October 2019 Safety Topic of the Month: Cold Weather Preparation

As my housing transition is still in transition and consuming all of my "spare time" this will be brief, but I do want to post a friendly reminder about winter preparation, since we have skipped fall here!

The forecast is predicting a long winter season this year, and definitely seems to be holding true! There is no time to lose in making preparations this year, so I am throwing out pointers off the top of my head. Hopefully, you have a plan of action already in place for the season, if so, I would like to know what your plan is. Feel free to comment or contact me directly!

A few points to consider:

Personal/Personnel:

• Thermal underwear
• Thermal outerwear/thermal PPE
• Traction shoes or boots/or "traction cleats"
• knowledge of hypothermia symptoms and first aid procedures 

Workplace:

• Check snow/ice removal tools for proper working order
• Stock/restock ice melting chemicals
• Update/add "slick area" signage
• Establish and apply winter facility maintenance preparation plan, i.e. sprinkler system or irrigation hose blow out, clear snow pile areas/widen isles, etc., identify building repair projects and reorder if necessary.

Equipment:

• Check coolant level/mixture
• Check batteries: cable connections for corrosion/tightness, charging system and battery load test
• If equipped, clean cab heaters as best as possible for dirt and loose debris
• Check tire wear, check tire chains, check brake/park brake operation
• Check safety equipment: strobe lights, work lights, back up alarms etc.

Thank you,

Tom Kassen

tomkassen@mobilemachineryservice.com