Painter Safety (2) A painter applies coatings and paint to interior and exterior building surfaces with a variety of job sites, chemical use, and physical and ergonomic demands. A lot of painting work is done from heights. Inspect ladders daily, set them properly, and work from ladders safely. Make sure a qualified person properly installed your scaffolding. Do not use makeshift ladders or scaffolds that could fail and cause a fall. Know when to use fall protection and how to use it properly. Read the Safety Data Sheet (SDS) to learn about the chemicals in paints and surface preparation materials you use. Even...

Hazardous Atmospheres In Confined Spaces Employees in many industries enter a variety of confined spaces for inspections, testing, repair or cleaning. A confined space is any area that: (a) has limited openings for entry and exit; (b) may contain or produce toxic air contaminants; (c) has a high concentration of an inert gas; (d) is not intended for continuous occupancy; and (e) may have an oxygen-deficient atmosphere. All such spaces must be analyzed and tested before entry. Workers should also be trained to understand the hazards that may be found in these spaces. A few of the potentially hazardous gases are: Freon®...

Electricity and Breaker Panels The process of forcing electrons to move through a material creates electricity. A standard generator performs this process. The best material for carrying electricity is a "conductor." Most metals are excellent conductors and the most common material used for electrical wiring is copper. In order to provide protection from direct contact with the conductor, an "insulator" is used as a cover around the conductor. Electrons will not move easily through insulators such as most plastics and rubber. Insulators and proper grounding help to prevent electrical shocks. Typically, electricity is provided to your building or facility by way of...

Pallet Safety Webster defines a pallet as a "support for freight." As a support, it has the potential to take a lot of abuse. A lot of old pallets are never discarded when they should be. They are stacked in a corner and not used except as a last resort when there are no good ones left. Too many times we hear that a pallet has broken and the freight has fallen to the floor. This not only causes freight damage but can also result in equipment damage--or worse yet, in employee injury or death. Please take a moment to review...

Reporting And Investigating An Accident A good accident investigation tries to answer these questions: What happened? When did it happen? Where did it happen? Who was involved? Why did it happen? How can it be prevented from happening again? When these questions are answered for all accidents and near misses, patterns often emerge and preventable causes are often discovered. But the patterns may not be true unless information acquired during the investigation is complete and accurate. The observations of co-workers, as well as from employees that were directly involved, can be critical. It helps if everyone will: Make mental or written notes...

Office Safety - It Only Takes a Minute Yes – even working in an office can have its own hazards. Often we think about how dangerous it is to drive a truck, sandblast a building, removing asbestos, but even people who work in offices can get hurt. Let's review some of the situations that increase exposure to injury and what we can do about them: Watch where you are going. Avoid walking and reading at the same time. If it is important enough to read, then stop and read it. Trips, slips and falls can be hazardous. Close that file drawer. Never...

Tire Explosions Equipment Hazards There have been instances of brand new truck and tractor experiencing tire explosions. These tires spontaneously, and violently, exploding with no apparent cause while still mounted on the vehicle. The forces involved in this type of tire explosion are very powerful and capable of causing serious injury to anyone in the immediate vicinity, or a collision if this occurs while the vehicle is being driven. Although the causes of tire explosions are often difficult to determine, some of these explosions are believed to be caused by flammable vapors that somehow enter the tire. When the vehicle is being operated,...

Do You Know the Common Facts About Gasoline? You are around gasoline everyday, but not everyone realizes that gasoline is the most common flammable liquid manufactured and used. Because we use it so often, we sometimes forget some common facts about this flammable liquid: Gasoline as a liquid does not burn – it is the vapors that the liquid gives off that burn. Vapors usually cannot be seen but frequently travel long distances to a source of ignition. Thus the gasoline can be located a great distance from an actual ignition source. Gasoline gives off enough vapor to flash, when exposed...

Trenching Safety A trench is a narrow channel (up to 15 feet wide), generally deeper than it is wide, made below the surface of the ground. An excavation is any man-made hole or trench that is made by removing earth. Trenching is recognized as one of the most hazardous construction activities. The greatest risk is a cave-in and even a small job can present serious safety hazards. The key to preventing this type of accident is good planning. Each year in the United States trenching cave-ins result in hundreds of serious injuries and dozens of deaths. Trenches are needed to build roads,...

Kitchen Machine Safety Do you work in a kitchen? You have the potential for some of the most serious and frequent accidents caused by improper use of kitchen machines, which are more powerful than types used in the home. One hasty shortcut can mean the loss of a finger or a hand. As in all industries, new employees are especially prone to accidents and should be trained to remember the following safety rules: Cutters & Choppers: These should never be operated with the blades exposed-guards must always be in place. Every day, test the safety interlock switch that turns the power off when...