Manufacturers of cranes, hoists and monorails have renewed their alliance with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to improve workplace safety.

Last month, the Crane Manufacturers Association of America (CMAA), the Hoist Manufacturers Institute (HMI) and the Monorail Manufacturers Association (MMA) signed a two-year renewal of the alliance originally signed with OSHA in October 2005.

CMAA, HMI and MMA are affiliated trade associations of the Material Handling Industry of America.

Their alliance with OSHA focuses on providing crane, hoist and monorail owners and operators with information, guidance and access to training resources that will help them protect employees' health and safety. The statement announcing the renewal emphasized the alliance's efforts to protect Spanish-speaking and other vulnerable, “hard-to-reach” employees.

According to Assistant Secretary of Labor Edwin G. Foulke, the alliance “has made substantial progress over the past two years in reducing and preventing serious or fatal incidents in the material handling industry.”

Alliance members have worked together to create a series of fact sheets and safety tip sheets, online training tools and safety-themed Web pages.