September 2017 Lighthouse

September 2017 Lighthouse

September 30, 2017

Lighthouse is our employee-driven safety process. It's behavior-based with the goal of reducing risks and removing barriers to safety.
Lighthouse � making your workplace safer.

During an observation, employees were using a forklift to raise up part of a backhoe while they took apart the backhoe's engine. It was noted that this put the employees at risk for a Line of Fire* injury -- the backhoe could become unsteady and fall on them. They were also at risk for a Communication* injury due to the noise from the forklift making it difficult for the employees to hear one another during the work.

When the observer and employee talked about it during the feedback part of the observation, it became clear that a rolling gantry would be a safer way to perform this kind of work. A gantry is a moveable framework that lets you hoist heavy items safely and easily. There are fixed gantries over two bays in the garage, but a portable gantry will allow work to be done in different locations.

The rolling gantry was purchased and is now in service. It allows work to be done on heavy equipment in a different bay, or another area of the shop, or outside of the shop in the parking lot. Different pieces of equipment can be serviced with it — from changing out blades on Ditch Witches, to working on trucks, and other heavy machinery. With this new piece of equipment, the Lighthouse observation helped to remove a barrier and will help our employees work safer.

*Line of Fire and Communication are two of the behaviors on our CBI list — the Critical Behavior Inventory used during observations. These are the specific behaviors observers look for during observations. This list, along with definitions, were developed by reviewing GUC incidents, so this list is OURS, it's customized for GUC. The CBI list is what makes it possible for any observer to observe any worker at GUC, regardless of what department they work in, or the kind of work they do. This is because we are looking at behaviors, not checking off a list of rules. You can translate this to your family life as well. That's one reason Lighthouse works for all of us.

 

Focus on Behavior

Housekeeping/Storage
We've seen an increase of Housekeeping/Storage at risk lately. A messy work area can cause trips and falls, and make work more difficult to accomplish. Here are some tips to keep in mind:

  • Keep work areas clear of debris and loose objects
  • Clean and organize work area before leaving
  • Place equipment, tools, supplies, and materials so you avoid
  • creating clutter or obstructions to work area