Safety In The Shop Washington DC

Safety in the shop is an important and serious matter. It requires the same careful attention you give to sales and shop efficiency. Sadly, though, for most businesses, it takes a back seat until either the workers' compensation claims become so large the premiums bury you, or worse, a tragic accident occurs. No one wants a visit from OSHA, but if you don't have a clear-cut safety program you may be heading in that direction.

Recently, our workers compensation company paid us a visit. The company gave us a list of items we could improve on and listed the fines that we could be assessed for noncompliance. We asked if OSHA was going to visit us. More than likely it would only happen if a major accident occurred, but when that happens you are open to all sorts of scrutiny. In that case, being constantly prepared for a visit is good for the health of the company, but more importantly you are protecting your most important asset, your employees. They are the only investment you make that doesn't depreciate in value.

Every aspect of your company needs to be looked at. Below is a list complied by VOSH (Virginia Occupational Safety) of the 10 most frequent shop violations. Even though the list is from Virginia, I'm sure the principles apply no matter what part of the country you live in.

1. Lock-out, tag out
2. Fire extinguisher training and education
3. Hazard methods — written hazcom program
4. Wiring methods — cabinets, boxes and fittings
5. Respiratory protection program
6. Flexible cords and cables
7. Machine guarding
8. Powered industrial trucks — operator training
9. PPE — hazard assessment and equipment selection
10. Hazard communication — employee information and training

To cover every violation would take more space than this column allows for, so let's discuss the one that affects not only the shop, but also the office.

Fire Extinguisher Training And Education

I know what you're thinking, fire extinguishers? Give me a break! Aren't they pretty much self-explanatory? That's what I was thinking at first. But have you ever used an extinguisher? Most people haven't. Below is the suggested fire extinguisher program straight from OSHA.

"If you are not currently providing fire extinguisher training to your employees as required by OSHA this training should be commensurate with the fire potential associated with your operation. Employees not part of a fire brigade still need to be familiar with the operation in the event they need to use one to assist in their own evacuation.

1. Where the employer has provided portable fire extinguishers for employee use in the workplace, the employee shall also provide an educational program to familiarize employees with the general principle of fire extinguisher use and hazards involved with incipient stage fire fighting.
2. The employer shall provide the education required upon initial employment and at least annually thereafter.
3. The employer shall provide employees who have been designated to use firefighting equipment as part of an emergency action plan with training in the use of the appropriate equipment.
4. This training could be accomplished in one of the following ways:

Minimal: Payroll stuffer with instructions; good: The above with a safety meeting with extinguishers and instructions; better: The above and a demonstrational video; best: The above with the local fire department providing hands-on-training."

After this information was presented to us, we decided that we needed a program so we took a tour around the office, shop, warehouse and vehicles. We had a company coming in every year to inspect the extinguishers, including the ones in the vehicles.

As far as payroll stuffers, we found a very good one on the Web. I also called the company that inspected our fire extinguishers to see if they had an instructional video we could borrow. They did. So now the next step was a way to present the information. That came in the form of a safety meeting

One industrywide suggestion you will hear is the value of a safety meeting not just yearly, but monthly. They don't need to last for very long. But they do need to accomplish something. You can also contact your insurance company to see what help they can offer. Even OSHA can help. They will actually come to your place of business and help you make your shop more compliant. It may seem like a lot of trouble to take over fire extinguishers, but it is well worth it to protect your people and your shop from tragedy.

The countertop industry has so many areas where safety is an issue. Not having a safety program would be downright negligent. Please do not minimize the importance of this; stay safe. Stay tuned for more safety information and how to incorporate this into a productive safety meeting.

About the author:

Jon Olson is the production and operations manager for Sterling Surfaces in Sterling, Mass. He has been a solid surface fabricator since 1982 and can be reached at jon@sterlingsurfaces.com.