368 ROSA: SCIENTIFIC WORK OF THE GOVERNMENT 



ment could render an invaluable service in aiding to bring this 

 about. The manufacturers of this apparatus are eager for in- 

 formation, and will do their part in such work. They are calling 

 for greater ser\dce from the Bureau of Standards in instru- 

 ment testing than it is able to render because of lack of men 

 to do the work. 



SAFETY RESEARCH AND THE PREPARATION OF SAFETY CODES 



27. One of the most valuable opportunities for cooperative 

 work by the government is in safety research and education; 

 that is to say, in studying methods of reducing accidents in the 

 industries and in every-day life, in formulating sets of safety rules 

 or codes, and in assisting the state industrial commissions in 

 adopting them and manufacturers in complying with them. 

 More than 3,000,000 industrial accidents occur every year, of 

 which 25,000 are fatal. Many millions of dollars are expended 

 annually by employers for accident compensation, and many 

 millions more are lost by injured employees in wages not com- 

 pensated. Nearly every state has an accident commission which 

 supervises the collection of compensation for accidents, but many 

 of them do very little to reduce accidents. A few states have 

 provided their commissions with generous sums to enable them 

 to prepare safety rules and put them into effect, and valuable 

 results have been secured by such efforts. Recently a com- 

 prehensive program of safety work has been prepared in which 

 many agencies will cooperate. This work includes the prepara- 

 tion of nearly a hundred different safety codes, covering the 

 hazards of manufacturing in many dift'erent industries, trans- 

 portation, mining, and the use of electricity, gas, machinery, and 

 explosives by the general public. These safety codes are more 

 than mere sets of safety rules, often amounting to a standardiza- 

 tion of engineering practice in many aspects of an industry, and 

 being of great value in promoting efficiency and good practice 

 as well as safety. They are prepared by the active cooperation 

 of all the interests concerned, including engineering societies, 

 industrial and insurance associations, state accident boards, 



