Safety (HSE) Orientation – Department of Civil

Engineering

September 2014

Session Objectives

Understand:• Your role in our safety (HSE) program

• How to respond to emergencies

• The importance of looking for and reporting hazards

• What to do in an earthquake

• What is a lockdown and what to do

• Ergonomics as applied to your job

• Bullying and harassment

• Student Safety Abroad Registry

• Laboratory Safety

Health, Safety and Environment

• UBC, as the EMPLOYER, sets policies and supplies the resources to create a healthy and safe work environment

• Staff develop and implement safety policies and rules to ensure a healthy and safe work environment

• As an EMPLOYEE, you must follow all HSE rules.

• As a SUPERVISOR you are responsible for the safety of your reports and that they comply with all HSE rules.

➔ If you are a TA, you are considered a supervisor and the students are your reports

HSE in Civil Engineering

If you have any questions about safety or would like to report any incident or unsafe conditions, contact the following members of our HSE Committee:

Bernard Laval, Chair 2-2204 blaval@civil.ubc.ca

Paula Parkinson, Co-chair 2-4397 parkin@civil.ubc.ca

Harald Schrempp, Work shop 2-4851 haralds@civil.ubc.ca

Scott Jackson, Electronics 2-4143 scottj@civil.ubc.ca

Sylvia Margraff, Civil office, 2-1212 officemanager@civil.ubc.ca

Louise Fogarty, Civil Office, 2-4429 facsec@civil.ubc.ca

You have the right to refuse to do anything that is unsafe.

Your Responsibilities

When working in our Department, follow all safety rules

• Ensure you are trained on all equipment you are to use• Check with appropriate personnel for mechanical, electrical

and chemical issues

Clean up your work area – excellence in housekeeping

Know what to do in emergency situations

Report any incident or unsafe condition to a supervisor IMMEDIATELY

Incident

Reported to manager.

Safety committeeReview, update, approve

HSE committee minutes

Bulletin Boards

Final Report to Dept. Head, RMS, worker(s) involved, Hard copy to file in Director of Administration’s office

Email notification of incident to Department Head, SPA, Dept. Safety Specialist. Serious incidents (injuries) are reported to the department head immediately by phone.

Incident or near miss report to RMS

Investigation, written report

Procedures in the event of an incident, accident or near miss

Workplace Safety

Two of the most common causes of workplace incidents and injuries are:

Slips, trips and falls due to poor housekeeping

…leading to cuts, bruises, sprains and broken bones and

Workplace Safety

Improper material handling techniques – “lifting and moving stuff ”

…leading to back injuries

If it’s too heavy, get help or use a jack or crane

Proper lifting techniques

• Stand close to the load – squat and lift with legs

• Avoid picking up heavy loads below knees and above shoulders

• Bend at the knees – not at the waist

• Keep back straight and keep chin up during lift

Housekeeping

• Remove trip hazards

• Clean up and immediately notify your supervisor of spills

• Keep walkways and aisles clear

• Keep clear access to: • evacuation routes and emergency exits,

• fire extinguishers,

• first aid kits

• phones and

• electrical panels

• Close drawers and doors

• Dispose of trash promptly and properly

Ergonomics

• Ergonomic (overexertion and repetitive strain) Injuries make up 35% of all WSBC claims at UBC

• Our goal: to eliminate or, if that is not practicable, minimize the risk of musculoskeletal injury (MSI) to workers.

• A properly designed workplace, proper technique, and good tools can prevent these types of injuries.

The Ideal Workstation Set up

☛ The advent of the laptop has changed the game and increased the risk of MSIs

Tips to Remember

Use neutral postures

Adjust your workstation

Keep things within reach

Don’t use a laptop as your desktop machine unless you have an external keyboard and raise the laptop

Get rid of clutter

Take breaks and stretch occasionally

Ergonomics

Don’t ignore these signs and symptoms

Signs RednessHeatSwellingReduced Range of MotionSymptoms Pain &/or localized discomfortNumbness/TinglingTender to TouchStiffnessWeakness

First Aid• There are first aid kits in:

• The workshop (RH140)

• The Environmental lab (CEME1301)

• The Materials Lab (CEME1012)

• The Civil office (CEME 2002)

Familiarize yourself with their locations.

• You can get First Aid or immediate help by:

☞ Dialing 911or Campus First Aid: 604.822.4444

☞ Going to the UBC hospital

☞ Getting hold of one of our own First Aid attendants:

Sylvia Margraff: 604.822.1212

Louise Fogarty: 604.822.4429

Emergency Situations

When starting to work in an area, learn and memorize the location of:

• Fire extinguishers and fire alarm pulls

• Phones

• All exits

• First Aid Kits

• Eye wash stations and/or safety showers

• The address of the building and your room number

Be prepared for emergencies

Sign up for UBC ALERT: Update your cell phone number in SIS/HRMS records to allow the University to send you text messages from UBC’s emergency text message notification system. Learn more emergency.ubc.ca/ubcalert

Be prepared: Visit emergency.ubc.ca/procedures/earthquake/for resources on being prepared before, during and after an earthquake.

Follow the official UBC news channels – ubc.ca and @UBCnews

Emergency Situations

• The UBC Campus Security has developed several protocols to cover emergency situations. The most recent versions can always be found on their sites:

➪ www.security.ubc.ca

➪ www.emergency.ubc.ca

• Emergency Contact Numbers• Fire, Ambulance, Police: 911

• Campus Security: 604.822.2222

• Campus First Aid: 604.822.4444

• Hazardous Materials Response: 911

• Poison Control Centre: 604.682.5050

Lockdown

• A lockdown is used when it may be more dangerous to evacuate a building than stay inside

A lockdown is intended to secure and protect occupants who are in the proximity of an immediate threat

By controlling entry/exit and movement within a facility, emergency personnel are better able to contain and handle the threat

Lockdown

What do you do?

If you are in a classroom, room or office:

• Secure the door and windows

• Close curtains or blinds where possible.

• Stay away from windows and doors.

• Be seated (situated) below window level.

• Stay low and quiet

• Don’t open the door to anyone unless you are sure they are emergency personnel

• Await instructions or escort from emergency personnel

Emergency situations - Evacuation

• If you hear the evacuation alarm (ringing bells):

• If possible, shut down equipment and secure hazardous materials

• Leave the building immediately, using the predetermined (closest) exits and go to the muster point. Do not run.

• Follow the instructions of the Fire Wardens, Campus Security, Police, Fire or Ambulance when asked to evacuate the building.

• NO ONE shall reenter the building until permission has been given by the Fire Department, Police or Campus Security.

• If you suspect someone was not evacuated or you have any information about the incident that prompted the alarm, report to Emergency Response Personnel.

Emergency Situations – Fire/Evacuation

• Muster point, for CEME and the Rusty Hut is across East Mall outside the Parkade

Emergency Situation - FireWhat to do if you discover a fire

Activate the closest pull alarm

Leave the immediate area & advise others to exit

Attempt to control the fire with available fire equipment – if you are confident and can do so safely!

DO NOT use elevators

Proceed to designated assembly area (muster point)

Call 911

DO NOT re-enter the building

Using a fire extinguisher

Remember the acronym PASS

1. Pull – Pull the pin

2. Aim – Aim nozzle at base of flame

3. Squeeze – Squeeze the handle

4. Sweep – Sweep nozzle across BASE of fire

Note: You must be within 4 to 8 feet of the fire for the fire extinguisher to be effective.

Earthquakes

UBC is located in a high risk zone for earthquakes.

What should you do in an earthquake?

Earthquake – What to do?

Drop* Cover *Hold If you are indoors and you

feel an earthquake starting, stay calm and: Take cover under a sturdy desk or table and hold on

If there are no tables nearby, cover your face and head with your arms and crouch in an inside corner or interior wall

Earthquakes

If you are in a classroom or lecture theatre – get under the tables or crouch between the seats.

Always cover your head and neck

Hazards

Move away from overhead hazards

- ceiling mounted projectors

-stay away from glass, windows or anything that may fall such as furniture or light fixtures

Earthquake Safety

Stay inside until the shaking stops and it is safe to go outside

Most injuries during earthquakes occur when people are hit by falling objects when entering into or exiting from buildings

Count to 60 before attempting to exit. If you feel any aftershocks, count again

Outside During an Earthquake • If you are outside – stay outside

• Do not enter buildings unless you have been advised that they are safe

• Watch for hazards – power lines, trees, fires, gas leaks….

Working alone

• No after hours or weekend access to the labs (“working alone”) is not allowed without permission from the Lab Managers.

• If you need to work alone in a lab or the field, you must fill out a working alone form. Your plan must be approved by the Safety Committee.

• If you are working alone in an office setting, make sure your office door is locked.

• When leaving your office or lab late at night, please make sure you use the SafeWalk program

Bullying and Harassment

• The best possible environment for working, learning and living is one in which respect, civility, diversity, opportunity and inclusion are valued.

• Everyone at the University of British Columbia and the Department of Civil Engineering is expected to conduct themselves in a manner that upholds these principles.

Bullying and Harassment

• Bullying and harassment in the workplace poses a potential risk to the physical and mental health and safety of workers.

• Bullying and harassment is defined by WorkSafeBC:

• “Bullying and harassment includes any inappropriate conduct or comment by a person towards a worker that the person knew or reasonably ought to have known would cause the worker to be humiliated or intimidated but, excludes any reasonable action taken by an employer or supervisor relating to the management and direction of workers or the place of employment.”

Bullying and Harassment

It is important to report offending behaviour whether the offender is a co-worker or your supervisor.

Procedures for reporting can be found at www.bullyingandharassment.ubc.ca

You are required to complete a course on prevention and addressing bullying and harassment register at http://www.hse.ubc.ca/courses/preventing-and-addressing-bullying-harassment

Student Safety Abroad Registry

• Required for students traveling outside of Canada on university activity as per the Student Safety Abroad Policy .

When the tsunami disaster struck Japan in 2011, UBC was able to make contact and assist 84 of its students there within 24 hours of the incident. Where needed, UBC booked and paid for return flights, shipped their goods home, and reimbursed tuition.

When the tsunami disaster struck Japan in 2011, UBC was able to make contact and assist 84 of its students there within 24 hours of the incident. Where needed, UBC booked and paid for return flights, shipped their goods home, and reimbursed tuition.

Student Safety AbroadRegistry

• applies to you if you’re traveling outside of Canada for university activity – this includes conferences, research, volunteering, service learning, varsity sports, and studying abroad.

• Usually, all you will need to do is register your travel details, emergency contacts, and review pre-departure materials to prepare you for a safe journey.

• If you’re traveling to a location with an increased travel warning, you will need to get permission to travel and undertake additional preparation for risks associated with your location.

Civil Engineering Labs

Lab Managers• Scott Jackson – electrical• Harald Schrempp – mechanical• Paula Parkinson - chemical

• Before beginning any work in any of the Civil Engineering Labs you must receive site specific training.

• You are required to follow the laboratory rules at all times. Failure to do so may results in loss of laboratory privileges.

General Lab Safety Rules

• Equipment may be operated by trained personnel

only – NO EXCEPTIONS. • No after hours or weekend access (“working

alone”) is allowed without permission from the Lab Managers.

• Proper plans must be developed and reviewed by your supervisor and the Lab Managers when doing lab work or field work

• All experiments that run unattended must be labelled with the correct form – see the Lab Managers.

• Plan your work to allow for clean up and disposal of samples and waste properly

Preparing for Research

• Before you start your research assess the hazards and

develop a plan to mitigate the hazards identified.

• Fill out a Project Proposal Form ( if you don’t, no one in the

shop will do any work for you).

• If you are working alone, you must have a work alone plan

• If you are doing field word, you must have a safety plan

A Safety Plan is Required for Field Work

Develop procedures for your field work. Use WorkSafe BC guidelines and regulations to help avoid a serious accident. Your safety plan must be approved by the Lab Managers.

Mitigating Hazards

• Identify the highest risks and:

1. Eliminate them – Most effective solution

2. Substitute lower risk items

3. Engineer solutions to the risk

4. Put procedures in place

5. Specify Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) – Necessary, but least effective solution

Carry out a risk assessment of your task with others (Technical Work Request).

Hazard Mitigation

You can eliminate tripping hazards by simply cleaning up

Hazard Mitigation

An example of substitution is to use a water based paint instead of a solvent based paint.

An engineered solution – a fume hood

Following a specific procedure – such as a start up sequence might make a task safer.

Eye protection, suitable gloves, safety boots, ear plugs are examples of personal

protective equipment that you may be required to use in our labs.

A fume hood (engineered solution) is preferred over a respirator (PPE)

Closed toe shoes are required in all the labs

Safety glasses are required in all labs

Questions????

See UBC Risk Management Services http://riskmanagement.ubc.ca/

See WorkSafe BCwww.worksafebc.com

Ask Paula Parkinson, 604 822-4397parkin@civil.ubc.ca