Photos of the day
Conference Programme
Day 1 - Professional Occupational Hygienist Workshop
1. Introduction – overview of Occupational Hygiene qualifications and the OH Register
2. Evidence – what needs to be presented (reports etc)
3. What does good report look like/contain
4. Professional discussions (Oral Examinations)
Day 2 -"Looking to the future"
08.15-08.45 Registration, Tea, Coffee and Pastries.
08.50 Conference Opening: OHSI President – Claire Farrell
09.00 Annual Tom O’Connor Lecture: Securing the safety of chemical usage through market surveillance – Ms. Caroline Walsh
09.35 Occupational Noise Exposure- Challenges, Developments & Future Trends – Mr. Dermot Moloney
10.05 New Asbestos Workers Directive – Implications for the Future – Derek Conerney
10.35 CMRs and the CoP- 2024 and beyond – Michelle McDermott
11.00 Coffee Break & Exhibits
11.15 Sandvik Mining Automation: Revolutionizing Work Health and Cleanliness – Brian Carroll
11.45 Exhibitor Presentations
12.30 Lunch
13.30 The importance of data when using AI in OSH – Dr Bob Rajan
14.00 Panel Discussion- Looking to the Future – Chair Michael Gillen
14.50 Coffee Break & Exhibits
15.00 Exposures to nicotinoid insecticides in occupational settings in Ireland – Darragh Doherty
15.30 Emerging trends in drone use – Tom Curran
16.00 AI – the Risks and Opportunities – Bruno Voisin
16.25 Conference Close – OHSI Vice-President
Speakers
Ms. Caroline Walsh, MSc works in the Chemicals and Prevention Division of the HSA, responsible for the enforcement of the REACH, CLP, Detergent and PIC Regulations under the Chemicals Act 2008 & 2010, along with the Market Surveillance Regulation. She coordinates and manages the programme of work, undertaking inspections, audits and desk assessments dealing with referrals, complaints and products sold online. She represents Ireland as a member of the ECHA Forum of Exchange of Information on Enforcement since 2023, to ensure EU wide harmonisation of enforcement, acts as the National Coordinator for enforcement (REF) projects, and is part of the working group involved in training inspectors for these EU wide projects.. She provides technical support to her Colleagues, Government Departments, and other Agencies.
Mr Dermot Moloney is a Chartered Scientist and an Occupational Hygiene and Acoustics specialist. He is a Certified Competent Person in the Measurement of Hazardous Substances and a Certified Competent Person in Noise & Vibration (BOHS). Dermot originally graduated with a BSc and subsequently undertook post-graduate studies whilst working fulltime in acoustic and occupational hygiene consultancy. He has been awarded an MSc in Occupational Hygiene (with distinction), a First-Class Honours MSc (Environmental Protection), and an MSc in Applied Acoustics – with distinction. For over thirty years he has undertaken noise, vibration and occupational hygiene assessments in many sectors. He has also acted as an expert witness.
Mr. Derek Conerney AFAAM has worked as an inspector in the Occupational Hygiene Unit and the Occupational Health division of the HSA since 2019. He has completed the MSc in Occupational Hygiene at University of Manchester, a HDip in Occupational Health and Safety at UCD and a degree in Environmental Science at Coventry University. Prior to joining the HSA he worked as an asbestos consultant in Ireland and the UK for 20 years undertaking air monitoring, asbestos surveys and project management.
Ms. Michelle McDermott, MSc, LFOH, CMIOSH has worked as an inspector within the Occupational Hygiene Unit, the Healthcare Team and Health Portfolio Team of the HSA since 2008. In addition to workplace inspections and investigations, she was a member of the REACH Substance Evaluation Team. Prior to her role in the HSA, she worked in health and safety roles in the manufacturing industry.
Mr. Brian Carroll Regional Manager UK & Ireland, Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions. Brian began his career with Sandvik as an apprentice technician in 1999. After qualifying in 2003, he quickly demonstrated his expertise and leadership potential, moving into management roles by 2005. Today, Brian leads the organisation in the UK and Ireland, where he continues to drive innovation and sustainability, which contributes significantly to enhancing the work environment for operators and underground personnel.
Dr. Michael Gillen is a Senior Executive with BioParmaChem Ireland (BPCI), where he has responsibility for environment, and health and safety. He is also the head of occupational health & safety (OHS) policy in the Irish Employers and Business Confederation Ibec. He is Chairperson of the Management & Executive Boards of the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) and is an employer representative on the European Commissions’ Advisory Committee on Safety & Health (ACSH). He is a former Deputy Chairperson of the Board of the HSA.
Dr. Bob Rajan is a retired futuristic strategist and OHS policy developer. He was awarded an OBE by Her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. He also won many awards for his futuristic strategies. Several of his worker-related chemical exposure control approaches have been adopted in many parts of the world. Bob is one of the past Presidents of BOHS. Bob is a keen supporter of charitable activities and is currently a volunteer with the NHS in England. He has recently published a book “AI in OSH”
Mr. Darragh Doherty is a third-year PhD student based in the Conway Institute in UCD. He commenced his PhD studies in 2022 after graduating with an undergraduate Biomedical Science degree from the University of Galway. His research involves conducting human biomonitoring sampling campaigns to characterise pesticide exposures among the Irish population in both environmental and occupational settings. He received an award for my Final Year Undergraduate Research Project in Biomedical Science at the Global Undergraduate Awards 2022 and won an award for his poster at ISES Europe 2024.
Mr. Tom Curran is the Head of Dublin City Council’s Survey & Mapping Division, which incorporates the recently created Corporate Drone Unit. He is a Chartered Geomatic Surveyor with the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) and the Society of Chartered Surveyors of Ireland (SCSI) with over 30 years of experience in the area of Land Surveying. He has led the Survey & Mapping Division in embracing the most up to date survey technology in the areas of Lidar, 3D scanning, GNSS (GPS) and UAVs (Drones).
Dr. Bruno Voisin graduated in Computer Science at the University of Toulon Var (France) and in 2002 obtained his Ph.D in Computer Science in partnership with the Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Marseille, working on a data mining approach to cross-referencing astronomical catalogues. In 2003, he joined the Computational Astrophysics Laboratory in NUI Galway as a post-doctoral researcher, pursuing data science work within the context of astronomy. He joined the Irish Centre for High End Computing (ICHEC) in 2008 under the e-INIS infrastructure project, to assist the design and implementation of information systems for Humanities and Social Sciences throughout Ireland in partnership with the Irish Digital Humanities Observatory (DHO). Since then, he’s been mostly working in the context of ICHEC’s Technology Transfer activities, providing data analytics expertise and training to research groups, public sector agencies and industrial partners.
