Safety First! October 2018

Safety First Newsletter,

BMSA's Safety First! 
October 2018
Crane Operator Training and Certification Survey
 
The National Lumber and Building Material Dealers Association (NLBMDA) needs your help in determining the value and need for training and certification material for members' crane operators.
 
Please take five minutes to answer twelve simple questions about operator training and certification for your articulating boom crane operators. We would like to know what training you provide and if you currently or plan in the future to have your operators certified. NLBMDA has traditionally developed regulatory compliance and safety material for our members. These include material on dealer responsibilities under the OSHA forklift standard, such as the operator training requirements, training requirements under the OSHA Hazard Communications standard, and guidance for compliance with the OSHA crane rule. 
 
The survey results will help us determine how best to address current and proposed changes to the OSHA crane rule. Your input is very important and will help NLBMDA decide what material and guidance to invest in for our members. 
 
The survey will close on Friday, October 26.
 
(Source:  NLBMDA Newsletter , October 2018)
Quiz
Knowing if an injury is an OSHA recordable injury or not can be tricky. And with the  recent changes to electronic filings, you may not feel as confident about your record keeping knowledge as you'd like. Take this quiz to see where you stand.

Need a record keeping refresher? Join us for a hands-on workshop.
 
December 11, 2018
8:30 am-5:00 pm
Safex
 
(Source: Safex Newsletter , October 2018)


(Source:  Safety+Health  Magazine, October 2018)
Overloaded Beams Pose 
Safety Hazard

How do you know if you are overloading beams in your warehouse when you are unsure of the manufacturer or you do not have accurate beam capacity tables from the manufacturer? The Rack Manufacturer Institute defines shelf beam deflection limits as follows:

"The deflection of shelf loads is limited to 1/180 of shelf span. For example the maximum deflection of a 108 inch beam = .7" or 9/16 of an inch."

To calculate your beam's capacity, simply measure the distance from the bottom of the beam in question to the floor at the connector clip and then measure the distance from  the bottom of the beam in the middle at 54 inches on the parallel plane. If the difference between those two dimensions exceeds 9/16" your shelf level is overloaded. You either  need to re-merchandise the beam level in question to meet specifications or change the beam level to a higher capacity beam.
Note - you cannot simply rely on a beam capacity chart from one manufacturer to another. Although the beams from the two manufacturers may be the same size, the gauge of the beams may be different. By using a manufacturer that is a member of the Rack Manufacturers Institute you can  be assured that the capacities have been verified by an unbiased independent source.

Article written by Bill Lawson, LJS Solutions. 

Bill can be reached at 
919-607-5488 or
billlawson@ljs-Solutions.com
OSHA Reverses Policy on Drug Testing Incentive Programs
 
OSHA has changed course in its view of employers' post-incident drug testing programs and injury rate-based incentive programs. In a Memorandum to Regional Administrators and State Designees published October 11, the Agency now says most of these types of programs do not run afoul of the anti-retaliation provisions of the injury and illness record keeping regulation at §1904.35(b)(1)(iv).
This is a huge shift in policy guidance from that published when the Agency issued the final rule in May 2016 requiring employers to electronically submit injury and illness records. As part of that rule making, OSHA added a provision that employers not have any barriers for employees to report injuries or illnesses. The rule also said that employers could not discriminate or punish employees for being injured.
While the rule itself didn't address drug testing or incentive programs, policy guidance published along with it indicated that most post-incident drug testing programs would be in violation. The same thing was said about incentive programs that were tied to injury rates.

Read more here.
 
(Source:  Travis Rhoden, JJ Keller Compliance Library, October 2018)
Calendar of Events
 
***2018***
October 21-23: 
Roundtable #7 
(Charlottesville, VA)
October 25-26: Operations Manager Roundtable B
(North Charleston, SC)
November 7: BMSA Executive Committee & Board of Directors Meetings
(Columbus, OH)
November 7-8: Ohio Education Summit 
(Columbus, OH)
November 15-16: Sales Manager Roundtable
(Charleston, SC)
***2019***
February 6-7: 
BMSA's Annual Show
(Hickory, NC)
March 20-22:
CFO Roundtable
(Scottsdale, AZ)
March 21-22:
Operations Manager Roundtable A
(Cashiers, NC)
April 7-9:
Roundtable #1
(Charlotte, NC)
Stay Connected With BMSA!