Thanks for joining us! In this edition we’ll be covering the following topics:
- Investigation report: aerial boomlift tip over results in serious injuries.
- Updated Product Catalog now available!
- Excerpt from “Spanish-Speakers and Safety: What Everyone Needs to Know.”
- Ask Bob: Our team answers a question on loader training requirements.
- Last chance to register in these Train the Trainer Programs!
- What’s Wrong With This? Photo and answer.
- A selection of interesting articles.
- Incident reports.
- Upcoming events schedule.
- New testimonials from our clients.
But first, check out all the places we delivered training this month…
Investigation Report
Date of incident: June 2013
Notice of incident number: 2013137290129
Employer: Company installing and repairing transmission lines
Incident summary
Two power-line workers were seriously injured when the self-propelled boom-supported elevating work platform (the lift) they were working from tipped over. The workers were elevated about 50 feet off the ground, and operating the lift in an unstable configuration on uneven and soft ground. The workers were poorly trained, the lift had not been properly inspected, and the safety devices on the lift, which would have warned the workers of the unsafe operating conditions, had been disabled.
Investigation conclusions
Causes
- Use of the lift in rough terrain resulted in tip-over: The lift was operated on very rough, sloped terrain, contrary to the manufacturer’s instruction. As a result, it tipped over, and the two workers were seriously injured.
- Incorrect choice of lift for the work: An adequate risk assessment was not undertaken to choose a lift for the work. The employer could have selected more appropriate equipment or work methods, based on a consideration of the rough terrain at the worksite.
Underlying factors
- Lack of worker training: Workers were not trained in the lift’s operational limitations, especially the requirement for using the lift only on a level, stable surface. They were not trained to understand the operation, function, and testing of the safety devices. The workers were not trained how to inspect the lift before operating it to ensure that the controls worked properly.
- Lack of equipment inspection: A complete inspection of the lift would have determined that the safety devices intended to warn workers of an unsafe operating configuration did not function.
- Lack of supervision: Supervisors did not ensure that the lift was used safely, and did not ensure that workers were adequately trained to inspect and operate the lift.
- Deliberate circumvention of safeguards: An unknown individual or individuals deliberately circumvented safeguards, which permitted the lift to be used in a manner that did not warn operators of unsafe operating conditions, in particular lift instability, resulting in injuries to workers. Active safety devices would have warned the workers of instability and would have prevented the equipment from being operated in an unsafe manner.
Source: WorkSafeBC
Excerpt from “Spanish-Speakers and Safety: What Everyone Needs to Know” by Steven J. St. Laurent
Where are you at? – Survey/Poll for your employees: Roles and Responsibilities of a Supervisor (from a safety standpoint)
This list of questions compiled from employees from a custom supervisor training I was involved in during 2012 and 2013 at an international company with 7,000 employees. I was part of a team of five trainers who rolled out a two and a half-day training for 1,000 supervisors in the U.S. About 1/9th of their workforce nationwide speaks Spanish and I’ve personally trained over 1,000 of their 7,000 employees; about 85 percent of my trainings were in Spanish, the rest in English.
Give this list of questions below to your employees and have them rate you or score you anonymously. Even better; give them two or three questions each week and have them return their answers when they pick up their paycheck (or something similar). Instead of grading you 1 – 10 for each item below (10 being the best), you could just assume that you need to improve in every area and ask each employee to write out how you can improve in each area. Perhaps another employee could type up the answers to ensure anonymity.
- Walk-the-walk, champion safety and health
- Provide tools and equipment needed to do jobs safely
- Enforce rules
- Provide appropriate training for new hires or when someone changes jobs as well as ongoing refresher training
- Provide a safe environment
- Be approachable and support safety (attitude)
- Address safety issues in a timely fashion
- Empower employees
- Follow up (give feedback), review, share and implement changes needed
- Document things appropriately
- Recognize and reward safe behavior
- Have realistic expectations
- Share current updates on safety rules
- Motivate employees
- Create organization structure to promote safety
- Establish, update and enforce procedures and policies
- Provide JSA’s (job safety analysis) and PPE
- Listen to and respect employees
- Be visible
Source: The Leader Volume 2, Issue 2, Spring 2015. vpppa.org
NOTE: The views, ideas, and/or opinions either expressed or implied in this survey are not necessarily those of IVES Training Group.
Ask Bob
Q: I was contacted by our Street Maintenance Supervisor today. He asked if training/certification is required for the Skid Steer Loader. I told him that training/certification is required for Skid Steer, as well as Loaders, and Loader/Backhoe. He felt that On the Job Training is sufficient and he said that he looked in the CalOSHA reg.’s and could not find where training/certification is required. Can you please let me know the regulations that I can cite to confirm that training/certification is indeed required.
A: Training is required when directing a person to use a loader as it is when directing them to use a hammer. However, there are no mandated “certification” requirements for loader operators like there are for forklifts.
That being said, here is a link to a Guideline from OSHA that makes it pretty clear that they expect employers to train their employees for anything they assign them to do. The Guideline also makes it quite clear that such training goes beyond just on the job training. In fact, you really can’t put somebody “on the job” until they have been trained and found capable of doing the job safely and that’s something an employer would be expected to produce documentation of for proof.
Here is another link to Cal-OSHA regulations around excavations. Check out item (D) on the first page where it says “Employees who are…exposed to the excavation hazards shall be trained…”
I think that you could argue that getting behind the wheel of a loader without proper training would expose people to hazards!
If nothing else, the good old General Duty Clause that states employers must protect workers from hazards that are causing or likely to cause death or serious injury would also apply here.
Last Chance Programs!
There are lots of programs to choose from, but seats available are limited!
U.S.A. Programs
Rancho Cucamonga, Southern California
Premium Combo Trainer Sept 21-25
Irving, Texas
Express Forklift Trainer Sept 21-22
Aerial Lifts Trainer Sept 23-25
Salt Lake City, Utah
Premium Forklift Trainer Sept 28-Oct 1
Sacramento, California
Loader Group Trainer Sept 28-Oct 2
Excavator Trainer Upgrade Oct 5
Aerial Lifts Trainer Upgrade Oct 6
Express Skid Steer Loader Trainer Oct 13-14
Richmond, Virginia
Premium Forklift Trainer Oct 5-8
Trainer Recertification Oct 9
Bismarck, North Dakota
Premium Combo Trainer Oct 5-9
Las Vegas, Nevada
Premium Combo Trainer Oct 12-16
Canadian Programs
Abbotsford, British Columbia
Excavator Trainer Upgrade Oct 5
Premium Forklift Trainer Oct 6-9
Aerial Lifts Trainer Oct 21-23
Express Forklift Trainer Nov 9-10
Trainer Recertification Nov 12
Loader Group Trainer Nov 16-20
Prince George, British Columbia
Express Skid Steer Loader Trainer Oct 19-20
Express Forklift Trainer Oct 21-22
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Premium Combo Trainer Oct 26-30
Oshawa, Ontario
Aerial Lifts Trainer Oct 27-29
Trainer Recertification Oct 30
What’s Wrong With This?
This month we are sharing another Vertikal.net picture! They ask, “What do you think – Death Wish or not?” Share your comments here!
Answers to Last Month’s WWWT
Last month we shared Vertikal.net’s photo (pictured right).
- They are not using an approved work platform.
- The area doesn’t look to be secured against vehicle or pedestrian traffic.
- It is unlikely that there was an operator at the controls of the machine.
- It is also unlikely that the person using the ladder to access the pallet will be wearing any kind of fall protection.
- This company should be using an approved work platform attachment for their forklift or bring in an aerial lift that’s designed for the job.
Have a photo you’d like us to share? Send it to us at info@ivestraining.com.
Interesting Articles
- 65-year-old-man dies after getting swept under loader in ND… more
- Aerial platform injuries fall… more
- Construction worker sues building companies after forklift accident… more
- Forklift operator dies in warehouse incident… more
- Construction company fined for loader accident that killed worker… more
- Accidental fire at CT carpet factory caused by forklift operator… more
- Seattle employer fined $424,850 for 50 violations… more
- Worker jumps for his life as a train crashes into boomlift… more
Incident Reports
Tipover – West Fargo, North Dakota
A construction worker was injured and taken to a hospital after the telehandler that was supporting the work platform he was in tipped over. The victim was in the platform and working on the roof of a three-story apartment building when other construction workers tried to reposition the telehandler and it tipped over, according to police. The man fell onto another forklift, and a load of shingles landed on top of him. The roofer was taken to a local hospital with significant leg and arm injuries. www.inforum.com
Tipover – Enterprise, Alabama
A worker was elevated in a bucket truck when a tree fell unexpectedly on the boom of the aerial lift, which then broke in half and sent the worker and the bucket crashing to the group. Crews were cutting down trees at a trailer park when the accident happened. Police said the victim was unresponsive when they arrived minutes after they called. He was airlifted by helicopter to a medical center, where he was pronounced dead. www.dothanfirst.com
Electrocution – Prairieville, Louisiana
A worker was electrocuted by a live power line while installing cablevision and internet lines along a highway. The man was in the bucket of a truck-mounted aerial lift when he came in contact with the lines, investigators said. The worker was stringing new cable in an area that had heavy vegetation when he came in contact with the power line. A fire department official said that the man was facing away from the power line he hit, so he never saw it. When rescuers arrived, the man was found dead in the bucket. Power to the area had to be cut in order to recover the victim’s body. www.wafb.com
Source: Lift and Access Magazine July-August 2015
Upcoming Events
This month we will be exhibiting at the NSC Congress & Exposition in Atlanta, Georgia Sept 26-Oct 2. Make sure you stop by and say hi to our safety exhibit team at Booth #1932!
The NSC Congress & Expo is the world’s largest annual “must attend” event for safety, health and environmental professionals. For more than 100 years, professionals have turned to this event for industry-leading technology, education, networking opportunities and the tried and true products and services needed to stay at the forefront and remain competitive within the industry.
Client Testimonials
“The course took all my previous training and threw it out the window. Thank you for educating me even more.” Joshua, MMKS Safety Solutions.
“Great program that entails all aspects of what is required by law. Far exceeded expectations.” Jairo, Wonderful Citrus.
“I’m very happy with what I’ve learned and would recommend this course to anybody ready to teach and learn.” Ray, BC Place Stadium
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