"December Employee Safety Talk"

Safety glasses are required: 

Wearing safety glasses in an industrial environment is one of the oldest individual protection programs practiced in our industry. It is obvious that approved eye protection is needed in the production and maintenance areas of the plant. To eliminate doubt as to other areas where eye protection is required to be worn, in the following areas questions have been raised concerning safety glass usage:

- Aisles & Walkways: approved eye protection is required in all aisles and walkways in the manufacturing area.
- Cribs & Docks: approved eye protection is required in all production and non-production cribs and on the Shipping and Receiving Docks.
- Powered Equipment: anyone operating powered equipment (forklift truck, tow motor/tug, electric cart, bicycles, etc.) must wear proper eye protection.
- "Up Front": Anyone working in the Administration Building, performing tasks with hand or powered tools, must wear eye protection. Anyone working above the false ceiling in any area must also wear approved eye protection.
- Other areas: The same rules apply for eye protection in the manufacturing area applies to those individuals in the Garage, Powerhouse or Waste Water Treatment Plant. 

What is approved eye protection?

To see if you have approved eye protection, look on the inside of the frame (temples or bridge). "Z-87" must be noted there to let you know the frames meet OSHA requirements. Also, on the top corner or top middle of the lenses, a small manufacturer's trademark must appear. If your glasses have both it means both frame and lenses are approved for industrial use. If these marks are not there, your glasses are not safe for work. 

Is any tinting allowed in the lenses?

Only "clear" or "rose-tint" lenses are allowed for industrial safety glasses. "Rose 1" is a light tint; "Rose 2" is a heavier tint. This tinting allows reduction of glare from the florescent lighting in the plant but does not distort your vision like other tinting when worn inside the building. Sunglasses, photo-gray, dark-tint lenses or any other shaded lens are not allowed. 

Wooden pallets in trash carts:

Wooden pallets must never be placed in trash carts or the racks being used to collect paper and cardboard. The wooden pallets present a very serious safety issue for those that empty the material from the carts/racks. Please be sure to safely stack wooden pallets in your area, not in carts or racks. 

Fire & electrocution hazards - small appliances: 
Small appliances sometimes brought into the plant for personal use create an increased risk for fire and electrocution, and are not approved for use in an industrial setting. Microwave ovens, space heaters, toasters, coffee pots, refrigerators and other electrical appliances are not allowed to be operated on the plant floor or in any offices, crib areas, locker areas or other rooms on the property.