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Archive for the ‘Lockout’ Category
Cal/OSHA Top 10 Manufacturing Safety Violations for 2009
In the last half of 2009, there was plenty of news, budget appropriations, and proposed regulatory changes from OSHA to tighten regulations and increase the focus on compliance in 2010. As always with Safety, the most cost effective approach is to be preventive and proactive rather than take your chances in an inspection or appealing citations.
In 2009, in California, issues related to the IIPP (Injury and Illness Prevention Program) continued to be the top cause of violations for manufacturing companies. For manufacturers in the period October 2008 to September 2009, there were 397 Cal/OSHA IIPP citations.
The 2009 top 10 Cal/OSHA manufacturing violations are:
- IIPP – 397 violations. This is the top level document a company must have in California that outlines its safety program. From a Cal/OSHA standpoint, not only must you have an IIPP in place, it must be effective, which includes employee involvement and training.
- Lockout/Blockout – 316 violations. Any time equipment is being cleaned, maintained, set-up, or adjusted, electrical (lockout) and mechanical (blockout) energy must be controlled to prevent unexpected start-up.
- Air Tanks – 461 violations. Air tanks, which are pressure vessels, require a permit issued by DOSH (Department of Occupational Safety & Health) to be in operation.
- Portable Fire Extinguishers – 166 violations. Issues regarding placement, use, maintenance, and testing of portable fire extinguishers provided for use by employees.
- Electrical Equipment Clearance – 149 violations. Sufficient clearance must be provided around all electrical equipment for safe operation and maintenance.
- Respiratory Protection – 141 violations. Respirators protect workers against insufficient oxygen environments, harmful dusts, fogs, smokes, mists, gases, vapors, and sprays. Employers need to have a written respiratory protection program and it needs to be part of the company’s IIPP.
- Control of Hazardous Materials – 128 violations. Employers are required to prevent or minimize the consequences of catastrophic releases of toxic, reactive, flammable, or explosive chemicals.
- Hazard Communication (HazCom) – 115 violations. Employers must provide information to their employees about the hazardous substances to which they may be exposed. This includes a written hazard communication program, labels and other forms of warning, material safety data sheets (MSDS), information, and training.
- Emergency Eyewash and Shower Equipment – 113 violations. Eyewash equipment must be provided at all work areas where, during routine operations or foreseeable emergencies, the eyes of an employee may come in contact with a substance that can cause corrosion, severe irritation, permanent tissue damage, or which is toxic by absorption. An emergency shower must be provided at all work areas where, during routine operations or foreseeable emergencies, areas of the body may come in contact with a substance which is corrosive, severely irritating to the skin, or which is toxic by skin absorption.
- Powered Industrial Truck Operator Training – 103 violations. All employees, prior to operating powered industrial trucks (e.g., forklifts, etc.), must be trained and evaluated by successfully completing a training program.
Do recognize any of the top 10 that you may have issues with? Is your IIPP up to date and is everyone trained? If you need help getting your safety or training programs up to speed, give us a call or send us an email. We’re here to help you succeed.
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Do You Have an Effective Lockout/Blockout Program?
Didn’t know that you needed to have a Lockout/Blockout program? Every California employer is required to have one under Cal/OSHA, the purpose of the program being to prevent worker injuries from equipment being energized while working on it.
In 2008, 404 employees were killed in California on the job and 5,071 were killed in the U.S. Although not all of these are the result of equipment being inadvertently energized, this is considered a major cause of fatal accidents by OSHA and Cal/OSHA and is entirely preventable. Despite this, many employers don’t have any lockout/blockout procedures in place, and for many that do, it’s not effectively being utilized.
Last week in Springfield Missouri, an operator was crushed to death while performing preventive maintenance on an injection molding press when another employee turned on the press while the operator was still in the machine. The employee thought, tragically, that the operator had walked away from the press and that the machine was clear.
In an article I read here, there were apparently some general issues about employee safety concerns at this particular plant. However, regardless of any other safety related concerns or complaints, the root cause of the accident in this case was not following a lockout/blockout procedure.
Having a procedure in place is one thing, but following it is an entirely different matter. There are many excuses used by both employees and employers alike as to why a lockout/blockout program isn’t being used. Most of the reasons I’ve heard center around convenience and/or productivity issues.
The reality is that there may be a learning curve when a lockout/blockout procedure is being implemented, but once mastered, most equipment can be locked out with a negligible impact on productivity. Unfortunately, it often takes serious accidents like this one to get people to focus on working safely.
Do you have an lockout/blockout program and is it being utilized? If not, give us a call or send us an email. We’re here to help you succeed.