SAFETY directors and responsible managers have been creating safety programs for decades. So why is safety still such a difficult problem to manage in today's workplaces? One answer is that all of the safety programs in the world won't work unless those responsible for a particular task or risk control procedure do what they are supposed to do.
SLIPS, trips, and falls to the same level are a leading cause of workplace injury and death. According to the National Safety Council, more than 300,000 injuries and 1,500 deaths each year result from slip, trip, and fall accidents. The average cost for each accident is about $6,700 in lost compensation and medical costs.
IN the realm of personal protective equipment, protective gloves offer the first line of defense against an array of hazards. Most often, they are used to protect the hands against scrapes, cuts, chemical, biological, and electrical hazards--with the goal of avoiding or limiting damage to the fingers, hands, wrists, and lower arms. In some instances, the correct hand protection also helps to guard against death.
MANY articles in safety magazines address the subject of confined space rescue, so everyone should be familiar with 1910.146 (d)(9). It states that a company entering permit-required confined spaces must: "Develop and implement procedures for summoning rescue and emergency services, for rescuing entrants from permit spaces . . . ."
FOR many years, it has been recognized that turnout gear needs to be maintained in order for the firefighter to receive full benefit from the standards under which the gear was manufactured. Maintenance is required for both safety and economic reasons.
THIS article is intended to provide a brief overview of water supplies for fire protection and standpipe systems. It is not a code compliance article. For detailed requirements, check with your local authority having jurisdiction (AHJ).
EACH year, $12.5 trillion of merchandise is traded worldwide, using more than 200 million intermodal containers. Ninety percent of these shipments are between seaports.1 Unsecured freight represents a global security threat, both in terms of potentially lost merchandise value and the crippling of the global trading economy.
WHETHER a company stores, uses, or transports hazardous materials (hazmat), there is always the potential for a chemical spill. And beyond regulatory requirements that all employees are trained to handle chemical spills, it is also the responsibility of an owner to keep employees safe when doing so.
HE sounded just like a hundred other managers: "We don't need a trained first aid team for our site. We're only five minutes from the hospital, fer cryin' out loud!" His pronouncement was right up there with "We can't afford to do first aid training in this economy" and "If someone gets hurt we'll just call 911, that's what they're for." These are common proclamations from people who do not necessarily see the value of first aid teams and the associated training.
SOME years ago, I built a harness for an ironworker who had an 80-inch waist and 54-inch thighs. He was bigger around than he was tall. I asked the Safety Director if a person this size should even be 6 feet off the ground.
SINCE Sept. 11, 2001, America has been under the looming threat of another terrorist attack. The country is responding to this threat by increasing its level of awareness and protection on national, local, and individual levels. In particular, security and occupational safety professionals must prepare for and protect against this new threat.
THE next time one of your employees reaches for his safety eyewear, he might need to do a double take in order to ensure he's getting the right level of protection for the job. That's because the American National Standards Institute is all but set to publish a revision to its current standard, ANSI Z87.1-1989, in order to make it easier to select the specific eye protection needed for a given task.