A 51-year-old sanitation worker at a frozen-food packaging facility died after he collapsed while cleaning one of the conveyor lines.  He was assigned to clean the North Pea Line.  He opened the access doors on both sides of the cleaning pan blower housing in preparation for the cleaning.  The equipment was not shut down nor locked out; the victim was not an authorized employee and,...

A 61-year-old powered-industrial truck operator died after his forklift ruptured a pipe containing a solvent mixture and the vapors ignited.  The victim was operating his forklift in an area between a stacker and a printing press in order to pick up a waste pallet and transport it to the recycling area.  Some part of the forklift struck an overhanging pipe containing toluene and ethyl benzene...

A 49-year-old contract worker died when he entered a chemical storage tank to clean and inspect the tank.  The victim was assigned to conduct scheduled inspections and maintenance at a chemical tank farm.  Before arriving on-site, the victim received e-mails from the chemical company manager outlining the projects that he was to complete.  On his first day on site, the plant manager...

A 57-year-old supervisor was killed while trying to determine why hydraulic oil was leaking from a cotton press machine.  The press consists of a hydraulic pusher, tramper and bailer. The pusher and tramper sit on an elevated platform accessed by stairs; the bailers and operator console are located on the lower level. The cotton is blown into the pusher section by air through piping; the pusher...

Several times year we upset a client who has hired us to do a “wall-to-wall” compliance audit with their PSM/RMP programs. These audits are our most intense audits in which we leave no rock unturned. One of the items we audit in this level of auditing is the RMP submittal and all of the supporting documentation for the Off-Site Consequence analyzes. This comes as a not so happy movement...

On a daily basis we respond to a variety of emergencies, most of which have become fairly routine. Of course, reaching that level of competence takes a lot of training, exercises and actual events. We have to constantly guard against complacency to ensure safe and effective operations. However, the extraordinary events — such as tornados, earthquakes, hurricanes and conflagrations — can overwhelm...

  Many THANKS to my NEWEST and RENEWING Corporate Partners in Safety… since 2010 since 2005 since 1/2013 since 2011 2013 Fatality Tracker Electrical 4 (2012 = 68)  (2011 = 81) (2010 = 90) (2009 = 100) Forklift/Manlift 12 (2012 = 52)  (2011 = 84) (2010 = 110) (2009 = 88) Mining* 20 (2012 = 92*)  (2011 = 248) (2010 = 480) (2009 = 586) *no longer includes China accidents Explosions...

Over the last several years the SAFTENG team has been seeing some interesting concepts when it comes to Lockout/Tagout applications and methods.  I want to air these out and get some dialogue started so that everyone can understand the errors of these myths… … HomeRead More »

Not Walking the Talk Actions really do speak louder than words when it comes to safety.  All the slogans, posters and tool box talks in the world won’t make a difference if we act in a different way to what we say.  By always being a model of safe work and rule compliance, we can have more of an influence on our team and others we interact with than we ever could through “safety moments”...

Stick to our values. Companies that perform well on safety measures are more likely to be high performers in other areas too. This suggests that having an overall operational strategy for high performance can extend to safety issues, and possibly too that safety performance has a positive impact on general operational performance.  Knowing that this link exists then raises the pivotal question,...

Why do I need to wear personal protective clothing and equipment? Let’s give it some thought. The human body is amazing. We have a head and brains for thinking, ears for hearing, eyes for seeing; a nose for detecting odours; a mouth for talking and eating; lungs for breathing; arms, elbows, knees and legs for lifting and bending; hands and fingers for dressing and feeding ourselves and for writing;...

Diet and regular upkeep are two important factors in taking care of your eyes.   Eye exercises can restore your sight. Our eyes are the window to the world. It’s important that we take care of them.   Eat lots of fruits and vegetables. Carrots, loaded with beta carotene are especially helpful in maintaining healthy eyes. That’s because beta carotene is an antioxidant that reduces...