As with all good health and safety programs, your health and safety program should include training. Training programs should include task training, equipment operation training, hazard identification training, training in the proper use/care of personal protective equipment (PPE) and refresher training as required, needed or when there is a change in a procedure.
Hazards associated with other components of the installation of fence may also include pinch points, chemical exposure, noise exposure, inhalation hazard, splinters, eye injury, impact trauma, trip/slip/fall, overhead electrical contact, underground utility contact and entanglement. Other hazards associated with working outside may be heat/cold exposure, dehydration, bites, sunburn and contact dermatitis.
Besides wearing long sleeved shirt and long legged pants, installers should be wearing, as a minimum, PPE consisting of eye protection, steel-toed boots, and gloves. In addition, hearing protection and a hard hat may be required based on the tasks. The type and level of protection for the PPE should be determined based on potential exposure to the individual hazards. For example for sharp edges of steel posts or splinters in untreated or CCA treated wooden posts, leather gloves may be adequate for protection from cuts or splinters in the hands. For creosote treated wooden posts, butyl rubber gloves provide protection from chemical exposure to the skin of the hands.
Wear proper gloves when driving posts or handling wire and other wood or treated materials. For wire, untreated wood, and CCA treated materials, use leather gloves. For Creosote, use butyl rubber gloves. When handling chemicals such as creosote, breakthrough time (the time it takes for the chemical to permeate the fabric) is the key factor when choosing protective material. Butyl rubber is the only material offering 8-hour protection for creosote.
Maintain and update a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) catalog as necessary. Keep copies both at the office and on the job site. These documents help identify chemicals hazards and may aid in their control and mitigation. They are needed at the hospital in the event of a chemical exposure and help the caregivers treat the exposure properly.
When handling creosote, use a sun block or other approved skin barrier on any exposed skin. Cover as much of the body as possible with protective clothing. Creosote is a photo-sensitizer. That means it reacts with light causing sunburn like symptoms and similar long-term effects. Creosote exposure should be zero.
We noted in the “Post Driver Safety” section that noise generated during post driving operations is a combination of continuous noise (equipment running) and impulse noise (impact of the post driver on the post). Power equipment such as chain saws, drills, jackhammers and air compressors may also generate continuous in excess of 85dBA and impulse noise. Impulse noise exposure should never exceed 140dBA. Hearing protection afforded by the earplugs or muffs is determined by the noise reduction rating (NRR) on the packaging. This is the number of “A” weighted decibels (dBA) of noise that are consistently blocked from reaching the auditory nerves, when the plugs or muffs are worn properly. Therefore, if continuous noise is 100dBA and the potential exposure is 8 hours, hearing protection should be selected, which has a NRR that can reduce noise below 85dBA, which is the action level set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). If you are a company performing work and generated noise, when information indicates that any employee's exposure may equal or exceed an 8-hour time-weighted average of 85 decibels, you must have a Hearing Conservation Program in place. You can obtain the information for the requirements of this program by obtaining a copy of 29CFR1910.95 or 29CFR1926.52 or going to OSHA’s web site: Occupational noise exposure - 1910.95 or Occupational noise exposure. - 1926.52 or search their entire standards section for the appropriate standards associated with your job task.
A level of protection from a particular hazard is the main criteria in PPE selection but user comfort is a very important consideration when purchasing PPE. Comfort is not just based on the correct size. The user must be able to wear the PPE for the time period necessary to provide the desired protection. One size does not fit all and different models of the same type of PPE may feel different to different users. By providing PPE designed for the correct protection level from a variety of manufacturers or fitting before purchase, users will work more comfortably for longer periods of time in their PPE.
OSHA regulations have the force of law with severe fines and possible imprisonment, not to mention that the possibility of serious injury and death may result from ignoring or failure of an employer or employee to comply with these Standards. It is prudent practice in business to follow or even exceed the minimum requirements of the Code. Individuals, who are performing post-driving operations privately, are encouraged to follow these same health and safety practices.