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Associate Professor Marcus Cattani

Associate Professor

Staff Member Details
Telephone: +61 8 6304 2346
Email: m.cattani@ecu.edu.au
Campus: Joondalup  
Room: JO19.160  
ORCID iD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7586-7288

Dr Marcus Cattani is an Associate Professor in Occupational Health and Safety, and, Deputy Director of the MARS Centre.

Dr. Cattani has worked as an academic, occupational hygienist, HSE Manager and consultant in the mining, oil and gas, chemical, manufacturing, and engineering industries for over 30 years.  Marcus's teaching and research focusses on improving the management of injury risk to an acceptable level, and assisting organisations develop the risk management partnerships required to achieve this.

Since joining ECU in 2015 Marcus has developed and taught Risk Management, Management Systems and Leadership units in the undergraduate and post graduate programs.  Marcus supervises PhD and Masters research projects, and conducts research in a wide range of topics, in partnership with industry and Government.

In 2023, in partnership with the School of Business and Law, Marcus established the ECU MARS Centre, a WA Government funded Research Centre to conduct research and educate the next generation of leaders.  MARS is the Mental Awareness, Repect and Safety initative established by the WA Government.

Professional Memberships

  • Australian Institute of Health and Safety (Chartered Generalist OHS Professional)
    • WA Branch Committee
    • College of Fellows
  • Australian Institute of Occupational Hygienists – Full Member
  • Chamber of Minerals and Energy: Occupational Safety and Health Committee
  • Agriculture Safety Advisory Committee

Short courses

Research Areas and Interests

Marcus is a Deputy Director of the MARS Centre, and he supervises PhD and Masters Research students in a wide range of topics associated with reducing the risk of workplace injuries.  Current research projects include:

  • Comparing real time exposure assessment techniques with conventinal techniques
  • Integrating safety into LEAN to improve priduction performance
  • Using a critical control approach to preventing fatalities in construction
  • Do economic cycles impact safety performance?
  • Investigation of mine worker exposure to radiation in Western Australia
  • Development of an injury risk measure and reporting process (the "Injury Alarm" project)
  • Development of a leadership effectiveness tool
  • Development of organisational performance using injury risk as an indicator
  • Assisting Small and Medium sized Enterprises, and voluntary organisations, prevent harm
  • Understanding and managing risk taking behaviour in the workplace
  • Improving the quality of information on safety data sheets
  • Analysing the incident investigation processes used by national safety investigation agencies
  • OHS education and health management skills

Qualifications

  • Doctor of Philosophy, Murdoch University, 2004.
  • Master of Science, United Kingdom, 1995.

Research Outputs

Journal Articles

  • Bills, K., Costello, L., Cattani, M. (2023). Barry Turner: The Under-Acknowledged Safety Pioneer. Safety, 9(4), 49 pages. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.3390/safety9040068.
  • Bentley, T., Caponecchia, C., Onnis, L., Brunetto, Y., Farr-Wharton, B., Cattani, M., Neto, A., Vassiley, A. (2023). A systems model for the design of occupational health and safety management systems inclusive of work-from-home arrangements. Applied Ergonomics: human factors in technology and society, 109(May 2023), Article number 103966. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apergo.2023.103966.
  • Selleck, B., Cattani, M., Hassall, M. (2023). Proposal for and validation of novel risk-based process to reduce the risk of construction site fatalities (Major Accident Prevention (MAP) program). Safety Science, 158(February 2023), Article number 105986. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2022.105986.
  • Bills, K., Costello, L., Cattani, M. (2023). Major Aviation Accident Safety Investigation Methodologies used by ITSA Members. Safety Science, 168(December 2023), Article number 106315. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2023.106315.

Journal Articles

  • Jenke, T., Boylan, J., Beatty, S., Ralph, M., Chaplyn, A., Penney, G., Cattani, M. (2022). Fatality risk management: Applying Quinlan's Ten Pathways in Western Australia’s mining industry. Safety Science, 146(Feb 2022), Article number 105494. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2021.105494.
  • Penney, G., Ridge, S., Cattani, M. (2022). Enhancing fire service incident investigation – translating findings into improved outcomes using PIAM. Safety Science, 145(Jan 2022), Article number 105488. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2021.105488.
  • Penney, G., Byrne, B., Cattani, M. (2022). Death at sea – the true rate of occupational fatality within the Australian commercial fishing industry. Frontiers in Public Health, 2022(article in press), 1013391. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2022.1013391.
  • Ralph, M., Cattani, M. (2022). A review of radiation doses and associated parameters in Western Australian mining operations (2018-20). Journal of Radiological Protection, 42(2022), article number 012501. https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6498/ac3c90.
  • Maisey, G., Cattani, M., Devine, A., Lo, J., Fu, SC., Dunican, I. (2022). Digging for data: How sleep is losing out to roster design, sleep disorders, and lifestyle factors. Applied Ergonomics: human factors in technology and society, 99(Feb 2022), Article number 103617. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apergo.2021.103617.
  • Penney, G., Smith, G., Ridge, S., Cattani, M. (2022). A review of the standard of care owed to firefighters from a safety perspective – the differences between academic theory and legal obligations.. Fire, 5(3), Article Number 73. https://doi.org/10.3390/fire5030073.
  • Selleck, B., Cattani, M., Hassall, M. (2022). How Did COVID-19 Pandemic Impact Safety Performance on a Construction Project? A Case Study Comparing Pre and Post COVID-19 Influence on Safety at an Australian Construction Site. Safety, 8(4), Article number 77. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.3390/safety8040077.
  • Selleck, B., Hassall, M., Cattani, M. (2022). Determining the Effectiveness of Critical Controls in Construction Projects. Safety, 8(3), 64. https://doi.org/10.3390/safety8030064.
  • Maisey, G., Cattani, M., Devine, A., Dunican, I. (2022). Fatigue Risk Management Systems Diagnostic Tool: Validation of an organizational assessment tool for shiftwork organizations. Safety and Health at Work, 13(4), 408-414. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.shaw.2022.08.002.

Reports

  • Boylan, J., Goodman, H., Karthigesu, S., Holmes, L., Dickson, J., Cattani, M., Coall, D. (2022). TCS@HOME PILOT PROGRAM The psychological safety of volunteering from home as a Lifeline WA telephone crisis supporter. Joondalup. Edith Cowan Univeristy.
  • Boylan, J., Goodman, H., Karthigesu, S., Holmes, L., Dickson, J., Cattani, M., Coall, D. (2022). TCS@HOME PILOT PROGRAM: A qualitative exploration of the high attrition rate experienced in the pretest/post-test control study. Joondalup. Edith Cowan Univeristy.

Journal Articles

  • Maisey, G., Cattani, M., Devine, A., Lo, J., Dunican, I. (2021). The Sleep of shift workers in a remote mining operation: Methodology for a randomized control trial to determine evidence-based interventions. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 14(January 2021), Article number 579668. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2020.579668.
  • Ralph, M., Tsurikov, N., Cattani, M. (2021). Managing the Radiation Exposures of WA Mine Workers from Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials: An Historical Overview (Part II). Radiation Protection in Australasia, 38(2), 4-51. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/ecuworkspost2013/11919.
  • Jenke, T., Oosthuizen, J., Cattani, M. (2021). An investigation of the influence of economic cycles on safety performance in Western Australia. Safety Science, 138(June 2021), Article number 105230. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2021.105230.
  • Ralph, M., Tsurikov, N., Cattani, M. (2021). Managing the Radiation Exposures of WA Mine Workers from Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials: An Historical Overview (Part 1). Radiation Protection in Australasia, 38(1), 53-93. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/ecuworkspost2013/11917.

Reports

Books

Journal Articles

  • Ralph, M., Chaplyn, A., Cattani, M. (2020). A Review of Radiation Doses and Associated Parameters in Western Australia Mining Operations Encountering Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials (NORM) for 2018-19. Journal of Radiological Protection, 40(4), 1476-1496. https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6498/abc4eb.
  • Ralph, M., Hinckley, S., Cattani, M. (2020). Reassessment of radiation exposures of underground non-uranium mine workers in Western Australia. Radiation Protection Dosimetry, 191(3), 272-287. https://doi.org/10.1093/rpd/ncaa131.
  • Ralph, M., Tsurikov, N., Cattani, M. (2020). Impacts of revised dose coefficients for the inhalation of NORM-containing dusts encountered in the Western Australian mining industry. Journal of Radiological Protection, 40(4), 1457-1475. https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6498/abb039.
  • Penney, G., Habibi, D., Cattani, M. (2020). Improving firefighter tenability during entrapment and burnover: an analysis of vehicle protection systems. Fire Safety Journal, 118(December 2020), Article number 103209. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.firesaf.2020.103209.
  • Penney, G., Habibi, D., Cattani, M. (2020). RUIM – A fire safety engineering model for rural urban interface firefighter taskforce deployment. Fire Safety Journal, 113(May 2020), Article number 102986. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.firesaf.2020.102986.

Reports

  • Penney, G., Cattani, M. (2020). As Low As Reasonably Practicable: Research report into practically applying ALARP across the Water Corporation. Australia. Water Corporation.

Journal Articles

  • Penney, G., Habibi, D., Cattani, M., Carter, M. (2019). Calculation of critical water flow rates for wildfire suppression. Fire, 2(1), article no.3. https://doi.org/10.3390/fire2010003.
  • Penney, G., Habibi, D., Cattani, M. (2019). Firefighter tenability and its influence on wildfire suppression. Fire Safety Journal, 106(June 2019), 38-51. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.firesaf.2019.03.012.
  • Jones, R., Cattani, M., Cross, M., Boylan, J., Holmes, A., Boothroyd, C., Mattingley, J. (2019). Serious Injuries in the Mining Industry: Preparing the Emergency Response. Australasian Journal of Paramedicine, 16(2019), 6 p.. https://doi.org/10.33151/ajp.16.652.
  • Selleck, B., Cattani, M. (2019). Preventing fatalities in the construction industry – a review of critical risk management strategies.. Journal of Health, Safety and Environment, 35(3), 193-211. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/ecuworkspost2013/7176.

Conference Publications

Journal Articles

  • Blewitt, V., Rainbird, S., Dorrian, J., Paterson, J., Cattani, M. (2012). Keeping rail on track: preliminary findings on safety culture in Australian rail. Work: A Journal of Prevention, Assessment and Rehabilitation, 41(Suppl. 1), 4230-4236. https://doi.org/10.3233/WOR-2012-0124-4230.

Research Projects

  • Occupational Hygiene Dust Sampler Comparison Study in Western Australian Mining Operations, Minerals Research Institute of Western Australia, PhD Scholarship, 2024 ‑ 2029, $116,398.
  • Occupational Hygiene Dust Sampler Comparison Study in West Australian Mining Operations , Nickel Institute, Belgium, Grant, 2024 ‑ 2025, $149,820.
  • Co-design of a novel immersive educational experience targeting the mining and resources sector for Year 9/10 high school students, Construction Training Fund, Grants, 2024 ‑ 2025, $225,000.
  • Development of interventions to improve quality and quantity of sleep, Melius Consulting, Scholarships to support Industry Engagement PhD Projects, 2019 ‑ 2024, $30,000.
  • Mental health of employees: a risk based approach for Australian workplaces of Interest, Industrial Foundation for Accident Prevention, Scholarships to support Industry Engagement PhD Projects, 2019 ‑ 2024, $35,000.
  • MARS: Developing research questions for the future; Health and exposure metrics as an indicator of workplace health in Western Australia., DMIRS: Mental Awareness, Respect and Safety - MARS, Grant, 2024, $48,779.
  • Compare exposure monitoring samplers in Western Australian mining operations, RIO Tinto (Technological Resources Pty Ltd), Grant, 2021 ‑ 2024, $50,000.
  • MARS: The Barometer in Australian Mining: Developing an integrated approach to monitoring incident and injury risk, DMIRS: Mental Awareness, Respect and Safety - MARS, Grant, 2024, $58,824.
  • What is the role of the safety Regulator in suicides?, Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety, Grant, 2023 ‑ 2024, $125,000.
  • Removal of naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM) deposited in corrosion scale in mineral processing circuits, Minerals Research Institute of Western Australia, PhD Scholarship, 2022 ‑ 2023, $27,197.
  • Telephone Crisis Supporter @ Home Evaluation with Lifeline WA, Lifeline WA, Grant, 2021 ‑ 2023, $75,885.
  • Early identification of and appropriate response to aggressive behaviour for hospital workers, Department of Health WA, Clinical Simulation and Training Grants, 2020 ‑ 2022, $49,794.
  • Resourceful Minds Pilot Evaluation with Lifeline WA, Lifeline WA, Grant, 2021 ‑ 2022, $97,369.
  • Professional Fishing Industry Fatality, Incident and Injury Data Project, Fisheries Research and Development Corporation, Grant, 2020 ‑ 2021, $35,000.
  • Flexible work and psychological safety: best practice to advance psychologically safe work from alternate locations, NSW Government, Understanding the Changing World of Work (Tender), 2020 ‑ 2021, $135,157.
  • Water Corporation: Risk Management (ALARP), Water Corporation, Grant, 2020, $13,529.
  • A training needs assessment to assist industry implement the new West Australian Work Health & Safety legislation., Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety, Grant, 2018 ‑ 2019, $20,000.
  • Minimisation of adverse incidents through the development of optimal operational leadership risk management skills and competency, Clough Ltd, Grant, 2018 ‑ 2019, $80,000.
  • Minimisation of adverse incidents through the development of optimal operational leadership risk management skills and competency, Edith Cowan University, ECU Industry Collaboration Scheme - 2016 Open Round, 2017 ‑ 2018, $60,000.

Research Student Supervision

Principal Supervisor

  • Doctor of Philosophy, Occupational Hygiene Dust Sampler Comparison Study in Western Australian Mining Operations
  • Doctor of Philosophy, Development implementation and evaluation of an integrated university occupational hygiene and health monitoring program
  • Doctor of Philosophy, Risky Business: Investigating the impact of external factors on safety performance
  • Doctor of Philosophy, Aviation accident investigation methodologies used by ITSA members: exploring practice through a multi-case study of shared experience and theory
  • Doctor of Philosophy, Can a culture of continuous improvement deliver sustainable safety performance improvement, through a proven productivity and cost improvement framework
  • Doctor of Philosophy, An investigation into the accuracy of chemical safety data sheets and the impact of inaccurate safety data sheets on occupational risk assessments.
  • Doctor of Philosophy, Assessing Intake of Thorium Ore Dust by Western Australian Mineral Industry Workers

Principal Supervisor

  • Doctor of Philosophy, Towards establishing a fit-for-purpose regulatory framework for radiation protection in Western Australia's mining industry: Evaluating mine worker exposures to naturally occurring radionuclides
  • Doctor of Philosophy, A Critical Control Approach to Preventing Fatalities in Construction
  • Doctor of Philosophy, Mining for Sleep Data: An investigation into the sleep of fly-in fly-out shift workers in the mining industry and potential solutions

Co-principal Supervisor

  • Doctor of Philosophy, Wildfire suppression - an international analysis of operations, strategy and firefighter safety

Associate Supervisor

  • Doctor of Philosophy, Does facial physiognomy in the context of an occupational safety and health message predict outcomes?
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