Radio Free Tenacity

As the pioneer in tool tethering, Ergodyne has a long history of innovation in the category, and the Squids 3745 Tool Grip and Tether Attachment Point might be their most clever solution to date. Nate Bohmbach, Product Director at Ergodyne and Chair of the Dropped Object Prevention Group at ISEA, joins the pod to give you the scoop.

In this episode, you'll get to know:

• The challenges and pain points of tethering screw and nut drivers
• How end user feedback helped solve those pain points
• How this new tool tethering solution doesn't just improve safety and simplify tool tethering, but actually improve the usability of the tool

Featured Guest:
Nate Bohmbach, Chief Drop Cop

In September of 2021, the US Department of Labor announced enhanced, expanded measures to protect workers from hazards of extreme heat, indoors and out. Those measures included the launch of a rulemaking process to develop a workplace heat standard and deployment of a National Emphasis Program (NEP). The NEP is the agency's first-ever nationwide enforcement measure specifically targeting heat-related hazards and greenlights heat-related inspections on worksites. 

In this episode you'll get to know: 

• What an NEP is and its purpose
• What industries are affected by the NEP
• What compliance officers are looking for on heat-related inspections 
• How cooling PPE fits in to your plan

Featured Guest:

Alsie Nelson, Heat Stress Hotshot, Ergodyne

Making sure eye protection meets and exceeds safety standards like ANSI Z87.1 is table stakes, but that doesn't necessarily mean those safety glasses are ready to take on the realities of the worksite. Ergodyne Product Director Tim Gallant joins the pod to discuss the most important standards in safety specs: the workers'. Through the lens (ha!) of the latest additions to Ergodyne's Safety Glasses + Goggles Series, he takes us through the considerations—big and small—his team puts into developing glasses and goggles that a) get worn and b) stand up to how they're usually treated on the job (hint: not very well).

 In this episode you'll get to know: 

• The newest additions to Ergodyne's Safety Glasses + Goggles Series
• The most important considerations in developing and selecting protective eyewear
• How workers help uncover small details that come up big

Featured Guest:
Tim Gallant, Primary Peeper Protector, Ergodyne

 Slips happen. Like, a lot. And Ergodyne’s recent collaboration with Soles by Michelin looks to make them happen less. Like, a lot less. A few years after debuting the now best-selling TREX 6325 Spikeless Traction Device for winter conditions, Product Director Alsie Nelson's team has launched the TREX 6326 Spikeless Traction Device for oily, greasy and other slippery situations commonly (but not exclusively) found indoors. The new addition to the TREX line has been extensively tested and touted by workers in a diverse array of applications—food processing, wastewater treatment, food and janitorial services, car washes and more.

 In this episode you'll get to know: 

• The benefits of wearing a "sling style" traction device vs. tennis shoes/slip-resistant boots
• How this new solution compares to the rest of the TREX Traction Series
• The severity and cost of slips and falls vs. the simplicity and affordability of traction devices

Featured Guest:
Alsie Nelson, Resident Slips Slayer, Ergodyne

Strapless, brah. Aaron Skemp’s close collaboration with work crews––including some of the world’s biggest airlines––has helped evolve the fit, function and comfort of knee pads lightyears ahead of what many workers are familiar (and frustrated) with. And the newest work crew collabo erases THE number one complaint. These ain't your grandpa's knee pads, folks. 

In this episode you'll get to know:

• How Aaron worked with work crews to eliminate knee protection enemy #1
• How the world of athletics shaped the evolution of this worksite staple
• The ins and outs of the new Proflex 550 Padded Knee Sleeve and 525 Lightweight Knee Sleeve

Featured Guest:
 Aaron Skemp, Resident Knee Protection Prodigy, Ergodyne

Show Highlights
In 2020, dropped objects accounted for over 45,000 injuries, over 200 fatalities, and approximately $315,000,000 in financial costs.

A major step in mitigating this damage was the development of ANSI/ISEA 121-2018 — a standard for design, testing, performance and labeling requirements for tool tethering systems and containers used when working at height. The “dropped objects standard” set best practices in place for dropped and falling objects prevention every safety manager should know but, according to the aforementioned stats, not enough do. Which is why we set out to better understand the industry’s pulse on object-at-heights workplace safety. On this episode of Radio Free Tenacity, safety advocate Cameron Swanson joins us to give his perspective on the data, how far we’ve come and the work that needs to be done to ensure dropped object safety becomes SOP when working at height.

Featured Guest:
Cameron Swanson, VP of EHS and Compliance, Enertech. Enertech is a leader in engineering, technology deployment and construction services for the wireless industry.

Related Articles:
How to Implement a Dropped Objects Prevention Plan
[Industry Survey] What are EHS Professionals Doing to Prevent Dropped Objects?

Overview

After professional football player Korey Stringer died from complications of heat stroke in August of 2001, his wife Kelci teamed with heat stroke expert Douglas Casa, Ph.D., ATC to form the Korey Stringer Institute at the University of Connecticut in April, 2010. The institute has identified four “big ticket” items that, if followed, will almost certainly eliminate HRI's and fatalities on the playing field AND the job site. Margaret Morrissey, Director of KSI Laborer Division joins us to talk about those big ticket items and what the future has in store for heat stress prevention. 

Show highlights:

·     Learn the key components to build your heat stress program around

·     Explore how the world of athletics informs heat illness prevention on the job

·     Uncover the biggest mistake rookie workers make when working in the heat

·     Recognize those most at risk for heat-related illness

·     Identify additional prevention measures when water, rest and shade aren't enough

Featured guest:

Margaret Morrissey, Director of Occupational & Military Safety, Korey Stringer Institute; President, National Heat Safety Coalition

Overview:

The traditional hard hat design actually does what it was designed to do really well, and that’s preventing head injuries from objects striking workers directly—linear impacts. What it doesn’t account for as well are glancing blows or angled impacts that create rotational forces to the brain which can have long lasting, detrimental effect to worker health. 

Olof Rylander, Sr Business Developer of Safety for Mips joins us to discuss how his company is addressing this worksite risk by boosting the protection power of safety helmets with an innovative safety system aimed at reducing rotational motion. 

Show Highlights:

• The current blindspot in hard hat and safety helmet testing
• The difference between angled and direct impacts
• Rotational motion and its long-lasting damage to the brain
• How Mips works to mitigate rotational motion

Featured Guest:

Olof Rylander, Sr. Business Developer of Safety for Mips

Bill Geddings, Sr. Safety Engineer at Zoox, joins the pod! Zoox is an autonomous vehicle company currently headquartered in Foster City, California, founded to make personal transportation safer and cleaner. The company is currently focused on testing on private and public roads as they move towards launching the first Zoox ride-hailing service.

Show highlights:

• The power of continuous improvement
• How next level companies approach safety
• How to leverage safety gear manufacturers as a partner in safety

Featured End User/Guest:

Bill Geddings, Sr. Safety Engineer at Zoox

Overview:

If over a quarter century of America’s Funniest Home Videos has taught us anything, it’s that people fall—a lot. But with falls accounting for over 30,000 deaths in the U.S. each year (the third highest among accidental deaths), it’s not always as funny as Bob Saget, Tom Bergeron, Alfonso Ribiero or *insert dad-joke machine here* make it seem. 

The cost of these accidents is steep—with the average disabling claim costing a hefty $28,000. The good news? The right traction device cost just a few bucks to keep you upright and out of harm's way. But choosing the right one is key. Peter Freeberg, ACS Safety Manager at Minneapolis-St.Paul International Airport, joins us to discuss the challenges of keeping his crews upright in the frozen north. 

Show Highlights:

• How to drive PPE compliance by giving work crews a deeper sense of ownership in the selection process
• How the right ice cleats/traction devices improve safety & productivity 
• How the wrong ice cleats/traction devices can actually cause injuries and equipment damage

Featured End User/Guest:

Peter Freeberg, Operations Service Manager, MSP Int’l Airport 

As Operations Service Manager for Delta Airlines at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, Peter and his team are on the frontline of below-wing operations. Always looking for ways to improve and do the job just plain better, Peter’s team was integral in helping Ergodyne develop the industry’s first true indoor/outdoor spikeless traction device.

Alsie Nelson, Product Director, Ergodyne

Alsie leads the development of products that combat temperature stress, including cooling PPE and winter work gear. Her dedication to mitigating the risk of temperature stress on the job has helped propel Ergodyne into one of the most respected thought leaders in the category.