Today’s post is from James Lawther. He writes about process improvement at www.squawkpoint.com On the December 1st 1974 a TWA flight was coming in to land at Dulles Airport, Washington DC. As it approached the runway the air traffic controller uttered the words “cleared for approach”. Shortly afterwards the plane crashed into the side of Mount Weather. All 92 passengers and crew died. In the investigation that followed it…
Mike Wilson | May 7, 2013 | Safety Solutions | Workplace Safety
Hazard symbols are helpful pictograms that illustrate safety messages regarding specific hazards. The reason hazard symbols are so useful is that they work in any language since they do not use linguistics to convey safety messages. Because of the universal nature of hazard symbols, the same set of symbols can be used effectively worldwide thus enhancing the cohesiveness of the hazard message. However, even though pictograms are…
Mike Wilson | May 6, 2013 | Safety Solutions | GHS, Hazcom, Safety, Workplace Safety
Similar to many other workplace hazards, there is also a set of pertinent rules and regulations for fire safety. Right from a very young age you were probably told how dangerous fire can be. The effects of an uncontrolled fire can be monumentally destructive. Buildings can be destroyed in a matter of minutes due to fire, and along with fire often comes explosion. If explosive materials such…
Mike Wilson | May 3, 2013 | Safety Solutions | Fire Safety, NFPA, Workplace Safety
There are many possible hazards within industrial work environments; however, an arc flash is potentially one of the most deadly and debilitating dangers. An arc flash can be described as an arc-shaped electrical current that leaves its intended path and travels through the air to the ground or another conductor point. The heat and light given off by an arc flash are capable of causing extensive damage…
Mike Wilson | May 2, 2013 | Safety Solutions | Arc Flash, Workplace Safety
Loading docks can be very hazardous areas within any industrial work environment. If you think about it, loading docks are essentially the moving traffic source within a facility. Loading docks often serve as two-way transmission points since these areas are able to accept deliveries and but also send out products or goods as well. During the exchange from truck to facility, or facility to truck there are…
Mike Wilson | May 1, 2013 | Safety Solutions | Workplace Safety
Lockout Tagout, or simply LOTO, is a safety practice that protects employees and visitors from uncontrolled hazardous energy that may escape from machines or equipment during isolation or servicing. When potentially hazardous equipment is identified for maintenance, it will be placed on LOTO which includes adding a visual lock and tag to the energy isolation points. The lock and tag not only create a barrier to prohibit…
Mike Wilson | April 30, 2013 | Safety Solutions | Electrical Safety, Lockout Tagout, Safety
Safety and health hazards are everywhere. In fact there are different levels of hazards present in almost every activity we do. For instance, driving a car presents the hazard of possibly being involved in a car crash. Furthermore, taking a shower when it is storming outside may put one at greater risk for being struck by lightning or electrocuted. However, since we are aware of these hazards,…
Mike Wilson | April 29, 2013 | Safety Solutions | Workplace Safety
Thousands of people are injured every year within the workplace. Even though it is nearly impossible to avoid all work-related injuries, we can try to limit the amount of injuries that are possible through training, education, and employee assistance. This is where OSHA comes into play. For those of us familiar with OSHA, we understand that OSHA is an organization that strives to promote both safety and…
Mike Wilson | April 26, 2013 | Safety Solutions | OSHA, Workplace Safety
HMIS is the acronym for Hazardous Materials Identification System. The HMIS was created by the American Coatings Association to help convey the risks for possible hazards. The HMIS works as an aid to help clearly identify hazards based on OHSA’s safety guidelines. The HMIS is very similar in nature to the fire diamond that was created by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), however, instead of using…
Mike Wilson | April 25, 2013 | Safety Solutions | Workplace Safety
Many people work in industrial environments that may pose safety or health hazards that cannot be fully eliminated, when this is the case personal protective wear is often utilized for further protection. Personal protective wear is also known as personal protective equipment or simply PPE. There is a wide variety of different PPE equipment options based on specific hazards. PPE is all different but is essentially designed…
Mike Wilson | April 24, 2013 | Safety Solutions | Eye Protection, Fall Protection, Foot Protection, Hearing Protection, OSHA, PPE, Safety
There are many different types of waste. First, there are everyday household wastes such as empty food packaging containers which are benign in nature and do not pose serious hazards when disposed of using normal trash disposal methods. However, there are also wastes that are considered hazardous. Hazardous wastes cannot be safely disposed of using traditional garbage disposal methods because they pose serious dangers. Hazardous wastes can…
Mike Wilson | April 23, 2013 | Safety Solutions | Workplace Safety
An arc flash is a dangerous situation in which an electrical current leaves its intended path and leaps through the air from one conducting source to another, or even sometimes the ground. Many times the transfer of electrical energy resembles and arc, hence the term arc flash. However, it is important to never underestimate the power behind an arc flash. An arc flash can vaporize metals, plastics,…
Mike Wilson | April 23, 2013 | Safety Solutions | Arc Flash, Workplace Safety
The process of pipe labeling is essential to minimize hazards within an industrial work environment. Pipes may contain a variety of different substances such flammable liquids, pressurized liquids, acids, wastes, water, etc. Pipes can extend for miles within industrial work settings and even though some pipes may not contain hazardous substances, it is still imperative to identify the contents within the pipes as well as the directional…
Mike Wilson | April 22, 2013 | Safety Solutions | ANSI, Color Codes, Color Coding, Workplace Safety
One truly fundamental component of warehouse and industrial safety is the usage of safety signs. Safety signs can be found virtually everywhere from your local grocery store to a high-end mall department store all the way to a large warehouse facility. The intent of safety signs is to convey an important message regarding safety or to alert people that some sort of hazard may be present in…
Mike Wilson | April 18, 2013 | Safety Products | Facility Marking, Floor Signs, Forklift Safety, Safety, Safety Signs, Workplace Safety
Continuous improvement is the task of frequently seeking out ways to improve processes, products, or services. However, it is important to remember that persistence and perseverance are vital when it comes to the ongoing and ever-changing task of continuous improvement. For instance, when cell phones first came out they were oversized, bulky, offered less than desirable service, and neglected any sense of style. However, through continuous improvement…
Mike Wilson | April 17, 2013 | Safety Solutions | 5S, Continuous Improvement, Kaizen, Kanban, Lean Manufacturing, Organized Workplace, Six Sigma, Tool Organization
