Safety Is a Top Priority!
November 19, 2021
This month, we want to take a moment to review our expectations for personal protective equipment (PPE) for our technicians. The minimum PPE required for all the work our technicians perform on behalf of CoolSys consists of safety glasses, gloves and work boots. When you conduct a hazard assessment before starting each job, you ensure you’re wearing the right PPE to address the hazards you might encounter, reducing the likelihood of injury. Remember, you should never perform work without wearing the appropriate PPE for the task.
Glove Choice Is Key
Technicians can obtain gloves from their supervisor or by contacting their assigned Regional Safety Manager. Gloves do wear out, so make sure you inspect them prior to each use and replace them, as needed. This ensures optimal protection from hand injuries, which comprise a large portion of the injuries sustained by technicians.
Here’s a quick overview of which glove is the right choice for the job:
| Task | Type of Glove |
| Material Handling, Drilling | Cut-Resistant |
| Refrigerant | Chemical-Resistant |
| Sewer & Drain Cleaning, Solvent, Primer | Nitrile |
| Hot Work | Welding |
A Selfie to Get You Home Safely
People usually take selfies to make their friends on social media jealous about their exotic vacation, their gourmet meal, their buff and toned physique, or their overall fabulous life. But a selfie to increase job safety?
That last one is the innovative idea of Chris Liebel, Washington Service Manager of the CoolSys Light Commercial Group. A couple of months ago, a tech in the group forgot to wear his gloves on the job — and the inevitable happened. He cut his finger and ended up losing time at work.
Policy Plus a Little More
In the wake of the accident, Chris reminded the team about CoolSys policy toward wearing job-specific PPE and reiterated the company’s commitment to provide each employee with the safety equipment they need to do their job. But he didn’t stop there. He also introduced a new requirement that every work order include a selfie of the tech wearing their PPE. You can see some of the creative ways techs have fulfilled their selfie requirement in the photos below.
For Chris it was all about one thing: “Be safe out there,” he said in an email to his team. “You’re responsible for your own safety. Please use the PPE we provide to ensure you all make it home safe every night.”
Remember, by practicing good safety habits, we’ll not only reduce the number of injuries on the job and meet OSHA standards, but we’ll also improve work efficiency.