In support of the recently awarded Susan Harwood training program grant from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the Brewers Association (BA) established an advisory committee that will support BA staff with insights, inputs, and review of the training program’s content development. The training, made possible by the grant, will feature distance learning modules to enable students to implement safe and effective practices when cleaning draught beer lines, emphasizing hazard assessment, safe work practices, and development of standard operating procedures.

The advisory committee was assembled to represent the diverse set of industry members that are involved in draught line cleaning including safety professionals, brewers, line cleaning companies, and beer wholesalers. The following individuals are named to the advisory committee:

• William Brazile, Occupational Safety and Health Consultation, Colorado State University
• Tom Geordt, Micro Matic
• B.C. Gilmore, Red Tap Draught Solutions
• Dana Johnson, BA Safety Subcommittee and Birko Corporation
• John Lane, Winking Lizard Tavern
• Keith Lemcke, Consultant
• Nicholas Rosenberg, Master Brewers Association of the Americas and Blue Point Brewing
• Stephanie Rusk, Occupational Safety and Health Consultation, Colorado State University
• Matt Stinchfield, BA Safety Ambassador
• Jeff Walton, A Head For Profits
• Darin Whitaker, Carolina Premium Beverage
• Neil Witte, BA Draught Beer Quality Subcommittee and Craft Quality Solutions
• BA staff members Chuck Skypeck, Kaylyn Kirkpatrick, and MacKenzie Staples

BA Safety Ambassador Matt Stinchfield, who has served as an expert witness in cases involving accidents associated with draught line cleaning, will be responsible for the final content development. “Brewers, wholesalers, retailers, and service providers have a shared responsibility to address safety issues associated with draught line cleaning,” said Stinchfield. “This project will provide the knowledge to improve both worker and consumer safety wherever draught beer is served.”

For more information and resources on draught beer, please visit the Draught Beer Resource Hub on the Brewers Association website. To download a free PDF copy or purchase a hard copy of the Draught Beer Quality Manual, visit here.

The Susan Harwood Training Grants Program funds grants to nonprofit organizations, including community and faith-based groups, employer associations, labor unions, joint labor-management associations, and colleges and universities. The grants will provide education and training programs to help workers and employers recognize serious workplace hazards and implement injury prevention measures.

This Brewers Association project, at the time of initial publication of this document, is funded by a grant of $79,725 federal funds, which constitutes 100 percent of the program budget. 0 percent, or $0 of the program budget, is financed through non-governmental sources.