Recent high-profile accidents like the Aug. 14, 2008 crane collapse in Massachusetts have brought increased attention to safety issues on construction and demolition job sites.
To prevent accidents and injuries, contractors usually turn to their internal safety programs. Unfortunately, implementing an effective safety program isn’t always easy.
There are many challenges to implementing an effective safety program, including dealing with uncooperative employees, changing industry trends and the negative impressions contractors can receive for working in what is often perceived to be a dangerous industry. Fortunately, many industry resources are available to help.
SAFETY HAZARDS
Out With the Old For much of the industry’s history, the wrecking ball has been the primary tool used for demolition. Today many contractors are favoring ultra-high reach demolition techniques (UHD) over the wrecking ball. Some argue that such techniques increase safety on the job sites. "Ultra-high reach is safer than the wrecking ball because it gives contractors the control they’ve always wanted," says Steve Pece, owner of Pece of Mind Demolition, Orlando, Fla. It may give contractors more control, but some like Don Rachel, CEO of Rachel Contracting, Maple Grove, Minn., are concerned that it brings workers closer to danger by bringing them closer to the actual demolition. Rachel says he has heard stories of material falling back on machinery and shears getting caught in the building as it starts to go down. This isn’t the only safety issue contractors encounter with UHD. When working at great heights, there is also the risk of the machine tipping over or material ricocheting or bouncing. To prevent this from happening, Mark Ancona, vice president, Sunrise Systems of Brevard Inc., Cocoa, Fla., recommends that the operator maintains control of the machine’s angle and path of descent and is also mindful of surrounding facilities and utilities. "However, as with the deconstruction of the crane and ball, the high-reach destruction operation is based on the training and experience of the person operating the equipment," says industry consultant Bill Gumbiner, Demolition Industry Consultants LLC, Noblesville, Ind. Unfortunately, the industry doesn’t have a safety document designed for UHD equipment because it is still relatively new to the U.S. What Pece has done to work around this is develop a mentoring program in which the equipment manufacturer helps him educate operators on components such as wind positioning and tipping. As UHD equipment becomes more commonplace throughout the industry, the National Demolition Association has begun to address the specific safety risks associated with using this technique. "We are turning to the U.K. where they have been using UHD equipment for a few more years to help develop specific safety techniques," says Mike Casbon, safety committee chair for the association and safety manager for Brandenburg Industrial Service Co., Chicago. An association subcommittee is working on creating a high-reach guidance document that will address topics such as proximity to buildings, falling materials and operator training and safety, Casbon says.
Depending on the location and the type of job, a contractor can encounter a number of safety hazards. Some significant safety hazards involve fencing and walk ways, dust control, protection of below-and-above ground utilities, hazardous materials, (i.e. asbestos, lead paint and mercury and runoff water control), according to industry consultant William Gumbiner, Demolition Industry Consultants LLC, Noblesville, Ind.
According to Steve Pece, owner of Pece of Mind Demolition, Orlando, on a typical day contactors can deal with anything from slip and falls and fire hazards to something as simple as employees not wearing the right personal protection equipment (PPE).
Mark Ancona, vice president, Sunrise Systems of Brevard Inc., Cocoa, Fla., has dealt with several safety issues on a job he is currently doing at the Kennedy Space Center. His crew can come in contact with any number of dangerous substances, including ultra high pressure gases, flammable materials and powerful corrosives. Ancona addresses these concerns through a tailgate safety meeting prior to starting work. "This meeting identifies all of the expected hazards for the facility, including facility services such as high voltages, compressed gas and flammables," Ancona says. "We also cover any site-specific plans and procedures developed for that facility."
To prepare for any job, Ancona’s employees must complete the 10-hour Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) safety course as well as additional training on forklifts, articulating boom lifts and scissor lifts. His employees are also trained to remove asbestos, lead-based paint and PCB-contaminated oils and coatings. Because of the various safety hazards a contractor faces on the job site, Ancona says Sunrise Systems has chosen the path of perpetual vigilance. "If a worker cannot be safe, then they cannot be part of my team," he says.
Oddly enough, one of the main safety issues contactors face today has nothing to do with employees, according to Pece. He has had problems with pedestrians walking onto the job site to salvage scrap metal. "They come during working hours with no PPE and if something happens to them it falls under our liability," Pece says. It has gotten to the point where Pece has to have someone positioned at the gate to keep unauthorized people out of the site.
When it comes to addressing safety issues at Chicago-based Brandenburg Industrial, the company’s safety manager (who also serves as the safety committee chair for the National Demolition Association) Mike Casbon, says they use a product they call "Lesson Learned," which the company distributes to all the job sites after an incident. "We take accidents that have happened in our company as well as throughout the industry and describe what happened, how we feel it can be prevented and what employees can do to look out for these hazards," Casbon says.
SAFETY RESOURCES
Even though protecting employees from potential injury is important, enforcing safety regulations can lead to tangible, bottom-line benefits such as lower insurance premiums and lower experience modification ratings (EMR). "The EMR is a tool used by the insurance companies to mitigate their risk," says Mark Ancona, vice president of Sunrise Systems of Brevard Inc., Cocoa, Fla. And according to contractors, the lower the EMR of your business, the lower your worker compensation insurance premiums will be. Ancona says all companies start out at a rate of 1.1 for whatever discipline they are insuring, and after a few clean years this number can drop. "And if contractors apply a modifier then the rate can go down even further," Ancona says. Examples of modifiers include a drug free workplace and smoking cessation programs as well as the absence of claims during the previous period of coverage. According to the Web site of the Indianapolis-based Safety Management Group, a provider of safety staffing, education, products and services to industries including health care, construction and manufacturing, an EMR of 1.0 is standard for the industry. The good news about EMRs, contractors say, is that it can always be lowered and the simplest way it can be done is by putting into action an effective safety program.
The National Demolition Association has also been doing its part to promote safety by providing industry professionals with the tools they need to work in a safe and healthy environment. These tools include the demolition safety manual, hazard communication program, demolition safety talks program and industry events, like the Demo Academy (see sidebar on p. 70).
The Bottom Line
In the 1980s the National Demolition Association developed an association safety and health manual with the help of OSHA. As a result of the association’s growing membership in both the United States and Canada, the association is hoping to launch a Canadian-specific safety manual in September, according to Casbon.
The hazard communication program is designed to provide demolition contractors with the latest information on Right-to-Know requirements as well as sample material safety data sheets (MSDSs) for materials found on a typical demolition job site, according to the association’s Web site. "The association also has 52 safety talks designed to be given by the job site foreman," Casbon says. These talks are used to alert workers to particular hazards they may face and to assist with occupational health and safety compliance.
The association’s annual Demo Academy—formerly known as the Safety Summit—has grown in popularity and now offers training classes on topics including aerial lift, confined space rescue, advanced fall protection, implosion safety and company management.
Class in Session The National Demolition Association, Doylestown, Pa., has expanded its training program and re-named it the "Demolition Academy." The three-day safety and management training event will take place Oct. 15-17 in Atlanta. "The National Demolition Association is the leading trade organization for the global demolition industry and is viewed as the final source for information on demolition safety," says Michael Taylor, CAE, executive director. "That’s why we decided to re-brand our program and expand its scope to include more topics aimed at both management and others involved in the demolition process." The Demolition Academy begins with the demolition-specific OSHA 10-hour certification, offered in both English and Spanish. In addition, training is offered on the topics of confined space rescue and aerial lift equipment safety. Other topics covered include managing stress, implosion safety issues, personal protective equipment (PPE), confined space awareness and rental equipment safety awareness. Other topics cover managing a demolition project, how to manage a company’s safety program, when disaster strikes: what to do during an on-site emergency, legal issues confronting the demolition industry and current human resources issues on the demolition jobsite. The demolition-specific OSHA 10-hour training certification is taught by certified instructors and is required by many of the industry’s larger clients. "It should be an important part of every company’s safety training program," Taylor says. Additional information about the three-day event, including how to register, is available online at the National Demolition Association’s Web site www.demolitionassociation.com.
In efforts to strengthen its safety program, the association formed an alliance with OSHA in 2005 to provide industry professionals with more information, guidance and training resources. "Currently the alliance time has ended, but the association is in the process of developing a new one," Casbon says. Through this alliance the National Demolition Association and OSHA created a 10-hour demolition worker safety course. "The standard 10-hour OSHA class is for the general tradesman," Pece says. "The demolition class is more industry specific."
The National Demolition Association and OSHA aren’t the only places contractors go to for help. Ancona also partners with a Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH) and a Certified Safety Professional (CSP) to review and update the company’s safety plan as well as provide continuing education classes in new areas.
"We have found this to be a valuable resource for our junior managers and field superintendents," Ancona says. "The cost is minimal when compared to the overall reduction in insurance costs we receive from having zero lost time accidents."
But the industry can only do so much to encourage companies to make safety their No. 1 priority. "Managers and supervisors have to make a personal commitment to safety, and learn to place the lives and health of their employees above profit," Ancona says. C&DR
The author is assistant editor of C&DR and can be contacted at kmorris@gie.net.
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