthilnathan said. “I had a real taste of what it takes to get everything and everyone on track. The trick was to roll with the punches because nothing was perfect and will never be, but we must strive to make the finished product as close to perfection and humanly possible.”

Senthilnathan credited Singh, teaching assistant Jacob Passoff and Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering lab tech Jonathan Imai with helping to supervise all aspects of the project.

“This was a great learning experience for students who will handle future large-scale construction projects in the state, country, or anywhere in the world,” Singh said. “There was great collaboration between the Facilities Department and the students. This project was a win for UH ²ÑÄå²Ô´Ç²¹ that got a solid walkway to high quality industry standards for minimal cost. The students completed the project well below budget and were ready for the pour one week ahead of schedule. Students learned strategies for effective execution of works. In the end, the stated purpose of the walkway is to improve life on campus one walkway at a time, as well as encourage student learning.”

UH ²ÑÄå²Ô´Ç²¹ Director of Campus Operations and Facilities Blake Araki credited Roxanne Adams, COPF–BGM director; Yosuke Jo, BGM-Landscape Services manager; and Brandon Shima, Office of Project Delivery–design manager with helping to oversee the project from start to finish.

This work is an example of UH ²ÑÄå²Ô´Ç²¹â€™s goals of (PDF) and (PDF), two of four goals identified in the (PDF), updated in December 2020.

—By Marc Arakaki

The University of Â鶹´«Ã½ at ²ÑÄå²Ô´Ç²¹ 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.

Several online tools designed to improve safety and facilitate regulatory compliance in laboratories across the University of Â鶹´«Ã½ at ²ÑÄå²Ô´Ç²¹ campus are being adopted in an effort led by the UH ²ÑÄå²Ô´Ç²¹ . The software was developed at the University of California and has been used extensively throughout UC’s 10 campuses and 5 medical centers.

The software includes three integrated modules or tools that can be used on smartphones, tablets and desktops:

• Assessment: A tool that assists principal investigators with identifying hazards related to their research and shares this and other critical safety information with members of their lab.
• Chemicals: A chemical inventory management tool that includes a library of chemicals that are referenced to populate chemical details, such as hazards and first aid information.
• Inspect: A flexible, customizable tool that manages the scheduling, completion and long-term tracking of safety inspections.

“This is the latest step we have taken at ²ÑÄå²Ô´Ç²¹ to strengthen laboratory safety,” said UH ²ÑÄå²Ô´Ç²¹ Vice Chancellor of Research . “It is important to utilize the latest technology as we continue to foster a culture of safety so that hazard recognition and risk assessment are ingrained in the minds of all of our researchers.”

Other steps the university has taken in recent years include establishing a Chemical and Physical Hazards Committee to promote a greater awareness and commitment to health and safety in research and teaching laboratories.

A variety of training materials on how to use the tools, including written tutorials and how-to videos, are available on the Environmental Health and Safety Office website. For more information, contact the office at at (808) 956-8660.

The independent investigation into the March 16, 2016 explosion in a laboratory is now expected to be complete by end of June 2016. The , retained by UH to conduct the investigation, has arranged to test certain materials. The final completion of the investigation report is dependent on the testing and the test results.

The independent investigation into the March 16, 2016 explosion in a laboratory is now expected to be complete in mid to late May. It was initially expected to finish by the end of April.

The , retained by UH to conduct the investigation, was unable to send materials involved in the explosion for testing until the (HIOSH), the government agency investigating the accident, completed its review of the accident scene. HIOSH released the materials and scene to UH late last week.

A postdoctoral researcher was seriously injured in the accident that happened in a biofuels research laboratory in the UH Mānoa Pacific Ocean Science and Technology building.

A investigation classified the incident as an accident. In its preliminary investigation, the UC Center for Laboratory Safety, considered a national leader in laboratory safety, determined that the explosion was an isolated incident and not the result of a systemic problem. The UC Laboratory Safety Team was on the Mānoa campus the week of March 28.

The UH Mānoa also surveyed the 500-plus labs on the Mānoa campus and determined that there were no similar experiments taking place. UH is creating a new Chemical and Physical Safety Committee that will have representatives from all of the schools and colleges that have research and teaching laboratories. The committee will work with other safety related committees already in place to identify and implement protocols and processes to further strengthen safety at all UH laboratories.

The (HFD) today released a report on its investigation into the March 16, 2016 explosion in the biofuels research laboratory in the Pacific Ocean Science and Technology building. The report identifies equipment as the probable cause and recommends further investigation.

“We want to thank fire department for its outstanding work and professionalism for its investigation and the response the night of the accident,“ said UH Mānoa Vice Chancellor . The HFD report has been sent to the , which has been retained to conduct an independent investigation and is considered a national leader in laboratory safety.

The UC Center for Laboratory Safety report will be extensive and is expected to be completed by the end of the month.

Shortly after the accident, UH Mānoa’s surveyed the 500-plus labs on the Mānoa campus and determined that no similar experiments like the one involved in the accident were taking place. Other steps are being taken.

“A new safety committee at UH Mānoa is in the process of being convened that will be called the Chemical and Physical Safety Committee,” said Bruno. “It will have representatives from all of the schools and colleges that have research and teaching laboratories and will work with other safety-related committees already in existence to identify and implement protocols and processes to further strengthen the safety of our laboratories.”

UH leadership is committed to a culture of safety in each and every research and teaching laboratory on our campus.

“I want to reemphasize the importance of ensuring that laboratory safety protocols and training are up-to-date, including ensuring that all equipment is suitable and meets relevant requirements and that emergency access to all laboratories is readily available,” said UH Mānoa Chancellor in an April 4 message to the UH Mānoa community.

For questions regarding laboratory safety, email or call the Environmental Health and Safety Office at labsafe@hawaii.edu or 808-956-8660.

Update: March 17—The Pacific Ocean Science and Technology building will be open on Friday, March 18, for students with classes and faculty and staff.

The held a news conference to discuss the explosion that occurred in a laboratory at the Pacific Ocean Science and Technology Building on March 16. Speaking at the March 17 news conference was UH Mānoa Chancellor , School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology Dean and Director Roy Takekawa.

At the news conference Taylor announced that a structural engineer had confirmed that the building was sound and would be reopened.