The American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) has named Terry W. Krug, M.S., CSP, the recipient of the 2023 Thomas F. Bresnahan Standards Medal for his extensive work in developing and advocating voluntary consensus occupational safety and health standards.

Krug is president and owner of Exceptional Occupational Safety and Health Advisors (EXOSHA) in Knoxville, TN. He conducts OSHA standards training, develops safety and health programs, performs workplace audits and provides expert witness testimony.

Krug is a longtime member and current chair of the committee that has developed ANSI/ASSP Z117.1 Safety Requirements for Entering Confined Spaces. Considered a leading national expert on confined space safety, Krug has helped direct several revisions to the standard and has presented many webinars on the subject, including one internationally for the Italian Safety and Health Congress in 2012.

“Terry’s expertise and involvement has strengthened the Z117.1 standard in a significant way,” said Leo DeBobes, CSP, CPEA, CIT, chair of the ASSP Standards Development Committee. “His analysis of a full decade of OSHA injury and fatality data provided insights that were vital to the revision of the standard.”

Krug’s leadership resulted in a key update that made the standard easier to understand and implement. He regularly shares his confined space safety expertise by presenting courses at ASSP’s annual safety conferences, most recently in Chicago in 2022.

An ASSP member since 1996, Krug has been involved in the development of several workplace safety standards, including ANSI/ASSP A10.43 Confined Spaces in Construction and Demolition Operations; A10.49 Control of Chemical Health Hazards in Construction and Demolition Operations; and ANSI/ASSP Z244.1 Control of Hazardous Energy Lockout, Tagout and Alternative Methods. He also served on ANSI/ASSP A10 Construction and Demolition standards subcommittees.

“Terry’s impact on workplace safety and health standards is significant, and thousands of people are safer on the job today due to his contributions,” DeBobes said. “I can’t say enough about his value to the safety profession.”

Krug served on ASSP’s Standards Development Committee from 2014-18. He also co-authored “Confined Space Entry: An AIHA Protocol Guide” published in 1995 and revised in 2001.

The Thomas F. Bresnahan Standards Medal recognizes an ASSP member who actively participates in developing voluntary consensus standards that advance worker safety. The award is named in honor of Thomas F. Bresnahan, a former ASSP staff member and Fellow who reinvigorated the Society’s standards development program and helped position the organization for growth in this strategic area.

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