TOOLBOX TALK

Managing safely is synonymous to safe and efficient production. Yet not many businesses make that connection until it’s too late. All too often they suffer a death blow before sitting down to examine what went wrong.   Experience shows that Managers who pay little attention to safety only end up paying a big time price attending to all kinds of post-incident business loss activities. Issues like absenteeism, lost workdays, spiraling medical bills, sagging public image, poor workforce morale, increase insurance premiums, dwindling production and a shrinking bottom line.   It follows that poor safety performance directly translates to poor returns on investment and you don’t have to look too far to see it or why. It’s clearly signposted all over the workplace place; in the employees’ body language, asset use and misuse, mounting unresolved environmental issues, etc. Like they say, you can run but you can’t hide because safety issues are like a pack of dominoes, one falls and they

And you don’t know why it’s happening. Well, not surprising. Plenty of businesses are in the same boat because they simply do not see the BIG picture. A Game for the Big Boys A number of small and medium scale enterprises, SMEs, tend to think that loss control is one massive mountain only scalable by the BIG BOYS! Nothing is further from the truth. The smaller you’re the bigger the hit on your operating resources as a result of hidden, silent operating losses you routinely incur. It may not be obvious to most but they do add up in the end. Because each time some material, tool or spares are misused, damaged, lost or misplaced in the cost of work, money goes down the drain. But not many know so because the system simply does not recognize or capture those as losses . Unrecorded, Insignificant Sundry Events In the end, thousands of operating dollars are lost to unrecorded, insignificant sundry events because they involved neither injury nor product loss/damage. So long as

Smaller, Nippier and No Lights Coping with pedestrians in traffic can be big, big trouble because they are the most vulnerable of all road users. Motorists must take this fact into consideration each time they are out on the road. Because pedestrians do not have headlights, it is generally more difficult for them to see and be seen; especially at night and in poor weather conditions.   They are slower in acceleration but can stop faster and in shorter distances than any powered vehicle. Quicker on the turn and weighing a lot less than the smallest vehicle, they are more susceptible to serious injuries and permanent damage than all other road users combined in the event of a collision.   Easily Lost in Blind Spots Being relatively small in size, the pedestrian is easily lost in the driver’s pockets of vision, otherwise known as blind spots . Objects hidden in blindspots are always exposed to real danger while drivers are turning left or right, and while reversing. Checking

Personal Responsibility Responsibility is not just a word. It isn’t supposed to be but in workplaces around the globe, quite a number of people don’t seem to want to know any different. Or how do you explain the recurrence of avoidable errors in most industrial premises, factories, construction and other work sites?   Little things It is the little things that people overlook which account for the greater losses at the end of the day. Oftentimes, we expect that the ‘BIG’ problems are it, and we expect they are meant for someone else further up the line to take care of. We forget to reckon with the fact that put together, the everyday routine, ‘insignificant’ errors and violations are by far heavier in reach and impact than that one big bang’ of an occurrence which may never happen. These so-called insignificant events are responsible for most of business losses even though most business owners may not know it because they, more often than not, are looking in the wrong places

If you haven’t got communication, you’ve got nothing Communication is the vehicle of the safety trade or any trade for that matter. Clear cut communication is to safety management what a navigation compass is to a sailor, for without it plans for safe operations can go several degrees off course. Poor or no safety communication creates a fertile ground for varied rules interpretation, abuse and ultimately, widespread noncompliance. The more employees work with their own rules or outside laid down procedures in a particular workplace, the more susceptible to loss-producing and injury incidents that workplace will experience over the course of time. Looking to see why these incidents occur often reveal how easily some of them could have been nipped in the bud if only everyone in the loop could have compared notes prior. Share your knowledge Passing around available safety-critical information and openly sharing knowledge across all levels of supervision doesn’t hurt anyone, sy

TOOLBOX TALK: The Bad Tempered Driver : Do you know that one of the biggest hazards on our roads is the growing number of discourteous drivers? These drivers tailgate, pass im...

TOOLBOX TALK: The Bad Tempered Driver : Do you know that one of the biggest hazards on our roads is the growing number of discourteous drivers? These drivers tailgate, pass im...

Do you know that one of the biggest hazards on our roads is the growing number of discourteous drivers? These drivers tailgate, pass improperly, cut other motorists off, honk their horns unnecessarily, weave through traffic, form extra lanes, and flash their lights to get others out of the way, and sometimes respond inappropriately to perceived affront. Some drivers can lose ever so easily Insignificant incidents such as parking space disputes, fender benders, obscene gestures, loud music, and overuse of the horn or failure to use a turn signal can lead to violent confrontations. To become a more courteous driver, experts recommend: ·          Use the passing lane only when passing. ·          Signal before switching. ·          Allow plenty of space between your car and the car in front; don’t tailgate. ·          If you drive slowly, stay to the right. ·          Don’t let yourself be distracted by anything or people inside your vehicle. ·          Don’t

Where and how do I begin? Not a few self employed CEOs have said to me in the past that they had no clue how  to set up for HSE in their businesses, so today I have decided to point them in the right direction with this model. I do hope they and others like them find it useful to their aspirations, aims and objectives. Enjoy it and don't forget to share your impressions with us. Health, Safety and Environmental Management Systems - HSE MS Setting up some kind of management systems to have manage safety in the business is where to begin. It doesn’t have to be a massive organization or set up but it must have key elements embedded to ensure all angles are covered, including reviews for continuous improvements. Besides, management systems must be tailored to fit the organization. There’s no point in producing volumes and volumes of safety management manuals in small and medium sized companies or enterprises when a one-page document would do the trick. The key requirement is

That thousands of Nigerians are routinely killed on roads and highways each year is no longer shocking news to anyone in the country. Collisions occur by the minute that keeping pace with the count is a tough job. In fact one source has it that a Nigerian is killed on the road every 15 minutes, which works out to be four people per hour, 96 per day and 35,040 men, women and children in a 365-day year! If Nigeria suffered that many casualties in a shooting war with another country in just one year we’ll all be up in arms protesting the country’s involvement in such a life wasting misadventure. We would have been unanimous in calling for an immediate cessation of hostilities and most likely the resignation of the leader at the time. But here we are, living with an inescapable reality of a steady decimation of what must be the most productive segment of the population – a clear and present danger to the country’s economic growth and wellbeing – and yet no one is marching on Aso Roc

Accidents don’t just happen they are caused – by us! They happen because of what we do and/or fail to do. But in Nigeria, where we have a penchant for the absurd, you’re most likely to hear that they happen because God willed it. After all religion is our thing! I believe in God but blaming Him so, to me, is taking things too far. It is as illogical as it is misplaced. Therefore, I submit I see no point in blaming anyone else but ourselves for the regular loss of life and property around the country. Mind you, some government officials do not help matters whenever they make light of these horrific events by simply laying them on God’s doorstep, whereas the public would in all likelihood feel a lot more reassured if they, agents of government, would step up and be more forthcoming on ways and means to stop the next one due from occurring. God’s ways may be mysterious but how he can so regularly will such massive deaths and destruction on his people should beat anyone’s religious im

You too can profit from Safety - if you want to. You may be a Small, Medium-sized or a Big-time operator, it doesn't make any difference. You've to want it for it to become reality, to bring it to fruition. Profiting from Safety comes to those who consciously set out for it. First, you must have a Safety Plan for the Business. Second, communicate the Plan. Third, work the Plan. Fourth, review, improve and continue to work the Plan. 1. Have a Safety Plan First, put a safety management plan in place for your business. This plan should include a safety policy, organization, roles and responsibilities, standards, procedures, etc. The policy should state the safety intent of the company, management leadership, supervisory support, employee involvement and buy-in. An all inclusive policy is easier accepted. Next, set a up a simple organization so that roles and responsibilities are clear, set goals and key performance indicators, develop procedures, etc. Move to the next stage.

What is safety? Bloody waste of time and money! Really? No doubt, there are some business owners who may think, feel and act like safety is a waste of time and money. An abstract quantity. A studied distraction from the all important business of the day, production. But can there be many of them around today, still in business turning a profit, if any at all? Not a lot, I would imagine. It simply isn't logical to expect a business operating with scant regards for safety to stay afloat for any appreciable length of time because workplace accidents cost you money, whether you realize it or not. That accidents and incidents steadily chip away at your bottom line is no longer news. Proving it is not rocket science either. You just have to look to see it. Each so-called accident dislocates the day's plans and imposes a new agenda on all concerned, the individual (or individuals), organization and Clients. It extends the boundaries of your budgetary expenditure, taxes your reser

This has nothing to do with a stake out or anything like that. When it comes to safety on-the-job, it simply refers to the art of taking a detailed and comprehensive look at what you plan to do and how; taking each step in turn to ascertain that nothing has escaped your scrutiny or attention. Workplace accidents or so called, are often traceable to those little things that slipped through the gap due to oversight, familiarity with the routine, repetitive application, time pressure, competing interests/goals, skills deficiency or plain I-know-what-I-am-doing ego thing. So it figures that most workplace so-called accidents are preventable. Or could be prevented if every job task or routine is subject to a second look aka casing the joint. On-the-job errors are costly, regardless. This is because whatever the circumstances, an error is an error. It spells doom for your pocket as the business owner, employer, employee, contractor or shareholder. Unfortunately, shop floor Management is

Business safety issues in Nigeria are largely left to hope rather than experience. Cataclysmal occurrences elsewhere are ascribed to ill luck, home trouble, which can be left with the Pastor, Alfa, Babalawo, Seer or Marabout to sort out while you get on with the business of "making money". Sad road to take, but mind you, the choice is entirely yours. Besides, the power to choose is one of the most powerful tools God gifted us with so there's no call for regret when it all falls down and your business is badly hit. Your employees may be killed or maimed in the process which will leave in all sorts of troubles. It is a fact that each so-called accident puts you in the line of ill affordable mass of restitution bills, compensation claims, hiked insurance premiums and general re-start headaches; and a permanently damaged business reputation. Mind you, people will cotton on faster if we had a clear cut policy and practice of enforcement of health and safety regulatio

Workers bringing an apparently long, stressful day to a close have just about one immediate thought in mind: Drop the work gear and hurry on out of the workplace and head on home where the irksome supervisor is thankfully a world away, until tomorrow. So off they go hardly paying attention to the  state of the worksite. Is it safe for their inevitable return tomorrow? Are tools and surplus material stowed away properly, away from natural elements so they can safely be redeployed or put to use tomorrow without much ado? Are hazard control systems like the permit-to-work duly signed off with the end-of-day work status notes accurately documented to aid safe worksite re-entry come tomorrow or in the overriding pressure to be the first through the gate some minor but safety critical details have been overlooked, under stated or simply glossed over? Is equipment or machinery that should be switched off switched off? Are relevant warning signs posted where they are supposed to be poste

Workplace accidental deaths and injuries are a worrisome feature to nations and organization worldwide. International Labour Organization, ILO, estimates that there are as many as 2.2m fatalities occurring yearly across the globe. In Nigeria, it is common knowledge that hundreds, if not thousands of workers fail to return home yearly from work due to accidents which could’ve have been prevented if the right safety systems were deployed. That the nation is the ultimate loser in these unwanted events is an understatement. For every person lost or maimed at work, the family, organization and country suffers irrecoverable loss, whether it be the family losing a bread winner, the factory an experienced hand or the nation taking a loss in taxes accruable to her. Workplace safety is therefore an issue that demands and should be given the utmost attention and focus by the individual employee, employer and the government of the day. A thriving economy is a safe economy as exemplified by