The Safety Brief is a compilation of short podcasts produced by Creative Safety Supply and Dan Clark, our resident all-around safety guru. In our podcasts we give short but valuable overviews and insights into how contractors and safety managers can be even more effective in protecting their workers.
Eye and face protection must be worn correctly by the worker and provided by the employer. Hear OSHA’s answers to important questions in this podcast. There are so many workplace hazards affecting eye and face safety. Here are some of the questions and answers from OSHA’s Eye and Face Protection eTool. 1. When do companies have to provide eye and face protection for workers? A: Whenever eye injuries might happen at work and engineering controls …
Hot work dehydrates employees. A urine color chart can help workers monitor hydration by checking the shade of yellow. So says government agency NIOSH, the National Institute For Occupational Safety and Health. NIOSH has a new study, the first in 30 years. They say, during hot work, use urine color charts. Workers in a hot environment should monitor their urine color. Pale yellow is normal, deep amber like is bad. The worker needs to hydrate. …
Emotional driving makes a person ten times as likely to get in a crash. Hear how driving mad or sad can be worse than using a cell phone behind the wheel. That’s a red flag for company owners and their employees who drive for work. Drivers who are noticeably emotionally agitated are a huge crash risk. A new study says the cause of vehicle crashes has shifted substantially in the last few years. Distraction, fatigue, …
Thermal imaging can make a safer workplace. Add-on thermal imaging devices are available for your smartphone. Soon we’ll see the first smartphone with a built-in thermal camera. Workplace safety and efficiency can increase with thermal imaging: • Electricians can discover electrical shorts and overheating wires. • Plumbers can trace hot water pipes and find water leaks. • Contractors can find missing insulation and air leaks. • Rescue workers can use it to find buried victims. …
Chemical hazards can lurk, unseen. The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) says we should learn from the West Fertilizer Company explosion in Texas. Listen for their study results. The CSB recently released its investigation findings into the 2013 explosion at the West Fertilizer Company in Texas. In this podcast, Dan Clark describes what caused the April 2013 chemical disaster in West, Texas. The CSB determined a combination of zoning laws, storage conditions, and lack of …
Occupational skin disease (OSD) is caused by hazardous agents directly affecting the skin or creeping through it to wreak havoc with other body parts. In this podcast, Dan Clark tells how to prevent occupational skin disease, the 2nd most common type of occupational disease. The human body’s largest organ is your skin. It’s 10 percent of the body’s mass. All that surface area easily exposes it to hazardous agents — dermal exposure. Occupational skin disease …
Safety signs help companies be OSHA compliant based on ANSI Z535 safety sign and tag standards. Hear about four categories of workplace safety signs. OSHA adopted sign standards from American National Standards Institute, ANSI. OSHA also incorporates sign requirements from the National Fire Protection Association, NFPA. In this three minute podcast, Dan Clark spells out the requirements for: • Hazard Warning signs: ○ Danger – White text on red background. The most serious danger. ○ …
Portable containers for hazardous chemicals in the workplace can have NO labeling in only two situations, according to OSHA’s HazCom 2012 standard. In less than three minutes, Dan Clark explains how a worker may transfer a hazardous chemical from an HCS 2012-labeled container to a container with no warning labels whatsoever. Seems odd, doesn’t it? The current Hazard Communication Standard allows an employee to use a hazardous chemical in an unmarked container if (1) they …
Carbon monoxide hazards spike in winter when heaters and fuel-gobbling equipment are used indoors. Beware of poisoning from odorless carbon monoxide. Take three minutes to hear this important podcast about the dangers of CO, the invisible toxic gas. Dan Clark spells out carbon monoxide hazards and solutions for both the workplace and home. TRANSCRIPT: (:00) intro music and effects (:04) Dan Clark: Carbon monoxide poisoning is a serious hazard any time of year but it’s …
Permit-required confined spaces aren’t just sewer pipes. Semi-trailers can be hazardous too. Hear about hazards in three trailer types, empty and loaded. In this 3½ minute podcast, Dan Clark describes OSHA’s standard on PRCS (permit-required confined spaces) for big-rigs. Dan also defines confined spaces (CS), and offers tips on CS and PRCS programs for safety managers. TRANSCRIPT: (:00) intro music and effects (:04) Dan Clark: When you think of confined spaces in the workplace, a …
