This Spring 2009 IVES Update Newsletter edition features “Stay the Course” an article on the ROI of safety training, an Ask Bob question on using forklifts indoors, forklift rodeo details, OSHA’s Top 10 for 2008, IVES Joins IPAF, new materials and accident reports.
Stay the “Course”
There is no doubt about it; the economic seas are rough at the moment. Companies that have managed to endure the turbulence this far are battening down the proverbial hatches and trimming fat wherever they can. The economic developments over the next several months will undoubtedly influence many corporate decision makers to either downgrade from ‘lean and mean’ status or upgrade to ‘skeletal and rabid’ status.
If history is any indicator, many of these same decision makers will identify safety training as a non-essential expense and divert or terminate its funding. In cases such as this, history also shows it is often a decision that yields tragic results from both personal and economic perspectives. People get injured and killed, equipment and product get banged up and all kinds of costs mount up. Often, the costs associated with not training exceed the amount invested into training by a very wide margin and margins are what it is all about, especially profit margins.
There is no shortage of current statistical data in support of the positive financial returns possible on every dollar invested in a well constructed, delivered and maintained safety training program. Government agencies like OSHA, NIOSH and BLS, as well as insurance carriers all compile these data and all of them point to one inescapable fact- TRAINING PAYS!
Company managers who feel safety training is nothing more than a black hole they are mandated to throw money into are really missing the larger picture, especially when you consider the following information:
Return on Investment (ROI)
Study after study shows that for every dollar invested in safety training, an average return of three to five dollars may be realized. In today’s economic climate, or for that matter any economic climate, that kind of ROI is a virtual windfall. If my retirement savings or investment portfolio were growing at that rate, I would be borrowing money to throw in not diverting funds away.
Show Me the Money!
The financial returns that come from avoiding the huge costs associated with workplace safety incidents typically result in lowered net operating costs. In other words, if you are having workplace incidents your operating costs are higher. Well directed safety training will not generate income but will help your company keep more of the money it generates, and that kind of money is the best kind of all, it’s called profit. Following are just a few examples of where your company’s operating costs could be lowered through proper safety training:
- Personnel Injuries – When people are injured on the job, all kinds of factors get put into play, each with an associated cost. Down time, repairs, workers compensation claims, replacing personnel, the list goes on and on. Even a seemingly minor incident can have significant financial implications especially as they relate to insurance rates for workers’ compensation premiums as well as buildings, structures and equipment.
- Equipment Damage – If you have untrained operators using your equipment, chances are they are not using it properly. This could have a nominal effect on regular maintenance costs because you will probably need more maintenance, more often. However, it will almost certainly have a significant effect on equipment repair costs as the equipment is regularly abused, often unknowingly, by unqualified operators.
- Product Damage – When powered industrial equipment is not used correctly, the product moved by it usually gets damaged. Untrained operators will likely spill and/or stab loads, bang into things and generally handle your product roughly, causing damage.
- Regulatory Assessments – When injuries occur, claims and reports are filed to various agencies like regulatory authorities and, of course, insurance companies. The frequency of these occurrences will usually raise the profile of your company with these agencies and increase the likelihood of inspection. Such inspections often yield monetary assessments that in some cases can be very costly.
- Litigation – Hopefully things will not progress to the point where lawyers need to get involved, but if they do, the associated costs can begin to mount exponentially. Involvement with legal entities may also bring negative attention to your company which could have an equally negative effect on sales.
- Credibility – Today’s globalized marketplace has driven many companies to comply with international standards (ISO for example). Safety training, as part of a well managed and comprehensive safety program is invariably listed within the compliance criteria of such standards. This means that insufficient safety training would result in non-compliance with the standard which, in turn, will cause certification to be denied for applicants and possibly revoked for existing members.
- Employee Morale – The credibility of your company and its management is not only judged by customers but employees as well. If the management of a given company puts more effort into talking about safety training than it does into actually developing, delivering and maintaining it with integrity and support, the transparency of the situation becomes apparent to the employees very quickly. Soon, they will put as little effort forth as the management. Obviously, this type of situation fosters ill will and even contempt between management and labor with the worst result being injury or even death.
To put all of this into perspective for the purpose of making the connection between safety and profits, consider the following statistics:
- 70% of all compensable injury claims are directly or indirectly related to improper training, or the lack of any training at all.
- 95% of business executives report that workplace safety positively influences the company’s financial performance.
- 61% of these executives stated that their companies receive a return of $3.00 or more for every $1.00 invested in improving workplace safety.
- 90% report seeing a relationship between the direct and indirect costs of employee injuries.
- 40% define the direct/indirect cost ratio as being $1.00 – direct … $3.00 to $5.00 – indirect.
- By combining direct and indirect costs, employers are paying between $155 to $232 BILLION annually!
Many companies have found when considering this kind of information, that for years they have continued along under the assumption that as long as costs do not spike year over year, everything is normal. However, many of those same companies are appalled when they discover the significant amount of money thrown away on the costs associated with little or no equipment safety training. They learn that in most cases, these costs are anything but normal. If your company isn’t one of them, perhaps it should be.
Rob Vetter
Director of Training
IVES Training Group
Ask Bob
Dear Bob,
We use engine powered forklifts indoors a lot and always have. We’ve never had a problem with it but even if we did, I don’t think I would know what to look for. Is there something I should be doing?
Bailey.
Hello Bailey,
Yes, there is. You should be taking random air samples and testing them for carbon monoxide (CO) levels. Every regulatory jurisdiction has established maximum allowable CO limits for indoor locations. These limits are expressed in parts per million (PPM) and are different as you move around the country. You can hire companies to take readings at your location or you can buy a CO “sniffer” and do it yourself. In the meantime, keep a close eye of any workers in the area complaining of dizziness, headaches or feeling nauseous (like they need to throw up). These are all signs of CO poisoning, which in the worst cases, can be fatal.
Bob
Let’s Get Ready to Rodeo!
It’s getting near that time of year again when a young person’s fancy turns to thoughts of…rodeos? Yes indeed, the 2009 Washington State Rodeo season is upon us so saddle up those forklifts and get ready to ride!
Now in its 12th year, these rodeos have become as familiar and welcomed as the hot, sunny summer months in which they are held. Meanwhile, the State Championship has become a focal point at the annual Washington Governor’s Safety and Health Conference where it adds a dimension of fun and spectacle to that event while underlining the importance of safe forklift operation.
IVES Training Group is heading into its 5th year as an official sponsor and volunteer participant with the Governor’s Industrial Safety and Health Advisory Board (GISHAB), a committee made up of industry and State WISHA representatives that make the events happen each year.
“There are some truly gifted operators that show up to these rodeos,” says Rob Vetter of IVES. “This is my fifth year as the Head Judge and Driving Course Designer for the Regional Events and Championship, and each year the field just keeps getting better,” he added. He went on to say that what he liked best about the rodeos was that they promoted safe forklift operation while being fun at the same time.
“The fastest driver isn’t necessarily the one that wins and neither is the driver that makes the least number of mistakes” said Vetter.
“The winners are the ones that manage to best combine the two elements of speed and safety to have what I like to call, an efficient run through the course. The types of drivers that can do that consistently are the ones that practice the right skills and techniques the most. That means the drivers that win, place and show at each of the events are not just pulling safe operation out of their hats on game day, they are living it every day of their working lives” he concluded. Lou Florres of the WA Department of Labor and Industries said, “The Forklift Rodeo is an excellent team-building event while focusing on safety. It offers a lot of fun in a competitive arena, emphasizing driving ability and accuracy on courses, demonstrating that the job can be done both fast and safe.”
Be sure to get yourself and/or your company team signed up for the regional rodeo nearest you. You can download an entry form from http://www.wagovconf.org/forklift.htm.
Regional Event Schedule:
- Central – June 27, Tri-Cities, WA
- Western – August 22, Seattle, WA
- Eastern – July 18, Spokane, WA.
- State Championship – October 7, Tacoma WA
IVES Joins IPAF
Rob Vetter, Director of Training for the IVES Training Group, recently became a member of the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF). For those of you that are unfamiliar with the term powered access, it refers to aerial lift equipment used to access elevated work locations like boomlifts, scissor lifts and mast climbers.
Over the past ten years, IPAF has attempted to bring North American aerial lift manufacturers, rental companies, end users and other industry stakeholders together with the ultimate goal of forming consensus on the issue of minimum requirements for operator training.
“I am ecstatic that IVES Training has made the decision to join IPAF membership,” said Tony Groat, Executive Vice President of AWPT, the North American subsidiary of IPAF.
“IVES has a well deserved reputation in the industry with a depth of knowledge and experience that will aid our association in meeting our mission to promote the safe and effective use of powered access equipment. I have always had great respect for Rob Vetter and his willingness to become a member of the IPAF North American Regional Council is an immediate sign of IVES’ commitment. Associations are a reflection of their members and IVES has made IPAF a stronger group with their presence. I look forward to working with all of the people from IVES.”
Vetter commented, “IPAF has been around for quite a while and I think they have found the right man in Tony Groat to steer the ship on this side of the Atlantic. He shares the same passion for safety that I do and he is the type of guy that can get things done. I am looking forward to working with him and the organization in the future.”
WorkSafeBC Penalties
In 2008, WorkSafeBC, the Occupational, Health and Safety Authority in British Columbia imposed more than 2.7 million dollars in penalties against 140 employers. The next time someone tells you that safety is a waste of time and money, show them the following items taken from the WorkSafeBC list. Following are just a few of the penalties assessed to individual companies:
- Repeat failure to ensure a worker wears a seatbelt while operating a forklift. Repeat failure to ensure adequate lights on forklift. Repeat failure to ensure adequate lighting in work areas. Repeat failure to ensure workers exposed to forklift traffic wear high visibility apparel. $98,387.35
- A worker was injured when he fell approximately 10-12 feet from an elevated work platform. The platform consisted of pallets supported by the forks of a forklift with no guardrails or fall protection system in place. $75,000.00
- Failure to maintain safe limits of approach to a 12kV power line. $70,526.02
- Failure to provide workers with information, instruction, training and supervision necessary to ensure health and safety of those workers in carrying out their work with respect to lock-out and the safe operation of equipment. $64,522.15
- Repeat violations for the failure to ensure workers are provided with and using a fall protection system while working from a boom mounted platform. $51,178.46
Keep in mind that what you do not see listed here are the return visits and additional follow up steps taken by the regulatory agency, in this case WorkSafeBC. Once your company has ‘made the list’ so to speak, follow up actions can take place for months or even years afterward with each visit carrying the potential risk of further assessments.
The best way to avoid drawing the attention of regulatory agency is to manage the frequency of reported incidents. Filing numerous injury claims within a short period of time, even relatively minor ones, is a major red flag for regulatory agencies and insurance companies.
Of course, the best way to manage the number of injury claims is through a safety program that is well crafted, communicated, delivered and maintained.
OSHA’s Top 10 for 2008
Most frequently cited standards (October 2007 – September 2008):
- Scaffolding, general requirements, construction (29 CFR 1926.451)
- Fall protection, construction (29 CFR 1926.501)
- Hazard communication standard, general industry (29 CFR 1910.1200)
- Control of hazardous energy (lockout/tagout), general industry (29 CFR 1910.147)
- Respiratory protection, general industry (29 CFR 1910.134)
- Electrical, wiring methods, components and equipment, general industry (29 CFR 1910.305)
- Powered industrial trucks, general industry (29 CFR 1910.178)
- Ladders, construction (29 CFR 1926.1053)
- Machines, general requirements, general industry (29 CFR 1910.212)
- Electrical systems design, general requirements, general industry (29 CFR 1910.303)
Highest penalties assessed (October 2007 – September 2008):
- Fall protection, construction (29 CFR 1926.501)
- Scaffolding, general requirements, construction (29 CFR 1926.451)
- Electrical, hazardous (classified) locations (29 CFR 1910.307)
- Control of hazardous energy (lockout/tagout), general industry (29 CFR 1910.147)
- Excavations, requirements for protective systems, construction (29 CFR 1926.652)
- Machines, general requirements, general industry (29 CFR 1910.212)
- General duty clause (Section 5(a)(1) of the OSH Act)
- Powered industrial trucks, general industry (29 CFR 1910.178)
- Walking-working surfaces, general requirements (29 CFR 1910.22)
- Process safety management of highly hazardous chemicals (29 CFR 1910.119)
Smile…You’re an IVES Certified Trainer!
Starting soon all trainees successfully certified as trainers through any IVES Mobile Equipment Certification Program will receive a hard plastic certificate of qualification (wallet card) in a photo ID format.
If you are an existing IVES Certified Trainer and you would like a new card of your own, keep an eye out for instructions in the next IVES Update, and don’t forget to show your IVES smile!
¿Habla Español? ¡No Hay Problema!
May 15 is the targeted release date for Spanish language versions of Point of View and Lesson Learned, two of our most popular DVDs and both excellent training aids. Point of View follows a counterbalanced forklift operator through a typical day in a warehouse and addresses the safe operating procedures for many of the hazards typically encountered.
Lessons Learned is a hard hitting case study that reveals the true costs of a tragic accident through the eyes of those who were there, a great DVD for trainees of all types of powered industrial equipment. ¡Disfrute por favor!
Forklift Rally Set for May 2nd
It’s getting near that time of year again when a young person’s fancy turns to thoughts of… forklift rallies? Yes indeed, the 2009 BC Championship Forklift Rally is upon us, so fire up those forklifts and get ready to ride!
Heading into its 12th year, the Canadian Materials Handling and Distribution Society (CMHDS) BC Championship Forklift Rally has become a popular and high anticipated event. This year, the Rally will return to being set amidst corporate exhibit booths where it will be the focal point of a safety event that includes sponsors such as WorkSafeBC, Johnson Equipment and of course, IVES Training Group.
IVES is heading into its 5th year as an official sponsor and volunteer participant with the Forklift Rally.
“There are some truly gifted operators that show up to these rallies,” says Rob Vetter of VIES?
“This is my fifth year as the Head Judge and Driving Course Designer and each year the field just keeps getting better,” he added. He went on to say that what he liked best about the rodeos was that they promoted safe forklift operation while being fun at the same time.
“The fastest driver isn’t necessarily the one that wins and neither is the driver that makes the least number of mistakes,” said Vetter.
“The winners are the ones that manage to best combine the two elements of speed and safety and have what I like to call, an efficient run through the course. The types of drivers that can do that consistently are the ones that practice the right skills and techniques the most. That means the drivers that do well at the rally are not the types that just pull safety out of their hats on game day, they are the ones that practice safe operation every day of their working loves,” he concluded.
Dan Beer, past President of the CMHDS said, “Over the years we have had tremendous support with teams from most of the major distribution centres in BC. Our long term support from sponsors and suppliers like Johnson Equipment and IVES training has made our job easy and, we are thrilled with our new sponsorship this year from WorkSafeBC. The Rally also marks the kick off to NAOSH (National Association of Occupational Health and Safety) week. The event is getting bigger and bigger each year. I certainly encourage you to come out and see the skill of our competitors.”
Be sure to get yourself and/or your company team signed up for the rally!
Operator Reference Manuals Revised
Those of you using the operator reference manuals for the counterbalanced forklift or any of the three aerials will notice that some content revisions have recently been made. In the case of the aerials material these changes are many, but minor in nature with the exception of some Chapter Review questions that were altered. A summary of these changes can be downloaded at the Member Dashboard.
The counterbalanced forklift manual has gone through much more extensive revisions. Many of the drawings and images were upgraded and nearly every page received text edits. However, none of the review questions were changed so all of the answers to them remain the same. It also means that if you are using the Counterbalanced Forklift Operator DTA (Digital Training Aid), all of the images will still flow with the questions in the book as originally designed. The revised Trainer’s Companion is also available to download at the previously mentioned web link. The revised versions of the aerial lifts or counterbalanced forklift equipment inserts for your Trainer’s Manual are available for purchase or you can download the affected sections on-line for free at the Member Dashboard.
Welcome Aboard Rob MacRae!
We are very happy to announce the addition of Rob MacRae to our team of Staff Certified Master Trainers. With his background as a crane and aerial lift inspector and history as an IVES Certified Trainer since 1998, Rob brings a wealth of equipment and training experience to the table.
“He’s a quality guy through and through,” says IVES Director of Training Rob Vetter. He went on to say, “It is so difficult to find high caliber people for this type of work so when someone like Rob come along that not only fits the job description but exceeds it by leaps and bounds well, let’s just say it’s a real pleasure to give a him an outlet for his talents. We will definitely be a better company with Rob on board.”
Spring Sale on DTAs!
As of March 1st the prices of our Digital Training Aids (DTAs) were drastically reduced. You can now buy the Counterbalanced Forklift, Aerial Boomlift or Scissor Lift DTAs for $99.00. You can also get the Aerial Lifts (combined boom and scissor) DTA for just $127.00, a savings of nearly 45%! Call or order on-line today and experience the advantages that these colorful and accurate visual aids bring to your operator training programs.
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