Every employer has a responsibility to make sure all employees have a safe and stable work environment. These employees should have access to safety equipment and information at anytime they are on the jobsite. These employees should be able to go to their superiors with fears or concerns about safety without fear of termination or retaliation. In order to accommodate employees in such a fashion, we have compiled a short and condensed version of what an employer of the construction industry should have documented and in place for emergencies or for an OSHA inspection.

Management Commitment to Safety and Health

Employers and managers should lead by example. If your employee sees a superior taking safety seriously, they will too! Assign Safety and Health Responsibilities to employees. If you involve and rotate employee responsibilities, everyone will feel important and compliant. Give the assigned employees to correct minor issues. When a subordinate is give a little more power than their position requires, they are more likely to do what it takes to keep earning your trust and respect.

Assure your employees that they may voice their concerns regarding safety without any repercussions. These employees are the front line guys and they often see the danger in a position before a manager does. Listen to what they have to say and respect their position on safety. Most state laws protect whistleblowers, so check your states regulations. Inform employees of any hazards that you are aware of. Again, it is the employer’s responsibility to safeguard their employees, so keep the lines of communication open. If you are sharing a worksite with other companies or their employees, it is your responsibility to communicate any known hazards to them. Share a safe workplace. Post the OSHA state or Federal poster where all can see it. Employees have a right to know the law.

Hazard Identification and Determination

Carefully evaluate all operations, procedures, facilities, and equipment to identify hazards to employees and others. Monitor exposure levels of noise, air quality, heat, electricity, silica or dust, and moisture. Set aside time to do routine inspections. If you create a habit of safety awareness, you will create a timeless good habit. If you have an accident, conduct an investigation. The best way to prevent history from repeating itself it to identify and address the factors that caused the accident to begin with.

Do a PPE assessment. For every position within construction, evaluate the potential dangers associated with that assignment, then create a list of personal protection equipment that should be worn while performing these tasks. Determine if it goes beyond simple protection and what precautions should be taken. Document all of your findings.

Hazard Elimination and Control

Inspect and ensure all machines and tools are in proper working order with relevant standards. Develop positive practices with workplace safety and health so that it becomes second nature. Housekeeping is a must. Jobsites should be free of debris and cleaned up daily to ensure the safety of others.

Emergency Response Planning

Develop emergency response plans for your jobsite. If you are in an industry where your jobsite changes frequently, you still need to have a response plan. These do not have to elaborate, but clear enough to communicate what needs to be done in case of an emergency. Have an emergency route to evacuate injured employees. If your jobsite is in a new development area that the emergency response team may not have access too, have in a convenient location that is easily accessible by all employees. Use established landmarks and turn by turn directions. Have a list of all the jobsite emergency contact information including any pre-existing medical conditions and allergies that emergency personnel may need to know.

Training

Employers should train employees to recognize hazards and unsafe working conditions and how to avoid them. Employers need to provide training on safe work practices, safe operation of machinery, and equipment, and how to recognize when things are not safe. Access ladders, stairways, confined space, and enclosed space entry hazards are all subjects that need to be trained and documented.

Recordkeeping

You must record and post injuries and fatalities. This is otherwise known as the 300-log. Maintain medical records and exposure records for all employees and past employees. You must maintain all appropriate documents and tags for abatement purposes. If you do not have these items, it could mean hefty fines.

Green Energy Center Gets Project of the Year Recognition from U.S. EPA
EPA’s Landfill Methane Outreach Program Recognizes Ohio Landfill Gas to CNG Fueling Operation
NEWPORT BEACH, CA – January 13, 2009
FirmGreen, Inc. (FGI) was recognized today at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Landfill Methane Outreach Program (LMOP) annual conference with a Project of the Year Award for its Green Energy Center (GEC). The high Btu landfill gas utilization project, located near Columbus, Ohio is a public-private partnership with the Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio (SWACO).

“Forward thinking and dedication are key ingredients to successful alternative energy projects like the Green Energy Center,” said Rachel Goldstein, EPA LMOP Program Manager. “It is a win for the environment and the local community.”
FGI used its patented CO2 Wash® landfill gas (LFG) clean-up technology to convert raw LFG that would otherwise be flared into pipeline quality natural gas for a potential array of clean, renewable energy sources. The CO2 Wash unit processes 300scfm of raw LFG into ultra-pure medium Btu methane that powers a 250kW micro turbine to generate electricity for the facility.  The high Btu methane is used as a fuel for SWACO vehicles.  The clean-up technology was invented in Ohio by Acrion Technologies, Inc.
“FirmGreen is much honored to have been selected as EPA’s Project of the Year,” stated Steve Wilburn, founder and CEO of FirmGreen, Inc. “We have worked closely with the Landfill Methane Outreach Program staff for several years and congratulate them on their dedication and support.  The Program is really one of the true success stories within our federal government.”

“By utilizing waste gases generated from SWACO’s landfill, we produce domestic, renewable transportation fuels, improve the environment and generate economic growth.  We are proud of our ongoing partnership with SWACO as we work to clean our air, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, provide clean and affordable vehicle fuels, and spur job creation.”

“Forward thinking and dedication are key ingredients to successful alternative energy projects like the Green Energy Center,” said Rachel Goldstein, EPA LMOP Program Manager. “It is a win for the environment and the local community.”

The GEC demonstrates the technical and economic feasibility of utilizing CO2 Wash as the technology platform for a smaller scale high Btu landfill gas project. The project accomplished its goals with a facilities design that:

•is self-sustaining; the facility generates enough electricity for its own operations.
•demonstrates that smaller landfill operations have a viable LFG utilization option at a competitive cost
•enables landfill and waste water operations to respond effectively to national environmental policy with a single project.

As an ex-Air Force medic and current safety guy, I could not be prouder of the pilot of the US Airway jet, flight 1549, Chesley Sullenberger.

From AP:

Chesley Sullenberger spent practically his whole life preparing for the five-minute crucible that was US Airways Flight 1549.

He got his pilot’s license at 14, flew fighter jets in the Air Force, investigated air disasters, mastered glider flying and even studied the psychology of how cockpit crews behave in a crisis.

When the ultimate test came on a descent over the Hudson River, he spoke into the intercom only once and gave perhaps the most terrifying instruction a pilot can give — “Brace for impact” — with remarkable calm.
And as the 150 passengers of Flight 1549 marveled at their hero pilot’s skill and cool head, they learned what friends and relatives of Sullenberger say they have known all along.

“This is someone who has not just spent his life flying airplanes, but has actually dug very deeply into what makes these things work, and I think he proved it,” said Robert Bea, a civil engineer who has known Sullenberger for a year.

“He is, how should I call it, a humble man,” he added. “But he is damned smart.”

‘Miracle on the Hudson’
On Friday, the 57-year-old pilot fielded a congratulatory call from President George W. Bush. His wife said he was still in New York and probably would not return home to California for several days. 
 
Who is Captain Sullenberger?
Jan. 16: A classmate and former teacher share memories of a young Sullenberger.
Nightly News
 
 
The engineer of what Gov. David Paterson called “a miracle on the Hudson” had yet to speak publicly, but the accolades piled up. Mayor Michael Bloomberg showed off a key to the city for the pilot. Congress took up a resolution paying tribute. The governor said someone had offered $10,000 to build a statue of Sullenberger.

His wife, Lorraine, appearing outside their Danville, Calif., home, called her husband a “pilot’s pilot” who “loves the art of the airplane.” She described him, as almost everyone else had, as controlled and professional.

“This is the Sully I know,” she said. “I always knew how he would react. So to me this is not something unusual. It’s the man I know.”

Sullenberger grew up in Denison, Texas, about an hour north of Dallas. In those days, he went by his middle name, Burnett. People remember he made headlines in the local paper for flying a crop duster at age 15.

His sister, Mary Margaret Wilson, said Sullenberger built model airplanes, taking care to paint even the most minuscule details on the faces of the pilots.

“He was in the brainiac clique,” said Robert Brady, who graduated from Denison High with Sullenberger in 1969 and is mayor today. “I knew who he was — a nice guy, the kind of guy you wanted to sit behind in class so you could cheat off him.”

Sullenberger served in the Air Force from 1973 to 1980 and flew F-4 Phantom II fighter planes. The Air Force said he was a flight leader in Europe and the Pacific and led war-game exercises over Nevada.

He became a commercial pilot in 1980 for an airline later bought by US Airways. In the cockpit with Sullenberger on Thursday was a 49-year-old co-pilot, Jeffrey Skiles, whose life story bore some of the same marks: Skiles’ father said he had been flying since age 15, and had been with US Airways almost 26 years.

“I know he did everything he could,” his mother, Deloris Skiles, said Friday at her home in Verona, Wis. “He’s a modest fellow and a very modest man.”

‘Always looking to get better’
Two years ago, Sullenberger started a California consulting firm, Safety Reliability Methods. It advertises itself as offering companies ways to apply the latest safety advances from “the ultra-safe world of commercial aviation.”

Bea, who co-founded the Center for Catastrophic Rick Management at the University of California at Berkeley, said Sullenberger had approached him about a job after he retires as a commercial pilot.

He said Sullenberger, who has degrees in psychology from the Air Force Academy and Purdue University, had been studying how crews react in a crisis.

Wilson, recalling her brother’s childhood crop duster flights, said she was usually nervous flying in small planes — but never with him. She said he was always professional and never cut corners.

“I think Burnett is a very duty-oriented person,” Wilson said. “He is always looking to get better. He would be the one person who could land a plane in the water without any engines.”

‘Brace for impact’
On Thursday afternoon, as Sullenberger banked his crippled Airbus A320 left over the Bronx, steered it over the George Washington Bridge and down the Hudson River, his life and 154 others depended on his expertise. The jet’s twin engines had apparently been disabled by a collision with a flock of birds.

The cabin was almost completely silent when Sullenberger came on the intercom seconds before the plane hit water.

“I can tell you verbatim: ‘Brace for impact,’” said Mark Hood of Charlotte, N.C., who was flying home after a work trip. “He said it in a calm, cool, controlled voice. It was a testament to leadership.”

“Had he let any tension leak into his voice,” Hood said, “it would have been magnified in the passengers.”

As the cabin took on water, Sullenberger climbed out of the jet only after the four other crew members and 150 passengers made their orderly exit. When he reached a raft, someone on a ferry tossed him a knife, and he cut away the tether to the jet.

One by one, the passengers were plucked to safety from the rafts, Hood and Sullenberger the last ones left. The passenger insisted the pilot get off first, but Sullenberger refused. He had been the last off the plane, and he would be the last off the raft.

The recent cold snap has shown the need for people to be prepared when travelling in the winter. That’s particularly true if you have to drive for work.
 
The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH), Europe’s largest professional health and safety body, has produced a few tips to help ensure your travel, whether it be commuting to or from work or for pleasure, remains safe despite the weather.

• Driving in severe winter conditions or commuting to work will involve increased risk. Decide first of all if your car journey is really necessary, particularly with technology offering working from home as a solution, or use public transport as an alternative to driving.
• If you are going to drive in poor winter conditions, make sure your vehicle is well maintained. Ensure that you have topped off the windshield washer fluid and that there is enough liquid to prevent it freezing. Check tire pressures, oil, coolant, and antifreeze levels and top off if necessary.
• Think about items that might be useful to have in the car in case of an emergency: a shovel, blanket, some water and food, boots, torch, de-icer and scraper, a couple of old newspapers (to help prevent tires from spinning), high-visibility clothing, mobile phone and map or satellite navigation to plan an alternative route.
• If the journey is essential, inform someone where you are going and what time you expect to arrive.
• It may be better to postpone an early morning journey a short time until the roads have been cleared or the sun has risen.
• Listen to news and weather reports on the radio prior to and during the journey.
  While driving, be aware of your surroundings so you can report your location should you become stranded.
• Drive according to the road conditions.
• In the event of being stranded, stay in your vehicle and keep the engine running—unless stuck in deep snow where there is a risk of buildup of carbon monoxide from exhaust fumes. Use a mobile phone to let someone know where you are stranded.
• Make your vehicle as visible as possible to emergency crew. You can do this by using lights or tying a brightly colored scarf to the antenna.
   
  For businesses and other organizations, the winter weather brings additional hazards to buildings that must be managed. Slips and trips are the most common cause of winter work hazards in Europe, accounting for 39% of major injuries at work and more than a quarter of all injuries requiring three or more days off work.
   
  All employers and businesses need to make sure that frequently used access paths, which get covered with frost or snow are cleared or salted to help prevent people from slipping.

Work-related accidents tend to peak in January, so the safety agency recommends making preparations now
History has a tendency to repeat itself. And as icy conditions return, so do the expectations for winter accidents.

Falls, spills, cuts and numbness in appendages result when Jack Frost comes nipping, resulting in setbacks to construction schedules and more workers’ compensation claims. But according to the Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the best time to plan for really bad weather is December.

According to OSHA safety records, January consistently sees a spike in work-related accidents. OSHA Safety Manager Sam Drill attributed the peak to workers and managers not changing their work habits to fit the changing weather patterns.

“Part of (staying safe) is slowing down (and) having a greater awareness and attention to the things we wouldn’t normally do,” Drill said. “Here you are (during winter) on a slick surface when normally you are not.”

Falls and automobile accidents account for the majority of injuries during the winter, when surfaces get coated with a thin veneer of ice.

Sometimes the accidents seem innocuous.

Last January, for example, a vineyard worker slipped and fell while crossing a driveway at work. He fractured his hip and stayed in a hospital overnight.

In the same month, a truck driver slipped in a parking lot. She fell backward onto her tailbone and cracked open her battery-powered headlamp. She was taken to the hospital with a concussion and muscle strain.

Other times, the accidents are more severe.

In 2005, a worker at a lumber yard fell 11 feet off an icy ladder and later died of head and neck injuries.

“(Winter) accidents probably could have been even worse,” said Melanie Mesaros, OSHA’s public information officer.

In the construction trades, perhaps more than most, that appears to be the case.

Michael Moore is the safety manager for Max J. Kuney Co. He said that at his company there isn’t necessarily a greater emphasis of safety hazards during the winter months – the company emphasizes safety year-round – but he does see a “different type of awareness.”

“You can’t just come in skipping around all the time,” Moore said, and he makes sure his workers understand this.

It’s awareness, Moore said, based on seasonal shifts: Because it tends to be wetter during winter, for example, workers must stay vigilant in grounding all electrical devices to prevent electrocution. They must also stay on top of weather reports because they can’t expect the weather to stay the same every day.

But there’s also a psychological effect that’s often overlooked. The dark winter months tend to accentuate depression and anxiety, often tied to financial concerns stemming from the holidays.

“You also have people with other things on their mind, like they’re grieving for someone or they have bills,” Moore said. “It’s a real interesting time of the year.”

He expects this winter, with the slowdown in the construction industry, to be especially bad on workers’ psyches.

Nonetheless, common sense can reveal safety solutions that are easy to achieve as long as workers and managers stay focused. Moore said that slowing the pace, assessing all work conditions and dressing in layers are the keys to staying safe.

Although bundling up may be accepted universally as a way of staving off frostbitten fingers and hypothermia, there’s no consensus on how bundled up one should be, said Chris Miller, the safety and loss control expert for the Oregon-Columbia chapter of Associated General Contractors.

When someone bundles up, Miller said, that person is constricting his or her movements.

“You don’t want to wear gloves when you’re working with a drill, for example,” she added.

She tells chapter members that the first half of December is an ideal time to discuss safety, before either wintertime blues or the full-blown doldrums of the season take hold.

“Winter is dreary, and you’re waiting out there for the sun to come out,” she said. “And it’s typically a slower time of the year, so people tend not to focus on what they are doing.”

On January 1, 2009, Illinois will become the 4th state to require 1st time DUI convicted drivers to get have a breath analyzer device installed in their car.  This device will require the driver to have a blood alcohol level of below 0.024 or their vehicle engine will not start.  Illinois had 1249 vehicle deaths in 2007 of which, a little over 40% or 508 deaths were attributed to DUI.

This will be one of the toughest DUI laws in the US.  Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) help get the bill sponsored and passed in 2007.  There will be a cost to rent, install and monitor the device, from the State of Illinois.  First time DUI convicted drivers will have to use the device for 5 months, anyone refusing a breath analyzer test and then convicted of a DUI will have to use the device for 11 months. 
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-dui-lawdec29,0,1167021.story