When Safety Goes To Extra Time

When Safety Goes To Extra Time

I have to admit I was quite impressed when Ben Foster revealed he used his iPod to learn about penalty-taking tactics. To those living in another planet and didn’t know what happened last couple of weekends Manchester United beat Tottenham Hotspurs in the League Cup Final after their game ended scoreless even after extra time. During the penalty Foster brilliantly saved Jamie O’Hara’s kick which helped The Devils to lift the cup, and he later admitted he got some tips by watching recorded Spurs’ penalties from previous games. From his Apple iPod.

I mean, here is a goalkeeper who makes use of technology to beef up his preparation to the game. And also, the fact that he went to such extent in preparing for the penalty shoot-outs. Some teams don’t even practise penalties!

Yes we want to do it right the first time and kill off the game before stoppage time. But sometimes things happen and we have to take it to the extra time or even the dreaded penalty kicks. We prepare our best for the first 90 minutes but do we do the same for the uninvited extra time?

Preparing for our job safety is a bit like preparing for an important football game. Doing it right the first time means to beat the opponents in standard game time. Doing it right the first time means to do the job safely without hurting anyone or releasing any hazardous materials. This is where PREVENTION takes place. Our HAZOP, JSA, LOTO and PTW all come with the single intention in mind – to prevent accidents.

But sometimes things go wrong, for whatever reason. We are forced to face the unwanted. The extra time. The MITIGATION. And believe me, regardless of how much we hate to be there, those who prepare for that situation will have the best chance make it through alive. Sometimes quite literally.

Accidents can happen. Containments leak, procedures fail, people misjudge… HEMP teaches us when barriers fail hazards can get released. And when this happens we just have to face it. We don’t want it to happen, we pray to God it doesn’t happen. But when it DOES happen, how we wish we were a little more prepared for it.

I’m sure football teams do some kind of preparation to extra-time situations: endurance training, substitution plan, shootout practices. How about us, operators of a hazardous installation? Are our emergency facilities in good order? Do we have spares and backups for critical equipment? Do we do emergency drills as planned?

At this point my little Boy Scout motto comes to mind: BE PREPARED.

An iPod and a fire nozzle - who would have thought they have something in common?

Stay Safe!

When No-one Is Watching

When No-one Is Watching

Piper Alpha, 1988

“Safety Is Our Culture”

Nice slogan, but what does it mean? What does it really mean?

Different people define ‘safety culture’ in different ways. UK HSE says it is “the product of the individual and group values, attitudes, competencies and patterns of behaviour that determine the commitment to, and the style and proficiency of, an organization’s health and safety programmes.” Sounds a bit complicated, doesn’t it?

I kind of like the definition used by CCPS better. They say:

“Safety culture is how the organisation behaves when no-one is watching.”

Having the safety culture is our aim and objective. We proudly use it as our slogan, on our banners, on our mail signatures. But are we there yet? How do we behave when no one is watching?

Are we aware and alert of the hazards in the workplace? Do we consciously seek the safest way of doing our work? Do we always adhere to our safety procedures and systems? Do we continually highlight unsafe conditions and practices? In a way, do we have safety IN OUR HEARTS?

Or, do we behave DIFFERENTLY when no-one is watching? We do things one way on our own, but do we do things another way when people are watching, the auditors are coming, other staffs are observing us, a team is investigating something..?

Someone tells us: “I’m going to do a safety observation while you work.” Do we work differently, then? Only then we’d ensure we have all the right PPEs and correct body postures and do what it says on PTW and JSA..?

Someone tells us: “Auditors are coming to our plant.” Do we work differently, then? Only then we’d ensure our plant is in tip-top condition and we do housekeeping, tell our people to behave their best, check that no safety procedures and devices are not bypassed, update our procedures and records..?

By truly answering these, we know where we actually are.

With regard to working culture, Islam teaches a thing when the Prophet Muhammad (s) said: “… that you worship God as if you could see Him, and if you cannot see Him verily He sees you.”  In Islam working is a form of worship, thus when we are working we are expected to do it as if we are being watched. Regardless if someone is actually watching or not, because we believe God IS!

Again ask ourselves: “How do we behave WHEN NO-ONE IS WATCHING?”

Safety is our culture. Or is it?

Saying The Right Things Right

Saying The Right Things Right

Being right is one thing, saying it right is a different one. We often have the right thing to say, but we seldom say the thing right.

When getting a safety message across, it is therefore very important to see the exact way we’re going to say it. Because the wrong word or the wrong intonation can give rise to uneasiness, resentment and worse, rejection.

Imagine these two cases: One superior spots someone under him violating a safety rule, and he, with all authority in his voice and his manner, reprimands his subordinate there and then, in front of the other working colleagues. Another superior, upon discovering the same situation, chooses a more subtle approach. He talks to that subordinate in private, asking him whether there are concerns (and later works to address these) around observing that rule which was broken, and then explaining pleasantly that the rule is for a particular reason, and that reason is likely the one which sees him safe out of the workplace when going home to the family.

For that one thing we’re about to say, there’re 99 ways to say it. The message is the same, but the way it is said can give rise to so many different results. Trust me, only a very few of these are genuine acceptance and support. Because we are communicating to creatures of not just logic, but also of emotions and feelings.

Consider this something I saw in Florida:

It does not reek of pompous authority, but it does get the message across. Despite the soft tone of the placard let me tell you, no one dared parking there (for the week I was there at least).

Well in a land where Disney and Snow White is, the ‘magic’ might be true you know…

Dangerous Rashes

Dangerous Rashes

These are among the symptoms of a dengue fever:

• A sudden strong fever
• Red rashes on the skin
• Pain in the muscles, joints, eyeballs and headaches
• Bleeding at the abdomen, nose and mouth

Pay particular attention to these, especially the rashes, See the doctor at once if you have them.

We’ll have a Dengue Awareness Session this morning at 10 at Parameswara. There’s even a quiz with prizes. See you there!

You don't want to wait until your rashes develop to this case, which is too late

Oh My Creative Head!

Oh My Creative Head!

It’s time to get those creative minds working! Or rather, your kids’ creative minds.

If your kids have been decorating walls of your house with their weird scribblings only they understand, then it is time to put those masterpieces on paper. Let them draw and colour it out. It can be of anything, as long as it is related to Health, Safety or Environment. At home, at work, on the road, anywhere…

Prizes are awaiting (rumours are that the prizes will be given in a special ceremony, somewhere outside of PPM!). There’s no entry fee, even the drawing paper is provided.

We have received some responses already. We like this one in particular, but unfortunately it had to be disqualified. Firstly because it is done on computer, and secondly it is too graphical and gruesome.

It is entitled: MY FATHER WHO DOESN’T WEAR SAFETY HELMETS.

For your viewing pleasure (but be forwarned: the image is too bloody it’s not suitable for younger age or those with heart problem):

So, put those creative heads to use (and don’t forget to protect them with safety helmets).

The Precious Two

The Precious Two

I don’t know if you went to the launching event of PPMSB Road Safety Campaign last week, but those who did told me they had a good time with the presentations and demonstration. Some even learnt that not all men in uniform with heavy moustaches are mean, but could actually be funny!

Them Polis also told us their Kaunter Saman was quite a hit with the visitors. I’m not sure whether this is good news or otherwise, but it was definitely worth their time coming here.

Driving pointer this time: The 2-second rule.

Ever looked up your rearview mirror and saw someone driving closely behind? Hundreds of times I reckon. Some follow so closely I suspect they want to see what brand of boxed tissue paper I put at the back. Some follow even more closely I suspect they need to check whether the sweets I keep in my car have reached their expiry date. Or do some people just derive an abnormal sort of pleasure by tailgating others?

Always keep a distance from the vehicle in front. No, the distance is not 2 mm or 20 cm. Not even 2 m, because it depends on the speed at which you move so spatial distance is not appropriate as a fixed guideline. A good guideline is stated in time and not in distance. Your physics teacher (who taught you about the tyre pressure before) should have told you that Time = Distance / Speed, so the faster you go and the longer the distance needed for safe braking, the time stays the same.

A good guideline is a minimum of 2 (two, dua, er, ni, erende, ithnaan, loro…) seconds. Just TWO SECONDS. It sounds small and easy but unbelievably many simply fail to meet this requirement. I had once personally seen a pile-up of 8 cars in LDP, I’m quite sure it could have been avoided had they all adhered to the 2-second rule.

So the next time you see someone following too fast too close, think: “Poor guy, he’s SO busy he can’t even wait for two seconds.”

Climb In And Belt Up

Climb In And Belt Up

Once in a while my 2-year old daughter tries to be smart and refuses to sit in her child seat at the back, especially when her Ibu or her Tok opens the door for her. Her usual cute excuse would be wanting to sit with her mother in front. And my action would be to turn back from my seat and give her the stern look that says, “We’re not going anywhere until you sit there and belt up.”‘ To which then she would climb her seat obediently and allow us to strap her in.

Yes in the long run we would like them to understand that the seat belt (as with other personal safety devices) is ultimately for their own safety. But do we want to wait until they grow up and understand this before getting them strapped in?

Because it is their lives we are talking about, of our loved ones. Around town and taman and kampung we often see riders with their safety helmets on, but not their children at the back. Why? Are their lives less important than ours are?

Of course, I’m writing this assuming all of us readers are grownups. Who wear seat belts all the time. Right? RIGHT?

Tomorrow there will be a Road Safety Campaign: Presentations, dialogue sessions, exhibitions, sales, demonstrations… And of course, freebies! What will our event be without freebies?

And… we’ll also be having a counter for paying traffic summonses (kaunter saman trafik). For those with outstanding tickets, be a good citizen this time and go say hi to the men in uniform.

And Stay Safe!

Red And Loud

Red And Loud

Chinese New Year celebration in Chinatown, London

“Legend has it that in ancient China, Nian was a man-devouring predator beast that could infiltrate houses silently. The Chinese soon learned that Nian was sensitive to loud noises and the color red, and they scared it away with explosions, fireworks and the liberal use of color red domestically. These customs led to the first New Year celebrations.“

This is an excerpt from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (if you don’t have anything good to do with the Internet, this is one of the informative sites you can go to). Now, that explains why the Chinese celebrate CNY the way they do.

Hey, this is supposed to be a safety message isn’t it?

OK then:

Drive safely for the long holidays, check your tyre pressure (excessive mandarin oranges in the boot is also a hazard, did you know that?), keep the road clean and tidy (you know where to throw away the orange peels and soft drink cartons we gave you), be safe if you’re playing with firecrackers, and wear the earplugs if they got to above 85 decibels.

Then come back safely, to the launching of the new Permit To Work on 2 Feb 2006.

Keeping The Air In, Simply

Keeping The Air In, Simply

Boy, these things about HEMP here and HEMP there seem to be overhemping overwhelming. Let’s talk about something different, for a while.

Let’s admit it: We like to talk. It’s one of the traits we the friendly Malaccans are known for. In fact the chances are, we like to talk so much we often overlook whether those we talk to GET all what we want to tell them.

The proof is everywhere.

Speeches: After which people say, “Wow, that was quite a speech.” And when you asked them to say three main points from it they would go, “Umm…” with eyes rolling to the ceiling as if hoping for answers from the domestic lizards up there.

Emails: Those mails consisting of very long paragraphs for which after a few seconds of glance you quickly press the DELETE key. Some of these are IMPORTANT info but the way they are presented are just not interesting enough.

Notices and Articles: Especially HSE notice (at last, my point here!). Many times we come across posted safety notices which are wordy and unattractive. Only those with perseverance like a rock (and patience like er, a husband) would read it from start till finish.

My point here is, when communicating something important, keep it SHORT AND SWEET. To the point. Cut the frills. Keep away those “Adalah dengan ini bahawa dengan sesungguhnya…” or “By virtue of the power vested in me it is hereby…”. OK I exaggerate but you get my point.

We are busy people. We want information but we don’t want to be overwhelmed by words.

One refinery I have visited have this concept they call the ‘One Point Lesson Sheet‘. Meaning everywhere they’d post an info sheet with one point. Simple isn’t it? One sheet of paper, a few words, one or two diagrams, ONE POINT.

Another good example of this effective communication is this:

My Civic's tyre pressure placard

It is a placard you should see somewhere on your car. See how simple it is? How few words it has, how clear the diagram is? How EFFECTIVE it is? What matters in the end is, I know what pressure I should keep my tyres at.

People unclear of this concept of effective communication would probably design the placard this way:

“TYRE PRESSURE NOTICE: The car has four tyres, a pair in front and a pair at the rear. Hold on, if you check in your rear boot you should find another one. This is the spare tyre. This is assuming you don’t keep ANOTHER tyre elsewhere in your car, in which case you have more. Now, the air inside a well-inflated tyre has pressure. Well strictly speaking, even a flat tyre has some pressure because that little remaining air still exerts force on the wall of the tyre, your physics teacher should have told you that. Take note that the front tyre pressure should be kept at 230 kPa, which is equivalent to approximately 33 psi. If your physics teacher was any good, he should have told you that there are other units for pressure. There are atm, bar, kg/cm2, mm Hg, N/m2 etc. It is unclear why people use different units and not a single standard. As for the rear tyre…“

The person reading it once through probably wouldn’t even get what the tyre pressure is!

To summarise (I deviate a little from what I preach cause now I have two points):

• Say it short and sweet!
• Maintain good tyre pressure!

Stay Safe!

What Dennis Tells Us…

What Dennis Tells Us…

Ah, it’s HEMP time again!

What is the process (or steps if you like) of HEMP?

1. Identify Hazards

Are People, Environment, Assets or Reputation (= PEAR, remember?) exposed to potential harm?

2. Assess Risks

What are the likeliness and consequences? What is the risk and is it ALARP?

3. Control

Can the cause be limited? What controls are needed? How effective are they?

4. Recover

Can the potential consequences or effects be mitigated? What recovery measures are needed?  Are recovery capabilities suitable and sufficient?

Remember what Dennis The Menace tells us on the safety poster – Every Step Has A Purpose, so don’t miss any!

And Stay Safe!

[ALARP — As Low As Reasonably Practicable]