From:   Robin Staffin (DOE) & Joe Dehmer (NSF)              

Dear U.S. LHC Program/Project Managers,

Recent events have moved us to re-emphasize the importance of maintaining vigilance for the safety of all our colleagues working within our U.S. Laboratories and at CERN. Attention to safety is critical for the health and well-being of the scientists, engineers, students and technicians who participate in the U.S. LHC Program, and it is also an area of major concern for the affiliated institutions, management and agencies.

In work on the U.S. LHC program, we are bound by International Agreement to conform to safety-management systems and requirements in place at the institution where work is performed, and to comply with any institutional regulations. In particular, as U.S. installation efforts evolve at CERN, both on the surface and underground, these safety requirements must be understood and followed. Unfortunately, we are reminded periodically that significant hazards to personnel are inherent in the work of particle physics. Given the scale and complexity of the LHC efforts, and the technical, management and communications challenges, a strong safety culture, with attention to detail, is vital. We ask you to please ensure that you, as managers of the U.S. LHC program, communicate these concerns to the U.S. personnel supported by your program. Please consider these broad points:

• First, from both a technical and safety perspective, we at the DOE and NSF acknowledge the excellent work performance and accomplishments of U.S. personnel at CERN, at our Universities, and the National Labs. To the credit of your collaboration and the U.S. LHC Program, you have worked diligently, professionally and safely within the requirements of your institutions. This level of excellent performance must continue, and must meet the significant challenges remaining in the installation, pre-operations and commissioning work that lies ahead for the LHC.

• It is essential that U.S. personnel working at CERN on ATLAS, CMS or the LHC accelerator, fully understand and support the safety systems, processes and requirements of CERN and those of their specific collaborations. Managers who define, direct or supervise the efforts of U.S. personnel must assure that this is the case. In addition to CERN's comprehensive safety-management organization, CMS and ATLAS collaborations each have specific policies, directives, procedures and systems for ensuring work is planned properly and conducted safely. For example, the September 22, 2004 CMS bulletin highlights worksite rules and requirements for every installation activity carried out by CMS teams (see http://cmsdoc.cern.ch/~cmstc/Safety/PPSPS.doc

); ATLAS work is controlled by well defined work packages that include specific safety rules for each operation.  These and/or other tools and controls required for planning  work, for hazard awareness, training, and working safely should be understood and implemented where appropriate.

• Safety is an important part of the work of U.S. collaborations, and safety should be integrated into the mindset at all levels. U.S. personnel can be, and in some cases have been, leaders or models in raising and addressing safety issues at CERN and within the collaborations. The experience of U.S. personnel, whether from National Laboratories or Universities, in mitigating hazards, maintaining high safety standards and  promoting safety culture can be a positive force at CERN. The safety of U.S. personnel at CERN is as dependent on the actions  and success of other groups working with or near U.S. groups, as it is on our own actions. In this vein, U.S. personnel must be fully supportive of CERN and collaboration initiatives to improve safety, and serve as  positive beneficial feedback to CERN and to the collaborations.

We recognize that the above points represent tremendous challenges to our personnel and management. The stakes are high -- the safety of our colleagues at CERN and in the U.S.-- scientists, engineers, students and technicians, is of utmost importance. Our objective is to prevent injury to any worker, experimenter, U.S. or foreign, involved in the extensive LHC effort. U.S. personnel and management certainly have a strong self-interest to do all that is possible to meet that objective.

Robin Staffin                      Joe Dehmer

Associate Director                                         Division Director

DOE Office of High Energy Physics                NSF Division of Physics

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Pepin T. Carolan

DOE/NSF U.S. LHC Project Director

DOE Fermi SiteOffice

pepin.carolan@ch.doe.gov

630-840-2227

FAX: 3285