April Safety Post

Welcome to this month's Design Safety blog post. These monthly tidbits are here to help your company thrive in the category of safety, while simultaneously building a culture of awareness.
 
To begin, the discussion opens its preliminary talks on a very important topic in the safety world, machine guarding. Company's need to understand the true value of proper machine guarding and the benefits that arise when following OSHA industry standards. Machine guarding is something that should execute as second nature to all job sites, however, the gaudy numbers suggest there is still serious room for improvement in the industry. We reference the industry standard 1910.212(a)(1), "Types of guarding. One or more methods of machine guarding shall be provided to protect the operator and other employees in the machine area from hazards such as those created by point of operation, ingoing nip points, rotating parts, flying chips and sparks. Examples of guarding methods are-barrier guards, two-hand tripping devices, electronic safety devices, etc."
 
When it comes to machines like saws, presses, and plastics machinery, taking the utmost precaution is the top priority. According to OSHA.gov, "Employee exposure to unguarded or inadequately guarded machines is prevalent in many workplaces. Consequently, workers who operate and maintain machinery suffer approximately 18,000 amputations, lacerations, crushing injuries, abrasions, and over 800 deaths per year." Statistics paint a picture, but they often do not do justice. OSHA requirements should be the bare minimum for compliance representation by a company, the cultural goal should be much greater. A good testament to ingrained safety practices is the utilization of compliance by every worker on a job, no matter their role. When every worker on a job intuitively knows that they are following compliance and have gone above and beyond the required OSHA standard, your safety culture has been established.
 
Design Safety brings a wealth of knowledge in the construction industry, and serves as a benchmark for quality safety consultation. With pure dedication and insight, Design Safety will deliver on compliance consulting and go above and beyond the standard safety utilization. There is no job too big or too small, as Design Safety offers on-site services paralleled by no other. We thank you for your time today and we look forward to helping springboard your safety commitment toward unrivaled excellence.

​Thank you!