Metal Construction News, July 2019

BUSINESS FEATURE Employee safety is paramount to the success of any construction company No construction company wants to lose workers to injury or illness which can cause a significant work disruption and cost to both the company and the workers and their families Making sure your company has an established safety program is one of the most effective ways to protect your employees from injury or illness when working on an active job site According to a 2011 report in Milbank Quarterly by J P Leigh Economic Burden of Occupational Injury and Illness in the United States implementing a safety and health program can help employers avoid the indirect costs that result from workplace incidents such as time lost due to work stoppages and investigations training and other costs associated with replacing injured workers and loss or damage to material machinery and property Whether a company has a full time safety professional on staff or hires an outside company to handle the training logistics all construction workers need to go through a variety of training programs and OSHA required certifications to ensure a safe and secure job site Basic Training For new hires safety training should begin from day one At Kalkreuth Roofing and Sheet Metal Inc KRSM based in Wheeling W Va Seth Abraham director of HR and safety says new hires go through a safety orientation upon initial hire which covers everything from fall protection to PPE to proper ladder usage We try to address every aspect of safety right from the start says Abraham Jack Havely president of Metal Building Erectors Inc Eleanor W Va says new hires are put through a two week in house training program Located next to Parkline Inc a manufacturer who builds factory assembled modular type structures Havely says We have a ready made assembly shop we can put a new hire in for on the job training and orientation As soon as a new employee decides to become a full time member of the company he or she will take the OSHA 10 course Depending on the type of job there are different types of OSHA training certifications required For example all of Kalkreuths foremen are required to have OSHA 30 hour certification while all journeymen apprentices have OSHA 10 hour certification For the last several years weve been using a combination of online training for OSHA 10 for instance We also have available to us an on site safety coordinator who is licensed to conduct OSHA training sessions and deal with safety reporting companies like ISNetworld Havely says In addition to OSHA training workers are trained in first aid and CPR Employees are also trained on new construction techniques tools and equipment We participate in a lot of job specific training explains Havely This can include fork trucks man lifts scaffolding etc And local equipment sales rental organizations will come in and do specialized training with workers Anytime we get a new tool we make sure that the people who are using it are trained on its proper use he adds Training Programs Having an established safety program is essential to success By Marcy Marro Editor 30 METAL CONSTRUCTION NEWS July 2019