A Fortune 500 chemical company employer required attendance at monthly safety meetings for our department in corporate R&D. Each month a scientist was responsible for heading up the one-hour meeting on a safety-related topic. Sometimes we invited outside speakers to present a safety talk. We also had unannounced safety inspections of all labs and pilot plant/engineering areas. A checklist was used to look for possible violations such as a cluttered work area, personnel not wearing safety glasses or lab coat when doing lab work, eating in the lab area, improper storage of flammables, etc. We also had mandatory fire extinguisher training each year, where everyone was required to learn about the various types of extinguishers and then to actually use those extinguishers on an actual fire (metal fires, organic liquids, etc.). Safety was one of the criteria that management used for our annual performance appraisals, a further incentive to take safety very seriously. Also, having worked for several other companies in the chemical, metal-related, and semiconductor chemical industry, a similar safety-conscious culture was practiced by each employer.
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Ronald Myers, Ph.D.
President/Owner
Myers Consulting Services
Strongsville OH
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Original Message:
Sent: 08-08-2022 11:12
From: Aaron Tanzer
Subject: Safety Practices
You need to engrain a culture of safety so that all personnel are thinking first of safe practices even if a procedure is not formally spelled out. Management has to sign off on such a culture and allow shutdowns of individual processes if they are unsafe, even if that means halting production. Staff has to be invested in the safety culture. Having a safety committee is highly recommended as safe practices will come from all over the organization. Mandatory time has to be set aside for safety meetings and to generate organizational safety procedures.
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Aaron Tanzer
Senior Metallurgical Engineer
Metallurgical & Materials Technologies
Baton Rouge LA
(407) 247-9557
Original Message:
Sent: 08-05-2022 17:04
From: Gary Shade
Subject: Safety Practices
In one job, I greatly benefited from having a safety committee comprised of people from multiple levels. This encouraged education and awareness of safety along with safety ownership. We all "own" it. We also did safety walk-throughs weekly to inspect for unsafe conditions and to check that safety equipment was present. This helps those involved to keep their eyes open and keep safety always visible. Safety is not just procedures or classes, it is a day-day check and balance.
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Gary Shade
Sr. Microelectronics Engineer
Samtec - Colorado
Original Message:
Sent: 08-03-2022 11:45
From: Leon Aguirre
Subject: Safety Practices
Hello fellows,
I would like to improve the safety in my facility, for that I ask you for your experience in some of the best safety practices that you have seen through your careers that made a big impact.
Hope you all are having a great day, and thank you very much.
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Leon Aguirre
Process Engineer
AMG-Vanadium
Cambridge Oh
6788487753
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