October 2015 Safety News and Notes

Here's a collection of recent workplace safety news and resources from around the web:

OH&S Offers Workplace Safety Webinars in November

Occupational Health & Safety magazine partners with various organizations to present safety webinars on a variety of topics each month. Here's the November lineup:

• Specialty PPE in arc flash to meet NFPA 70E - Wed. Nov. 11
• Combustible dust NFPA 652 - Thurs. Nov. 12
• New global standards for protective gloves -  Wed. Nov. 18
• Arc flash and flash fire protection for hands - Thurs. Nov. 19

Learn more and register here.

ISHN Releases eBooks for Oil and Gas Industry

Industrial Safety & Hygiene News has developed two eBooks to serve as a handy reference for safety and health practitioners in the oil and gas industry. Oil and Gas Industry Safety examines industrial hygiene practices, health hazards and safety hazards. Oil & Gas Industry shares research and management information, including best practices and lessons learned from the industry.
Review the eBooks online or download as pdfs.

Use Three Points-of-Contact to Reduce Ladder Falls

Falls remain a leading cause of unintentional injury mortality nationwide. According to the Centers for Disease Control, approximately 20% of work-related fall injuries involve ladders. Factors contributing to falls from ladders include haste, sudden movement, lack of attention, the condition of the ladder (worn or damaged), the user's age or physical condition and the user's footwear. Improper climbing posture creates user clumsiness that also leads to falls.

When climbing a ladder, it is safest to utilize three points-of-contact to minimize the chance of slipping and falling from the ladder. At all times during ascent, descent and working, the climber must face the ladder and have two hands and one foot, or two feet and one hand in contact with the ladder steps, rungs and/or side rails.

Tips for Safely Climbing a Ladder

Here's some instruction from the American Ladder Institute on the recommended three-point-of-contact method of climbing ladders:

• Wear slip-resistant shoes with heavy soles to prevent foot fatigue
• Clean the soles of shoes to maximize traction
• Use towlines, a tool belt or an assistant to convey materials so the climbers hands are free when climbing
• Climb slowly and deliberately while avoiding sudden movements
• Never attempt to move a ladder while standing on it
• Keep the center of your belt buckle (stomach) between the ladder side rails while climbing and working. Do not overreach or lean while working.

Following these tips will help a climber stay stable if one limb slips during the climb. Climbers should not carry any objects that can interfere with a firm grip on the ladder, or the three points-of-contact will be lost.

Learn more:

• Visit the American Ladder Institute.
• Visit the OSHA Ladder Safety site.
• Read construction fall-prevention safety tips.
• Browse Ladder and Scaffold safety signs.

Five Steps to Compressed Gas Safety

Even a small propane tank can cause a major disaster if improperly stored, secured, maintained or used. It's not common, but it has happened. The safety experts at Safety Management Group in Indianapolis have prepared a post that identifies three hazards associated with all gas cylinders, and outlines five basic safety practices to help protect workers and others from these hazards. Here's a short version of the full list:

1. Store cylinders properly. OSHA rules provide different guidance for storage on construction sites and industrial settings.
2. Keep cylinders secured. Use straps, guards or chains and never remove the cap from a cylinder until it has been secured.
3. Inspect cylinders before moving or using them.
4. Open them carefully. Opening a valve too quickly can cause high-pressure gas to damage the regulator and valve seats.
5. Follow procedures for empty cylinders. Always leave some residual pressure in the cylinder, rather than emptying it all the way. 

Resources:

• Read the full compressed gas safety article.
• Visit the OSHA compressed gas page.
• Read a NIOSH compressed gas safety checklist.
• Browse cylinder safety signs and labels. 

 

Mobile Apps Help Employers Document Onsite Accidents

It's one of the less pleasant aspects of owning a business: dealing with injuries that occur at your site. You've no doubt seen TV ads for personal injury lawyers looking for injured workers. But have you seen any offering to defend the owner of a site where an injury happened? Not likely. All the more reason to spell out procedures for you and your managers to follow in the event of an accident.

Download an App to Document Worksite Injuries

No one should be surprised to learn there are mobile apps that can be used to document workplace injuries. Most of them are from personal injury firms and insurance companies to be used for documenting car accidents. There are apps for every OS, but Android offers the

It's Drive Safely Work Week 2015

Off-the-Job Traffic Crashes Pose Significant Costs to Employers

When considering the human and financial impact of traffic crashes on the workplace, many think about drivers of company vehicles. But the last published report of The Economic Burden of Traffic Crashes on Employers shows that's not the only cost producing incident. Among crashes resulting in injury, there is a nearly 1:1 ratio of the cost of on-the-job crashes to the cost of off-the-job crashes. Preliminary findings for an updated report show the trend has continued.

During Drive Safely Work Week, which kicks off today and runs through October 9, NETS is calling on employers to consider the safety of ALL employees when behind the wheel. To make participation in the campaign easy, NETS provides a free toolkit, available on its website that includes sample email blasts, graphics, social media posts, presentations and more.

Is Your Workplace Ready to Deal with Disaster?

Proper signage is a vital component of an

effective emergency response plan.

Believe it or not, the most important time to leave your workplace quickly isn’t closing time on Friday. Lives can easily be in jeopardy should an emergency situation arise, so it’s the wrong scenario for you to be relying on dumb luck. Fires and explosions alone were responsible for 148 deaths on the job in 2013.*

This fact becomes even more alarming when you consider the multitude of other potential hazards that can strike without warning, for example:

• Severe Weather / Natural Disasters
• Workplace Violence
• Power Loss
• Chemical Spills

In larger cities, the potential of responding to a terrorist attack stands out a serious concern as well. The one thing all of these emergencies have in common is that when they occur on your site, you’re safer elsewhere. Emergency exits and exit routes save lives every year, so having them in place and prepared for use is a must for any business looking to be safety savvy.