Month: April 2019

All injuries and illnesses are to be reported promptly by facilities to appropriate management.

Any evident or documented damage to the body must be put into Lotus Notes as an injury. Potential accidents or near miss cases must not involve any actual injury, damage, pain, or physical change to the body (bruise). Any diagnosed occupational health case must be documented as an illness.

Fatalities, Life threatening injuries, multiple Lost Time Injuries are to be reported to divisional and corporate management immediately, so that appropriate management action is promptly taken, and resources mobilized to assist.

1. Must fill out the contractor check sheet.
2. Must be briefed by an employee on:
   1. All safety hazards in their work area
   2. Work Permits Required for the job
   3. Basic Safety Rules
   4. PPE required
   5. Basic Emergency procedures
3. Go Through Contractor Orientation prior to being issued a Safety Guideline Card.

NSC Recordable (In the NSC Monthly Report: Injuries or Occupational Illnesses classified as Lost Time Cases, Restricted Workday Cases, or Medical Treatment Cases)

All recordable Injuries and Illnesses require notification to management utilizing Lotus Notes Injury/Illness Report database – Notification feature, by the next business day. Divisional or regional line management may impose additional communications requirements.

Any recordable injury or illness must be investigated to identify corrective actions that address the basic and systemic causes to prevent additional injuries or illness. Learning points will be documented and shared to all sites globally to prevent similar incidents elsewhere, and to provide information for continuous improvement through incident data analysis.

Non NSC Recordable (Not on the NSC Monthly Report: First Aid Cases, with or without treatment)

All First Aid Cases (FAC) must be reported in the Lotus Notes Injury/Illness Database and investigated appropriately.  Only those with serious potential are widely communicated by e-mail to aid other sites in preventing similar situations.  We do not manage and report FAC’s with the same vigor as Recordables because we want to encourage maximum site reporting of FAC’s to assist with injury prevention.  Experience indicates that management pressure to reduce FAC’s will more likely result in under-reporting than in actual performance improvement.

1. Heads

A. Positioned 82″–96″ from floor.
B. Spray pattern will have a minimum diameter of 20″ at 60″ above the floor.
C. Flow Rate=20 gallons (75.71 l) per minute (GPM) of flushing fluid at a velocity low enough to be non-injurious to the user.
D. The center of the spray pattern shall be located at least 16 inches (40.64 cm) from any obstruction.

2. Valves

A. Activate in 1 second or less.
B. Stay-open valve (no use of hands).
C. Valve remains on until the user shuts it off.

3. Installation

A. Shower shall be located in an area that requires no more than 10 seconds to reach.
B. Shower location shall be in a well-lit area and identified with a sign.
C. The area around the shower shall be painted yellow to remind employees to keep the area clear.

4. Maintenance and Training

A. Plumbed showers will be activated weekly to verify correct operation.
B. All employees who might be exposed to a chemical splash shall be trained in the use of the equipment.
C. All showers shall be inspected monthly to make sure they meet with ANSI Z358.1 requirements.

A qualified professional electrician must provide training. This training should be provided at least yearly to maintenance employees and others who may work on electrical systems.

This training should cover:

1. The skills and techniques necessary to distinguish exposed live parts from other parts of electrical equipment

2. The skills and techniques necessary to determine the normal voltage of exposed live parts.

3. The clearance distances and corresponding voltages to which a qualified person will be exposed.
Note: this is regarding a person working around live lines. The person may not approach or take any conductive objects without an approved insulating handle closer to exposed energized parts than shown in the following chart:
300V and less…avoid contact

Over 300V, not over 750V…. 1ft min. distance
Over 750V, not over 2kV…… 1 ft 6 in. min. distance

4. Safe Work Practices

a. De-energized parts – Live parts that operate less than 50 volts need not be de-energized
b. Energized parts – when and can you work on energized parts safely
c. Working on or near exposed de-energized parts – Lockout/tagout
d. Safely de-energizing components with stored energy
e. Stored non-electrical energy
f. Re-energizing equipment – safe practices
g. Working on or near energized parts
h. Work in a well lit area
i. Special precautions in a confined space – added PPE, etc…
j. The use of non-conductive portable ladders
k. Wearing non-conductive clothing and jewelry
l. Housekeeping
m. Interlock systems – only qualified persons may deactivate an electrical safety interlock for the purposes of working on a system

5. Working on portable electrical equipment

a. Proper handling – plug and cord
b. Visual inspection
c. Grounding type equipment
d. Conductive work locations – work in a dry area
e. Use of wet hands while working – bad practice

6. Working with circuit breakers

a. test equipment used – only qualified people may use them
b. why a breaker workers
c. general safe practices

7. Working around flammable materials

Personal Eyewashes are supplementary eyewash that supports plumbed units, gravity-feed units, or both by delivering immediate flushing fluid.

Personal eye wash units can provide immediate flushing when they are located near the workstations.  Personal eye wash equipment does not meet the requirements of plumbed or gravity-feed eye wash equipment. Personal eye wash units can support plumbed or gravity-feed eye wash units, but cannot be a substitute.

Bottles of unopened solution from the supplier usually have a shelf life of 24 months from the date of manufacture.

All portable eye wash stations that are obsolete or no longer needed must be removed from service.

1. Heads

A. Positioned 33″–45″ from floor.
B. Positioned at least 6″ from wall or nearest obstruction.
C. 0.4 gallons (1.51 liters) per minute (GPM) for 15 minutes for plumbed units shall provide flushing fluid at 30 PSI.
D. 0.4 gallons (1.51 liters) per minute (GPM) for 15 minutes for gravity-feed units.

2. Valves

A. Activate in 1 second or less.
B. Stay-open valve (leaving hands free).

3. Installation

A. Eyewash equipment shall be located in an area that requires no more than 10 seconds to reach.
B. The location of the eye wash unit shall be in a well-lit area and identified with a sign.
C. The area around the shower shall be painted yellow to remind employees to keep the area clear.

4. Maintenance and Training

A. Plumbed eye wash units shall be activated weekly to verify proper operation.
B. Gravity-feed units shall be maintained according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
C. All employees who might be exposed to a chemical splash shall be trained in the use of the equipment.
D. All eyewash equipment shall be inspected monthly to make sure they meet ANSI Z358.1 requirements.

Either a plumbed or gravity feed unit must be near a forklift battery charging station.

Fluids in portable eye wash stations must have either Eyesaline or Acquasep additives added to the water in the bottles. These compounds give the eye wash bottle fluid a life of 6 months before bacteria begins to build up. Each bottle or reservoir should have a date on it indicate the last time the fluid was changed.

All locations are to ensure there is fall protection for employees, contractors, and visitors where there is potential to fall four feet or more. This protection could be railings, gates, or individual fall arresting systems.

Employees, contractors, and visitors who use fall arresting systems must be trained in their proper use before using this protection.

The exception to this fall protection guidance is the safe use of properly maintained ladders, for only going up or down.

For contractors, and visitors who use fall suppression systems on NSC property, it is their employers responsibility to properly train and provide the needed equipment.

All Fall suppression systems will be maintained as per the manufacture’s instructions.

All employees will be trained on the proper usage of the fall protection apparatus offered at the facility.

The following topics will be covered:

• Proper use of Harness
• Connecting to the Fall-Arrester
• Use of the Extending Platform
• General Safety Concerns
• Testing Proficiencies of Employee

Selection of the best fire extinguisher for a given situation is based on a variety of factors.  Some of these factors are:

• Nature of the combustibles
• Potential Severity (Size, Intensity, and Speed of Travel) in any resulting fire
• Effectiveness of the fire extinguisher on that hazard
• Ease of Use

As a general rule, it is recommended to purchase ABC (All-purpose) fire extinguishers when replacing older models.

All fixed ladders greater than 20 feet (6.1 m) require a safety cage, well, or other safety device.

When fixed ladders are used to ascend to heights exceeding 20 feet (6.1 m), landing platforms shall be provided for each 30 feet (9.14 m) of height or fraction thereof. Where no cage, well, or ladder safety device is provided, landing platforms shall be provided for each 20 feet (6.1 m) of height or fraction thereof.