Category: Safety

Portable Ladder Safety

ladder-safetyFalls from portable ladders (step, straight, combination and extension) are one of the leading causes of occupational fatalities and injuries.

  • Read and follow all labels/markings on the ladder.
  • Avoid electrical hazards! – Look for overhead power lines before handling a ladder. Avoid using a metal ladder near power lines or exposed energized electrical equipment.
  • Always inspect the ladder prior to using it. If the ladder is damaged, it must be removed from service and tagged until repaired or discarded.
  • Always maintain a 3-point (two hands and a foot, or two feet and a hand) contact on the ladder when climbing. Keep your body near the middle of the step and always face the ladder while climbing (see diagram).
  • Only use ladders and appropriate accessories (ladder levelers, jacks or hooks) for their designed purposes.
  • Ladders must be free of any slippery material on the rungs, steps or feet.
  • Do not use a self-supporting ladder (e.g., step ladder) as a single ladder or in a partially closed position.
  • Do not use the top step/rung of a ladder as a step/rung unless it was designed for that purpose.
  • Use a ladder only on a stable and level surface, unless it has been secured (top or bottom) to prevent displacement.
  • Do not place a ladder on boxes, barrels or other unstable bases to obtain additional height.
  • Do not move or shift a ladder while a person or equipment is on the ladder.
  • An extension or straight ladder used to access an elevated surface must extend at least 3 feet above the point of support (see diagram). Do not stand on the three top rungs of a straight, single or extension ladder.
  • The proper angle for setting up a ladder is to place its base a quarter of the working length of the ladder from the wall or other vertical surface (see diagram).
  • A ladder placed in any location where it can be displaced by other work activities must be secured to prevent displacement or a barricade must be erected to keep traffic away from the ladder.
  • Be sure that all locks on an extension ladder are properly engaged.
  • Do not exceed the maximum load rating of a ladder. Be aware of the ladder’s load rating and of the weight it is supporting, including the weight of any tools or equipment.

via Portable Ladder Safety.

Safety – Begin With The End In Mind

mazeThe Second Habit in Steven Covey’s book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People is Begin With the End in Mind. I think that is a great habit to apply to workplace safety. I have attached an Annual Safety Audit to the end of this message anyone can use as a road map to an effective safety strategy. It’s been my experience that most employers want to keep their employees healthy and safe because it’s not only good business but also the right thing to do.

Click on the link to download a copy of Annual Safety Audit:

dl.dropbox.com/u/13760500/RM365AnnualSafetyAudit.pdf

Machine Guarding

WarningMoving machine parts have the potential to cause severe workplace injuries, such as crushed fingers or hands, amputations, burns, or blindness. Safeguards are essential for protecting workers from these preventable injuries. Any machine part, function, or process that may cause injury must be safeguarded. When the operation of a machine or accidental contact injure the operator or others in the vicinity, the hazards must be eliminated or controlled. This page contains general information on the various hazards of mechanical motion and techniques for protecting workers.

via Safety and Health Topics | Machine Guarding.

What Triggers Behavior Change?

pasted-graphicBJ Fogg founder of  the Persuasive Technology Lab at Stanford University  designed  a behavior model to serve as a guide to identify what stops people from performing desirable behaviors. The Fogg Behavior Model shows that three elements must converge at the same moment for a behavior to occur:

  • Motivation
  • Ability
  • Trigger

When a behavior does not occur, at least one of those three elements is missing.

When designing health and safety processes it’s important to include all three elements to drive desired behavior change. To be successful you need participation, education and encouragement built into the process.

via BJ Fogg’s Behavior Model.

Home Safety: 5 Tips for Preventing Falls

senior-falls-at-homeFalls are the No. 1 cause of home injuries and death in the U.S., according to the Home Safety Council. The two groups most at risk for falls are children younger than 5 and adults over the age of 70.

Try these strategies to prevent falls at home:

  • Make the bathroom a no-slip zone. Install grab bars and non-slip mats or appliques in the tub or shower. Use a bathmat with a nonskid bottom and clean up any water that splashes on floors right away.
  • Safety-proof stairs. Remove clutter from stairs and walkways. Stairs inside and out should have handrails, preferably on both sides. Have good lighting over stairs.
  • For babies and toddlers, install hardware-mounted safety gates at the top and bottom of stairs. Pressure-mounted gates are less effective. Gates should have the JPMA (Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association) Certification Seal. Never use accordion-style gates.
  • Put a guard on indoor lofts, landings, balconies, and stair banisters if your child can slip between the posts. Plexiglas is a good option because it bends, is easy to cut, and doesn’t shatter.
  • Toss the throw rugs. Throw rugs are a big tripping hazard for young and old people. At the very least, tape or tack them to the floor.
  • Leave a light on. Ideally, have night-lights in bedrooms, bathrooms, and halls.
  • Make windows safe. New York City cut children’s deaths from window-related falls by a third after requiring window guards. Window screens are not strong enough to prevent falls. Install window guards with quick-release mechanisms (in case of fire) on upper floor windows. Keep furniture away from windows, especially in children’s room, and always watch children around windows.

via Home Safety: Preventing Burns, Cuts, and More.

What’s Next After Lean?

iStock_flow-chart_leanManufacturing-BlogDefinition of Lean:

Doing more with less by employing “lean thinking.” Lean manufacturing involves never ending efforts to eliminate or reduce ‘muda” (Japanese for waste or any activity that consumes resources without adding value) in design, manufacturing, distribution, and customer service processes.

So what’s “beyond lean” or the “next lean”. I have found that applying “lean” thinking to employee health and productivity  eliminates waste in the cost of health care, work comp, absenteeism and presenteeism (at work but not productive). To be successful you need a process or road map. The process is the five steps of risk management. They are:

  1. Identify Risk
  2. Analyze Data
  3. Control Risk
  4. Finance Risk
  5. Measure Results

Don’t make the mistake of thinking insurance is risk management. Insurance is not risk management; in fact it is the 4th step of the process. Skipping (or poor execution of) the first 3 steps leads the waste (higher cost) and poor results in step 5.

Payroll, Benefits and Work Comp are typically the highest cost a business has yet in many cases this area is often overlooked for waste.

Hazard Communication | What is Hazard Communication?

right-to-know-stations-economy-is26-baChemicals pose a wide range of health hazards (such as irritation, sensitization, and carcinogenicity) and physical hazards (such as flammability, corrosion, and reactivity). OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) is designed to ensure that information about these hazards and associated protective measures is disseminated. This is accomplished by requiring chemical manufacturers and importers to evaluate the hazards of the chemicals they produce or import, and to provide information about them through labels on shipped containers and more detailed information sheets called material safety data sheets (MSDSs). All employers with hazardous chemicals in their workplaces must prepare and implement a written hazard communication program, and must ensure that all containers are labeled, employees are provided access to MSDSs, and an effective training program is conducted for all potentially exposed employees.

via Safety and Health Topics | Hazard Communication | What is Hazard Communication?.

Keeping Children Safe Online

Online-SafetyThere are several ways to safeguard children. Undoubtedly the most effective is to educate them from an early age about the risks they may encounter when online … what these risks are, how to spot them and what action to take. There are a number of online age-appropriate educational resources available to parents/guardians and teachers, and children themselves, covering every aspect of online safety for children.

You should also take the following measures. Remember that these factors will change as children grow up and should be reconsidered regularly.

  • Set ground rules about use of the internet, email and texts. They should learn to take responsibility for their own actions and develop their own judgement.
  • Make children aware that online contacts may not be who they say they are.
  • Children must keep personal details private.
  • Ensure that they use a family email address when filling in online forms.
  • They must never meet unsupervised with anyone they have contacted via the internet.
  • Get children to report concerns about conversations, messages and behaviours to you or another known and trusted adult. Encourage them to share their internet experience with you and make it a shared family experience.
  • Get children to report bullying online, by text or phone immediately to you.
  • Use the parental control settings on your browser, search engine and internet security package.
  • Alternatively, consider buying specialist parental control software.
  • Block pop-ups and spam emails.
  • Consider enabling online access from only a family computer located in a shared room.
  • Always sit with younger children when they are online.
  • Consider choosing a child-friendly home page in your browser settings.
  • Learn the language of chatrooms and log on yourself so you know how it works.
  • Consider setting up a family e-mail account which can be used specifically to register for websites, competitions etc.
  • Tell your children not to illegally copy copyrighted content such as music, films or software.
  • Ensure that your children do not have access to your logon account so that they cannot access, alter or delete your files.
  • Take care to limit children’s access to credit card and bank information. Similarly, ensure they cannot gain access to an online shop or other website where your details are stored.
  • Set limits on when they can use the computer, and for how long.

Remember that a lot of the above advice also applies to your children’s use of mobile phones, tablets and games consoles.

via Safeguarding Children | Get Safe Online.

Safety Tips: New Year’s Eve

New YearsIf you are hosting a New Year’s Eve party, following a few simple rules could prevent a tragedy:

  • Plan ahead by naming a “designated driver.” Make this your responsibility as the host.
  • Contact a local cab company to provide rides for your guests.
  • Serve non-alcoholic beverages as an option to your guests.
  • Stop serving alcohol to your guests several hours before the party ends.
  • Provide your guests with a place to stay overnight in your home.
  • If you are attending New Year’s Eve parties and celebrations:
  • If you drink, don’t drive.
  • Plan ahead and always designate a sober driver before the party or celebration begins.
  • If you are impaired, call a taxi, use mass transit, or get a sober friend or family member to come pick you up.
  • Or, stay where you are until you are sober.
  • Take the keys from someone if you think he/she is too impaired to drive.

via USA.gov: Safety Tips: New Year’s Eve.