TPC Sept issue - 2nd half
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L ast month, 3M’s contribution to our safety story was longer than we had room for, but we thought the information was certainly worth sharing. It’s not like you can be safe in August, shoot caution to the wind in Septem- ber and then glide into October with a clear head. Here are a few more comments and observations from 3M safety experts Becky Schumann and Jason Lunn on how to get help choosing products and better yet, how not to overdo it. Just like any other category, safety products, and the approaches to using them, change over time. Q. Is there a middle ground on safety, where a painter is safe enough but not either overdoing it or taking risks? How do you determine what “safe enough” is? A. The employer is responsible for select- ing respiratory pro- tection specific to the hazards present in the workplace. For many contractors, this can be a challenge if they’ve never had any health and safety training. There is a miscon- ception that more protection is always better. More protec- tion typically adds cost, but make sure it actually adds benefit as well. For example, a painter using a half facepiece reusable respirator for rolling or brush- ing paint has many cartridges to choose from, but a cartridge that is NIOSH approved for certain organic vapors is typically what is required. Choosing a multigas cartridge that is NIOSH approved for many different chemical types will cost more money, but doesn’t provide more protection for organic vapors. It offers an equivalent level of protection for organic vapors. The difference is that it also offers protection for other chemical types that most painters likely don’t need when using common paint products. Choosing the most appropri- ate cartridge for the hazards present is cost efficient and will provide a longer cartridge service life. Building off the misconception of “more protection is always better,” it is possible that more protection may actually create risk for the painter. What?! How can that be? Here’s another example to illustrate: a contractor chooses a hearing pro- tector with the highest Noise Reduction Rating (NRR) available, even though the worksite hazard assess- ment doesn’t call for it. His painting crew now has limited situational aware- ness to the safety hazards nearby, such as a moving forklift or falling objects. In other words, they are definitely protect- ing their hearing, but now may not be able to hear the warning signs of certain haz- ards around them. Another example is a painting contrac- tor that chooses the most spray-resistant coverall available, even though it may be overkill for the job, and retains heat because the fabric isn’t breathable. This now creates a potential heat stress hazard for the crew already working in a hot, humid environment. Stay Safer L o 6
Transcript of TPC Sept issue - 2nd half
Last month, 3M’s contribution to our safety story was longer than we had room for, but we thought the information was certainly worth sharing. It’s not like you can be safe in
August, shoot caution to the wind in Septem-ber and then glide into October with a clear head. Here are a few more comments and observations from 3M safety experts Becky Schumann and Jason Lunn on how to get help choosing products and better yet, how not to overdo it. Just like any other category, safety products, and the approaches to using them, change over time.
Q. Is there a middle ground on safety, where a painter is safe enough but not either overdoing it or taking risks? How do you determine what “safe enough” is?
A. The employer is responsible for select-ing respiratory pro-tection specific to the hazards present in the workplace. For many contractors, this can be a challenge if they’ve never had any health and safety training.
There is a miscon-ception that more protection is always better. More protec-tion typically adds cost, but make sure it actually adds benefit as well. For example, a painter using a half facepiece reusable respirator for rolling or brush-ing paint has many cartridges to choose from, but a cartridge that is NIOSH approved for cer ta in organic vapors is typically what is required.
Choos i ng a
multigas cartridge that is NIOSH approved for many different chemical types will cost more money, but doesn’t provide more protection for organic vapors. It
offers an equivalent level of protection for organic vapors. The difference is that it also offers protection for other chemical types that most painters likely don’t need when using common paint products. Choosing the most appropri-ate cartridge for the hazards present is cost efficient and will provide a longer cartridge service life. Building off the misconception of “more
protection is always better,” it is possible that more protection may actually create risk for the painter. What?! How can that be?
Here’s another example to illustrate: a contractor chooses a hearing pro-
tector with the highest Noise Reduction Rating (NRR) available, even though the worksite hazard assess-ment doesn’t call for it. His painting crew now has limited situational aware-ness to the safety hazards nearby, such as a moving forklift or falling objects. In other words, they are definitely protect-ing their hearing, but now may not be able to hear the warning signs of certain haz-ards around them. Another example is a painting contrac-tor that chooses the most spray-resistant coverall available, even though it may be overkill for the job, and r e t a i n s h e a t
because the fabric isn’t breathable. This
now creates a potential heat stress hazard for the crew already working in a hot, humid environment.
Stay Safer Longer
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Stay Safer LongerQ. How has 3M’s approach and position on
safe practices and safety products changed in the past years?
A. 3M has been a leader in the personal safety industry for over 40 years. Our focus has been on continu-ally improving the fit and comfort of our Personal Protective Equipment.
With regard to safe practices, we have begun to focus more training and education on the small to medi-um businesses who don’t have the resources to manage health and safety on their own. We have educational content that is written for a broader audience and in formats that are eas-ily digestible in short time frames.
Even the way we deliver content is changing. We now leverage our social media channels—like Insta-gram—to deliver information quickly and directly in order to address cus-tomer pain points. For example, we are currently filming short videos on safety tips, tricks and best prac-tices for products such as hard hats, hearing protection, safety glasses, coveralls, respirators and more. We also use social media channels to publish relevant technical resources like troubleshooting tips, industry news, regulatory updates, product updates, etc.
In addition, our sales reps aren’t just salespeople. They are Safety Subject Matter Experts trained by our Technical Service team of health and safety professionals. When a 3M sales rep visits a customer, it’s like an extension of our Tech Service. We often visit customers to address more complex health and safety issues or to gather valuable customer insights.
Questions? Contact Jason at [email protected] or Becky at [email protected]. See a short video at http://bcove.me/9ov581b3. And be careful turning the page so you don’t get a paper cut. 3mSafety.com TPC
*Reviewer received free product. Users who review a ScotchBlue™ Painter’s Tape product on ScotchBlue.com are eligible to win a prize. © 3M 2015. All rights reserved. 3M, ScotchBlue, Edge-Lock, the BLUE color of the tape and the Plaid Design are trademarks of 3M.
• Features ScotchBlue™ Painter’s Tape Multi-Surface with Advanced Edge-Lock™ Paint Line Protector for super sharp paint lines
• Includes a refillable dispenser with ScotchBlue™ Pre-Taped Painter’s Plastic • Unfolds to help protect against paint spatters and drips • 14-day clean removal
ScotchBlue™ Pre-Taped Painter’s Plastic 24" Loaded Dispenser & Refill
For tips and ideas, watch our video: https://youtu.be/0nNr6MtvNaM
It worked just great, reducing the hassle of taping separate plastic film on the floor and trim. ““TALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUT
EAEAEASEASEA YSYSY.Y”*
SEASEA YSYSYY.YSYSYSEASEASEAEAEA ””*TALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUTTALK ABOUT
– banks59 St. Paul, MN
*Reviewer received free product. Users who review a ScotchBluon ScotchBlue.com are eligible to win a prize.Edge-Lock, the BLUE color of the tape and the Plaid Design are trademarks of 3M.
PRODUCTIONJob# SBLU-15-1664
Round: P1-2Date: 09/02/15
3M uses a road show to share health and safety information.
