12/16/2019 Workers that perform maintenance as well as repairs on machinery and/or heavy equipment should be quite familiar with OSHA’s lockout/tagout regulation; technically titled, The Control of Hazardous Energy. This regulation is published under OSHA’s general industry standard, 29 CFR 1910.147 and addresses the safety of employees engaged in servicing Read more…
2/22/2021 It is truly amazing how fast time flies. I was thinking of an event that seemed like it happened a few years ago, but it was closer to 25 years. But the incident remains fresh in my mind. I was working at a naval facility in Southern California. It Read more…
8/5/2019 Drill rigs are an integral part for performing work in the Environmental Industry. They are used in many applications and investigations necessary for soil and ground water contamination determination. Those in the industry are familiar with the various types of drill rigs, ranging from hollow stem, percussion rotary air Read more…
6/10/2019 The foreman was angry. He’d been in construction for 20-plus years and now the safety person was telling him not only how to do his job but that he’d been doing it wrong forever! Joe Donnelly looked exasperatingly at Ethyl, turning away every few seconds while looking back at Read more…
5/6/2019 Several years ago, I worked as a loss control rep for a large insurance company. One day I was called to a factory that manufactured zippers. That’s right, zippers. And the reason why I was called was to perform an accident investigation as one worker had about 70% of Read more…
4/29/2019 Welding is a common task performed at worksites in the US and around the world. It is a process that joins materials, usually metals, by using high heat to melt parts together, allowing them to cool and fuse. Welding is different from other metal-joining techniques such as brazing and soldering as these operations use Read more…
2/25/2019 Hand tools are used routinely at work and in the home. And because they are part of everyday life, there is a tendency to forget that these hand-held devices can be hazardous. Screwdrivers, hammers, wrenches, saws, punches, planes, pliers and chisels are just a few of the tools commonly Read more…
1/28/2019 Sometimes we may find ourselves in a bit of a predicament when it comes to complying with OSHA regulations. Such is the case when there is an assigned work activity near an unprotected leading edge on a roof and the standard method to ensure fall protection cannot be accomplished. Read more…
12/17/2018 Yellow Iron: a term used to describe various types of heavy equipment found in construction. Typical yellow iron includes earth moving equipment, quarrying equipment, and fork lift trucks. The term is also used to describe agricultural equipment, such as tractors. Using heavy equipment can be challenging as their operation Read more…
9/24/2018 Hot work: this term encompasses activities that involve burning, welding, or using fire or spark-producing tools. Such tasks include welding, torch cutting, brazing, soldering and grinding. And persons performing these activities are exposed to risks of fires from ignition of flammable or combustible materials within the work space as Read more…