Category Archives: OSHA Compliant

OSHA and Project BEST Establish Alliance to Protect Ohio Workers

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Twitt

The United States Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration recently formed an alliance with Project BEST (Building Efficiency by Striving Together) in an effort to protect construction workers in Ohio. Project BEST targets the four major construction hazards: falls, struck-by, caught-in, and electrical.

“This alliance reflects the need to focus on the four major areas of injury in the construction industry and to promote awareness of safe work practices. Education saves lives,” said Deborah Zubaty, OSHA’s area director in Columbus. “Through this alliance OSHA will work to develop effective training programs, while opening the lines of communication between OSHA, employers and workers about the serious hazards construction workers face daily on the job.”

This is just the latest in a string of OSHA initiatives and alliances designed to protect construction workers from these four dangerous hazards. If you are in this industry, especially in Ohio, it is important to review your current safety and health policies and procedures. If your policies are outdated or nonexistent, it is imperative you update or create new policies. If you are unsure of where to begin in that process, or if you would like the assistance of a qualified third party occupational safety and health auditing firm, you can request a full third party safety audit. This process would involve a complete review of your jobsites, your current training policies, and your current health and safety procedures.

Then, the auditors will help you create effective and efficient policies which emphasize safety while remaining mindful of productivity and workflow.

If you have any questions about third party safety audits, please contact us. If you have anything to add about this new partnership or about third party safety audits, please leave a comment.

OSHA Compliant Lockout Tagout Procedures

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Twitt

Creating OSHA compliant lockout tagout procedures can be more difficult than it originally seems. We have worked with many clients who initially planned on creating their own lockout tagout procedures, only to get halfway through the project and need to reach out for help.

So whenever we are advising a client who needs new lockout tagout procedures, we make several recommendations. Number one, let a qualified lockout tagout expert create the procedures, but make sure you are involved in the process. This way, you will understand how lockout tagout works, why your procedures are created in the way they are, and you will be more able to properly enforce the procedures.

Number two, learn OSHA Standard 1910.147. Whether a client ultimately decides to work with us or try it alone, it is important they understand the standard, at least superficially. But the more you understand the standard, the more effectively you can monitor your procedures and enforce they are being followed.

And number three, have a plan in place to monitor and update the procedures. If there is nothing in place to help you prepare for the future, there could be issues down the line if regulations or your business change. One of the easiest ways to monitor and update your system is with software which is designed to survey and audit your lockout tagout procedures. This type of software allows you to make changes or updates to your existing procedures while maintaining your compliance.

If you have any questions about creating or maintaining lockout tagout procedures, please contact us. If you have anything to add about OSHA compliant lockout tagout procedures, please leave a comment.