Lean and Six Sigma Simplified

When many people start to implement lean and six sigma principles in their facility they often find that it is a difficult and complex process.  There is certainly a lot to keep in mind when you want to use these strategies to improve the safety, productivity and efficiency of a a facility, but there are also many ways to…

Tony Ferraro | June 20, 2013 | Six Sigma | 2 min read

5 Safety Tips to Keep Your Employees Safe

It doesn’t matter how many signs you put up or seminars you hold, if employees don’t take their safety seriously, you’ll never be able to prevent injuries. This is why it is essential to help instruct employees on how to take responsibility for their own safety, in addition to providing them with specific training on…

Tony Ferraro | June 19, 2013 | Safety | 2 min read

Why Hearing Protection is Important

Hearing protection is one of the most important, and often overlooked, safety tools in any facility. OSHA reports that about 30 million people in the United States are exposed to potentially hazardous noise levels in the workplace each year. When people who are working in these environments don’t wear proper hearing protection, they risk experiencing hearing loss…

Tony Ferraro | June 18, 2013 | Safety | 2 min read

Where to Start with Injury Prevention

Most companies do a fairly good job of addressing the most significant risks in a given facility. If someone has to work with toxic waste, they will provide them with the proper PPE to limit exposure. If people are working in an area where there is a risk of items falling from above, they will be provided…

Tony Ferraro | June 17, 2013 | Safety | 2 min read

ANSI A13.1 Benefits & Problems

ANSI A13.1 is the set of guidelines which is used to ensure that all pipes in a facility are clearly marked with what they contain.  The idea behind these standards is to ensure people working with and around all pipes know exactly what they contain before they take any action.  If, for example, an unlabeled…

Tony Ferraro | May 31, 2013 | Pipe Marking, Safety | 2 min read

GB 7231-2003

GB 7231 is a pipe marking standard for Chinese pipes used in industrial situations.  The standard covers a variety of things including the colors, symbols and other marketing specifications necessary for safety.  The standard goes into great detail regarding what needs to be used when marking pipes whether they are carrying harmless things like water or…

Tony Ferraro | May 30, 2013 | Pipe Marking | 2 min read

Renovation, Repair, Painting

The EPA has a program known as the renovation, repair, and painting program. This program focuses on helping to ensure homes and businesses are using the proper safety requirements during a renovation.  Issues with lead paint, contaminated areas, and other potential problems can put people doing the work and those in the surrounding area at significant risk…

Tony Ferraro | May 23, 2013 | Safety | 2 min read

Hazardous Energy Control

Servicing heavy machinery has been an extremely dangerous occupation for many years.  In an attempt to reduce the possibility of injury or even death there have been standards created by OSHA and other groups to help limit the dangers.  One of the main focuses of these standards was hazardous energy control.  The idea is that when people…

Tony Ferraro | May 17, 2013 | Safety | 2 min read

Operator Based Care

The idea behind operator based care is that people who work with a particular piece of machinery are the ones who are best suited to identify and perform the general day to day maintenance of the machine.  They will notice, for example, if the machine starts making an odd noise or is running low on…

Tony Ferraro | May 16, 2013 | Continuous Improvement | 2 min read

Minimal Lockout/Tagout Procedures

While many facilities choose to implement a higher standard for their lockout / tagout procedures, the OSHA standard does have some minimal requirements to be in compliance for this type of work.  Following the minimal lockout/tagout procedures will keep people much safer than having no safety standard in place at all, and it is a great place to start…

Tony Ferraro | May 15, 2013 | Lockout Tagout, Safety | 2 min read