New NIOSH video on Nail Gun Safety

The NIOSH Small Business Assistance Program and the NIOSH Office of Construction Safety and Health are pleased to inform you that the videos “Know Your Nailer: Nail Gun Safety” (long and short versions, both in English and Spanish) are now available on YouTube. The videos are also available on the NIOSH website at: http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/construction/  and http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/nailgun/default.html .

Nail guns are used every day on many construction jobs—especially in residential construction. They boost productivity but also cause tens of thousands of painful injuries each year.  These videos provide brief, practical, and straight-to-the-point advice that contractors can use to prevent nail gun injuries on their worksites. The videos were developed based on numerous publications and information products resulting from NIOSH-funded studies, which are listed on the topic page in the link above.  

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The Effects of Alcohol - Tool Box Talks

Download the full article.

The purpose of this toolbox talk is to provide some basic information and to increase the level of awareness to focus on this as a potential safety issue on the job. This will primarily address issues of “the morning after” affect.

EFFECTS OF ALCOHOL:
The above information briefly summarizes some of the some of the effects of a person that is hung over. Direct effects of alcohol vary with the individuals. In general, a person will excrete approximately one alcohol drink per hour. Consider the following:
An employee is out until 1:00 a.m. and has consumed 12 or more beers. They show up to work at 7:00 a.m. This employee is likely to have at least six alcohol drinks in his system at the time of starting the work. At this rate, the employee will start work intoxicated, eventually drift into a hangover and will probably be working in a very dangerous state during most of the workday.

ISSUES OF A HANGOVER
All employees should be aware of the condition their crew reports to work in. Specifically, employees that start work and are hung over from use of alcohol or drugs from the night before should be watched very closely. The following are some points to consider:
• A person with a hangover may have lower levels of alcohol in their system and may be “legally sober”.
• Any levels of alcohol in the system can affect the central nervous system, which will affect JUDGMENT and MOTOR SKILLS. (Judgment and Motor Skills are critical components of working safely on a construction site.

HANGOVER EFFECTS
Employees that are hung over are impaired from low sugar levels, dehydration and may still be legally intoxicated.
Symptoms / Effects:
• Impaired judgment
• Decreased motor skills
• Potential for dizzy spells, etc.
Employees no longer under the influence of alcohol but still feeling hung over still have an effect:
Symptoms / Effects:
• Impaired judgment
• Decreased motor skills
• Dizziness
• Increased potential to lose consciousness

Bottom Line:
Employees that come to work with a hangover may become injured or injure others and should be asked to stop work and possibly sent home. Keep a close eye on your crew. Production is important, but employees that are under the effect of alcohol or hangovers are a serious safety issue that may wind up a tragedy.

This information is provided by Assurance Agency
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Medical and First Aid for your job site.

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First aid supplies and other medical services must be available at your jobsite. The minimum OSHA requirements are:

·             Medical personnel must be available for advice on occupational health matters.

·             Prior to the start of a project, provisions must be made for prompt medical attention in case of serious injury.

·             An infirmary, clinic, hospital, or physician must be nearby, or someone trained in first aid must be available at the worksite.

·             First aid supplies must be easy to get to.

·             Having available means to transport an injured person to a physician or hospital.

·             If 911 service is not available, the posting of emergency numbers for physicians, hospitals, and ambulances.

On-site medical treatment—The construction rules for medical services and first aid say that prior to starting a project, provisions must be made for prompt medical attention in case of serious injury. This means that when an injury or illness occurs, maximum response time is fifteen minutes. This is currently recognized by OSHA as appropriate for most cases.

However, conditions at each workplace must be looked at when the first aid program is developed. This is to ensure that fifteen minutes is adequate to meet all needs. Where a medical facility is near the workplace, OSHA rules require your employer to ensure the following:

·             In areas where accidents resulting in suffocation, severe bleeding or other life threatening injury or illness can be expected, a three to four minute response time is required.

·             In other circumstances, for instance where a life-threatening injury is an unlikely outcome of an accident, a longer response time of up to fifteen minutes is acceptable.

·             If you work in areas where emergency transportation is not available, your company must provide acceptable transportation. If arrangements cannot be made to provide emergency medical service within an appropriate time frame, then a trained first aid person must be available for each shift.

Eyewash/drenching stations—Where you may be exposed to injurious corrosive materials, suitable eyewash/drenching stations must be available at your jobsite.

You need to review your company’s Emergency Action Plan for first aid and medical services. It should outline everything you need to know to get help during a medical emergency.

This information is provided by: Assurance Agency

2016 RCEC/HBAGC Golf Outing

Thursday, May 26, 2016
The Highlands of Elgin
875 Sports Way, Elgin

9 am registration
10 am shotgun start

Golf - $155 per person
Dinner - $55 per person

Sponsorship Opportunities
Download the list of sponsorships available.
Download the registration form.

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Blueprint reading class

Blueprint for Success - Class
Don’t let your lack of knowledge interpreting blueprints prevent you from getting ahead in your job! The Residential Home Builders Alliance is pleased to offer blueprint reading classes for anyone who needs to understand blueprints in their daily work. This course is ideal for contractors and sales personnel. [READ MORE]

Thursday, May 5 and May 12, 5 - 8 pm
Assurance Agency1750 E. Golf Road
Floor 2
Schaumburg

RCEC/RHBA Members $60
Non Member $75

Call today and reserve your spot
630-512-0552

Hard Hats - tool box talks

Every year, thousand of construction workers suffer head injuries ranging from minor cuts to concussions to even death.  Most of these types of injures would have been prevented had employees worn the proper head protection consisting of a hard hat.  The following are safety rules to follow for hard hat usage:
•    Hard hats are required to be worn AT ALL TIMES.
•    Head injuries on a construction site may result from several areas
•    Tools or material being dropped from above
•    Low overhead clearance
•    Hard Hats should not be altered or have any holes drilled or cut into them for ventilation
•    Hard hats should be fitted tightly on your head.  Wearing a baseball cap underneath a hard hat will cause the hard hat not to fit snug on your head, thus reducing it’s effectiveness
•    The suspension system of the hard hat absorbs the impact of a falling object.

Inspect your hard hat for any damage.  Never use a hard hat that has visible damage to the outer shell or to the suspension.

The following excuses are not acceptable reasons for not wearing your HARD HAT:
“It keep’s falling off”  - adjust the suspension to fit snuggly and this wont happen.
“I get a headache from wearing it”  - You’ll have a REAL BIG HEADACHE that may last for days if a falling object lands on your head!!!
“There’s nothing above be but the sky” – True, but at some point you may have to be in an area in which there is overhead work.  Having it on your head at all times will eliminate your forgetting to go and grab your Hard Hat.


This information is provided by: Assurance Agency

Are You Prepared to Pay? TIPS FOR STAYING COMPLIANT

Residential Home Builders Alliance Assuance Agency SPEAKERS: Mark Hogan, Regional Director, Pentegra Retirement Services & Victoria Wolfman, Regional Sales Director, TASC Are You Prepared to Pay? TIPS FOR STAYING COMPLIANT The Residential Home Builders Alliance invites you to join us for an educational discussion on two of the largest challenges that will cost contractors if not prepared: employee retirement plans and Affordable Care Act (ACA) compliance. The State of Illinois is requiring employers with more than 25 employees to provide retirement plans as a benefit. Additionally, the ACA is here to stay and constantly evolving—employers must ensure they adjust with it. Mark Hogan of Pentegra Retirement Services and Victoria Wolfman of TASC will lead the sessions. At the conclusion, participants will be able to: »Identify steps for becoming or remaining compliant »Establish stability, administration and measurement periods »Understand the consequences of noncompliance »Recognize future costs trends LOCATION Assurance 1750 E. Golf Road, 2 Seminar Center, Schaumburg, IL 60173 TIME Seminar: 8:30 - 11:30 a.m. COST $15 for Members / $20 for Non-Members

Register Online for this event Register by Phone for this event: 630-512-0552 Download the Flyer