INTRODUCTION

CANUTEC's ERGO 2004 (a software version of the 2004 Emergency Response Guidebook (ERG2004)) was made available for free download as of August 1, 2005.  The most recent revision is version 1.0.  The file size is 2776 KB and is self-extracting.

The interface of ERGO was designed to have a look and feel similar to the Guidebook so that familiarity with the ERG2004 would translate effortlessly to the software version.

ERGO will not be distributed in any other fashion by CANUTEC except through its web site.  Webmasters are encouraged to link to this page to allow their visitors downloading access.

Send all questions concerning ERGO and its distribution to CANUTEC.

REQUIREMENTS

OPERATING SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

• Supported Operating Systems: Windows 2000; Windows 98; Windows ME; Windows NT; Windows XP

• If you are running Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 you will require Service Pack 6a available by clicking the following link

• ERGO 2004 runs under the Microsoft .NET Framework package.  This package must be installed.  Click the following link to access the download page for the .NET framework.

• This download page will notify you that you must have the latest service pack and critical updates for the version of Windows that you are running. It will point you to the following link for these updates.

• This download page will also indicate that you must be running Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.01 or later for all installations of the .NET Framework package.  If you do not have 5.01 or later, it will provide the following link to install Internet Explorer 6.0 Service Pack 1.

• Please ensure that you are running the latest version of MDAC from Microsoft.  You can download the latest version from the following link. 

INSTALLATION

• Click HERE TO DOWNLOAD the version having English as the default language (see NOTE below);
  
  

• Save the Setup installation file in a temporary directory on your hard disk (usually your desktop);
  
  

• Run ERGO_English.exe by double-clicking on the icon in the temporary directory and follow the installation instructions displayed on the screen;
  
  

• To run ERGO 2004, click on the Microsoft "Start" button (bottom left corner of your screen) in the task bar and select the "Programs" directory where you will find ERGO 2004;
  
  

• Select ERGO 2004;
  
  

• Or you can click the ERGO 2004 shortcut icon that has been installed on your desktop.
  

NOTE:  All language versions of ERGO 2004 are identical except for the initial language default setting.  The language default setting can be changed from within ERGO under the Language menu item if desired.

FEATURES

SEARCH

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INDEXES

EMERGENCY RESPONSE GUIDES

TIIPAD

WATER-REACTIVE MATERIALS

CHEMICAL WARFARE AGENTS

HISTORY

PLACARDS AND SILHOUETTES

The 2004 edition of ERGO has some enhanced functionality.  In the Menu you will find the “Language” menu item.  ERGO now functions in English, French or Spanish in one program.  The “Units” menu item allows you to select Imperial or Metric units for initial isolation and protective action distances.

The first window you are greeted with, after the splash screen, is the “Search” window.  There are 2 ways of accessing the various functional parts of the Guide from here:  the toolbar icons and the tabs.  These have mouse-over tool tips to guide you.

SEARCH

Click this tab, or the magnifying glass icon toolbar button, for searching.  You can enter an unlimited amount of ID Numbers at once into the ID Number field but they must be separated by a space.  OR, you can find all the names of materials that contain the text string you enter in the field Name of Material.  OR, you can find all the materials that reference a specific guide page (only one guide number can be entered in the field Guide Number).  You can combine ID Numbers, Names of Material and one Guide number as well.  You can also select the sort order (and associated layout) of the search results window by selecting one of the “Sort Order" radio buttons.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Click this tab to access the textual sections of the Guide (those pages that are white in the Guidebook itself).  All parts of the Guide are accessible from here by clicking on the pertinent section title.  Right-click or click the tab to return to the Table of Contents from the text pages.

INDEXES

ID Number tab or yellow book icon toolbar button:  This is the index of Dangerous Goods as they appear in the Yellow Section of the Guidebook, ordered by ID Number.  The Guide page (orange section) for each material is accessible from here by double-clicking an item.

Name of Material tab or blue book icon toolbar button:  This is the index of Dangerous Goods as they appear in the Blue Section of the Guidebook, ordered by Name of Material.  The Guide page (orange section) for each material is also accessible from here by double-clicking an item.

A mouse-over tool tip appears over each item to provide the description of the referenced Guide page.  Those materials presenting a special hazard [such as Toxic Inhalation Hazard (TIH), Water-Reactive Material (WRM) or Chemical Warfare Agent (CWA)], are highlighted and the specific hazard is indicated in the far right column with an icon.  Those that have a Polymerisation Hazard have the letter "P" following the number of the referenced Guide.

When an item having any of these special hazards is double-clicked, ERGO will warn you more specifically of the hazard and/or provide or request additional information.

For TIH and CWA materials, an extract of the Table of Initial Isolation and Protective Action Distances (TIIPAD) for the selected material is shown as a green header above the Guide page.

For Water-Reactive Materials spilled in water, a dialog box warns of the toxic gas(es) produced.  The green header with the extracted TIIPAD indicates the gas(es) generated and the pertinent Guide page for each toxic gas can be accessed by clicking the name of the gas.

For a Polymerisation Hazard a dialog box with a warning appears.

EMERGENCY RESPONSE GUIDES

Clicking this tab, or the orange book icon toolbar button, directly accesses the list of all Guide Numbers.  Select any one of the Guides by clicking the Guide number in the left column.

The Guides appear in the same format as the Guidebook and can be printed by clicking the printer icon toolbar button.  If the Guide was selected from an index or search results window, the Name of the selected Material with its ID Number will appear in plain text below the Guide title.  If an inhalation hazard is associated with the material, the extracted TIIPAD information will be displayed as a green header.

TIIPAD

Clicking this tab, or the skull & crossbones icon toolbar button, shows the Table of Initial Isolation and Protective Action Distances (TIIPAD) for materials that are a Toxic Inhalation Hazard (TIH), Water-Reactive Materials (WRM), or Chemical Warfare agent (CWA).  You will not often need to consult the whole Table because the information it contains will automatically be provided as a green header above the Guide Page when the page is accessed by clicking a material.

However, it provides some information not available from other windows.  Mousing over either the Small or Large Spills heading provides a definition for these spill sizes.  Clicking the "First Isolate in all Directions" or "Then Protect persons Downwind during-" headings shows a graphic definition for these spill response actions.

WATER-REACTIVE MATERIALS

Clicking this tab, or the water drop icon toolbar button, provides a list of materials that may generate one or more toxic gases when spilled in water.  The names of Toxic Inhalation Hazard (TIH) gases appear in the corresponding columns.  Clicking any material in any column produces the same behaviour as clicking the material in the indexes.  It is important that the Initial Isolation and Protective Actions Distances (IIPAD) for the water-reactive material itself be consulted and not the IIPAD for the generated gas(es).

CHEMICAL WARFARE AGENTS

Clicking this tab, or the gas mask icon toolbar button, shows the list of Chemical Warfare Agents (CWA).  Clicking a CWA produces the same behaviour as clicking the material in the indexes.

HISTORY

When a Guide page is accessed from either the ID Number, Name of Material, WRM, CWA indexes or a Search Results window, the item is recorded in the History report for easier accessibility.  It remains available until deleted by the user.  Any item can be deleted by right-clicking the item and clicking the delete button that appears.  All items can be removed by right-clicking the item History at the top of the page.  Again, clicking any material produces the same behaviour as clicking the material in the indexes.

PLACARDS AND SILHOUETTES

Placards and rail car / road trailer silhouettes are accessed from the toolbar or the Table of Contents.  Select the desired placard or silhouette page by clicking the smaller image at the bottom left.  Mousing over a placard group or silhouette shows a larger image to the left.  Left-clicking opens the Guide page referenced by the placard or silhouette.  Click the tab to return to the Table of Contents.

DISCLAIMER