Green Tape on All 3-Pronged Electrical Tools & Extension Cords!

Good afternoon to all I.D.I. employees:  All Safety Coordinators should have been provided a roll of green electrical tape last week from your Superindendent.  We began a new quarter on 4/1/12 for our Assured Grounding Program.  You are to inspect, test and color-code with green tape all 3 pronged electrical tools and extension cords.  All electrical tools and cords need to be visually inspected.  If you see any defects in the cords such as bare wires, severe kinks, missing or damaged ground prong, the cord pulling away from the plug end housing, etc., then that tool or cord would need to be immediately removed from service and reported to the lead person.  If your tool/cord passes the visual inspection, your next step is to test the cord with a receptacle tester.  First, you should test the oulet that you will be plugging your cord into to ensure that it is properly wired.  You should see 2 yellow lights lit up on your tester and the red light should be off.  This means the outlet is working appropriately.  Next, plug your cord into the outlet and then test the cord with the receptacle tester.  Again, you should see the same light pattern as mentioned above and this would mean the cord passed the test and it is good and safe to use.  Any other light pattern means that there is a problem with the cord and the cord needs to be removed from service and reported to your lead person.  If the cord passes the visual inspection and the cord tester test, you should then remove the previous quarter's white electrical tape and install the green electrical tape about 1" down from both plug ends.  Your cord is now in compliance with our 2nd quarter's Assured Ground Program.  The green tape shall remain in place from 4/1/12 through 6/30/12.  You are not quite done yet!  You now need to visually inspect all electrical cords and tools on a daily basis and if any defects are found, the cord needs to be immediately removed from service.  Thank you for taking the time to ensure your electrical tools and cords are in safe working order.  Your actions may prevent one of our family members from sustaining an electrical shock type injury or worse yet and electrocution.  If you have any questions regarding our Assured Grounding Program, please call our Safety Director, Peter Graham, at (847) 417-1689. 

Have a Safe Day!

How to Safely Use Our - Metal Pan Roof Anchors!

We often use metal pan roof anchors as our fall arrest anchorage tie off point when there are no other 5,000 lb fall protection anchorage points in our work areas when working on metal pan decking.  The metal pan roof anchors are designed and engineered as a 5,000 lb anchorage point but will only work as one when used correctly. 

The metal pan roof anchors are designed for 1 person to attach to.  You cannot tie off more than one person to a metal pan roof anchor.  Depending on the model, there are either 12 holes or 16 holes on the flat plate of the device.  You are required to use #12 1 ¼” tech bolts to secure the metal pan roof anchor to the metal pan decking.  You cannot use a substitute screw or bolt as they may not hold you should you fall.  You must fill all 12 or 16 holes with a tech bolt and all of the tech bolts must fasten to the metal pan decking.  If you insert a tech bolt through one or more of the holes and it does not fasten to the metal pan decking, then you need to adjust the base of the metal pan roof anchor so that it does.  Also, it is critical to keep an eye on your tech bolts to ensure they are not stripped or corroded.  Inspect your tech bolts everyday and replace them if you see any signs of wear.

Also, the metal pan roof anchors are only allowed to be used with a retractable lanyard.  You cannot tie off to a metal pan roof anchor with a regular lanyard or a lifeline.  The metal pan roof anchors are designed and engineered to arrest a falling person who is secured to it with a retractable lanyard only. 

Should you have any questions regarding this matter, please contact our Safety Director, Peter Graham. 

Have a Safe Day!

From The "I Caught You Working Safely" Series!

Framers, David Cervantes and Joe Winkler were caught working safely while building a parapet wall on a metal pan roof deck at a project in the Chicago West Loop area.  Both framers were using metal pan roof anchors secured to the metal pan decking, cable retractable lanyards and safety harnesses while working at the perimter edge of the roof deck.  Mark Brown is overseeing the safety at this project to help ensure all of our employees live up to our safety mission statement which is:  "Everyone Goes Home Alive and in the Same Condition As They Arrived; Your Loved Ones Count On It!"  Great job with safety - Mark, David & Joe! 

February Quarterly Safety Meeting Attendance Goal!

Good morning to all I.D.I. employees:  As you all know, we have 7 major safety goals that we discuss at all of our quarterly safety meetings.  Two of those goals are related to attendance at our quarterly safety meetings and they are to have a 75% show up rate of all field employees and an 80% show up rate for our Safety Coordinators.  We completed our first quarterly safety meeting of 2012 and the following are the show up rates.  We had a total of 81 field employees on the payroll for the week ending 2/25/12 and 70 field employees attended the safety meeting for a show up percentage of 86% which is 11% better than goal.  We had 43 Safety Coordinators on the payroll for week ending 2/25/12 and 38 attended the safety meeting for a show up percentage of 88% which is 8% better than goal.  We want to extend a huge thank you to all of the employees that attended to help sustain our positive safety culture and to exceed our attendance goals.  You attending the safety meetings shows that you are a team player, you care about your own safety and the other I.D.I. family members around you.  I also want to mention that there were 14 employees in attendance that were not on the payroll during the week of the meeting bringing the total attendees count to 84.  To those 14 employees - thank you for showing you care even when we are slow and you aren't working.  Hopefully the economy continues to improve, I.D.I. sales increase and we can get everyone back working which is a win-win for everyone.  Our next quarterly safety meeting will be in May.  Once we have the exact date and topic, we will provide that information to you.  In the meantime, have a safe day and keep looking out for each other. 

Thank you, Safety Pete

Quarterly Safety "Makeup" Meeting on 3/7/12 at 4:00pm

Good morning to all I.D.I. employees!  As everyone knows, we had our first quarterly safety meeting of 2012 last Saturday on aerial lift safety.  For those of you who could not attend, we are offering a makeup meeting which will be held next Wednesday, March 7th at 4:00pm.  This meeting will be held at  International Decorators and our address is 28059 W. Commercial Ave. in Barrington, IL.  Please note that the original meeting was at our aerial lift provider's location (Kropp Equipment) and the makeup meeting is at our office.  If you plan on attending, please ensure that you notify our Safety Director, Peter Graham on or before Tuesday, 3/6/12, so we can obtain an accurate head count for room size and chair rental purposes.  Peter can be reached via e-mail at pgraham@4idi.com or you can reach him by phone at (847) 526-7477, ext. 140.  Also, if you have to leave your job site early next Wednesday to attend the meeting, please confirm that with your Superintendent.
Our attendance at the original meeting last Saturday was terrific.  There were 90 field employees in attendance out of a possible 108 that were on the payroll.  We want to extend a big thank you to those 90 employees that attended the safety meeting.  You all once again showed your committment towards your safety program and our safety culture and it doesn't go unnoticed.  Thank you for caring about your safety and others. 

Have a Safe Day! 

Quarterly Safety Meeting Reminder - 2/25/12 at Kropp Equipment in Streamwood!

***IMPORTANT - Please note the location of the meeting! ***

All employees are invited to attend our 1^st quarterly safety meeting for 2012 which will be held on Saturday, February 25^th from 7:00am to about 9:00am.  Please note that the meeting will not be at International Decorator’s office.  The meeting will be held at our aerial lift provider, Kropp Equipment, located at 1339 Yorkshire Drive in Streamwood, IL 60107.  Kropp Equipment will be providing aerial lift safety training including emergency descent procedures.  All employees who attend the safety training session will receive an aerial lift identification training card from Kropp Equipment.  We last held an aerial lift safety training meeting in August, 2009, so this will serve as a good refresher for the veterans and maybe some new safety training for new hires.  As far as parking at Kropp Equipment, we can park on both sides of Yorkshire Drive.  Kropp Equipment is also checking in with their neighbor to see if we can park in their lot.  We will provide more information on parking as we get closer to the meeting. 

Your field safety committee brought up an excellent point during our December safety committee meeting in regards to the emergency descent procedures from aerial lifts.  We have not provided training on this topic in quite some time.  Kropp Equipment is going to demonstrate the emergency descent procedures at the quarterly safety meeting.  Following their demonstration, we are going to look for volunteers to perform an emergency descent. 

We look forward to seeing everyone at Kropp Equipment on Saturday, 2/25/12.  In the meantime, keep looking out for each other and be safe!

Have a Safe Day!

Safety Pete

Pressure Washer Safety!

Below is a toolbox talk on pressure washer safety which is a good reminder to everyone who uses one or works in the vicinity of one being used.

Pressure washers are used to clean equipment, materials and work areas on the job. At home, they may be used for washing automobiles, house exteriors and other uses. They can also cause injuries. Because the water is under pressure, it moves with enough force to cause damage to the eyes or skin and contribute to other types of injuries. Close contact with a pressure washer's flow to your skin actually abrades away the skin layer by layer rather than cuts and causes injuries that are hard to heal and scar for life. The noise can also damage hearing. For safer use of a pressure washer, follow these tips: Read your operator's manual and follow the manufacturer's instructions for safe use, maintenance and storage. Wear eye and hearing protection when you use a pressure washer. Avoid contact with the high pressure stream of water. Keep your hands, feet and body out of the way. Always wear good footwear and clothing (preferably long pants and sleeves) when using a pressure washer.  To keep control of the water stream, hang on to the spray wand with both hands. Never point the sprayer at another person, whether the pressure washer is operating or not. It could discharge unexpectedly. Maintain good footing. Do not reach so far that you lose your balance. Do not let children use a pressure washer. Do not use a pressure washer in an area where the water could contact electrical equipment. Make sure all connections & fittings are sound and secure. Inspect all hoses for wear & tear and do not use if a hose is found to be deteriorated. Ensure your electrical cord has no expoxed wires, is in good repair and always use a GFCI as you are working around liquids and/or water.  Pressure washers get the job done quickly and well. But they have the potential for causing injury, so use them safely at work and at home. Have a Safe Day!