Bloodborne Pathogens (BBP) Tool Box Talks

Individuals who are infected with Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) or Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) may not show symptoms and may not know they are infectious. For this reason, all human blood and body fluids should be considered as if infectious, and all precautions should be taken to avoid contact. This simple rule is known as "universal precautions."

In the workplace, bloodborne pathogens (BBP) may be transmitted when blood or other infectious body fluids come in contact with mucous membranes (your eyes, nose, mouth); non-intact skin (due to cuts, abrasions, burns, rashes, paper cuts); or by handling or touching contaminated materials or surfaces. Bloodborne pathogens are also transmitted by "injection" under the skin via an contaminated sharp object puncturing or cutting the skin causing a wound.

Hepatitis B Virus versus Human Immunodeficiency Virus:
- Hepatitis B Virus is more persistent than HIV and is able to survive for at least one week in dried blood on environmental surfaces. However, HIV will not survive for more than a few minutes when exposed to room temperature air, and will usually die within seconds.
- A teaspoon of infected blood may contain over one billion HBV particles, while a teaspoon of infected HIV blood contains about 15 HIV particles.
- Hepatitis B Virus usually has mild symptoms which makes diagnosis difficult. HIV infections usually are not diagnosed for years and symptoms may not appear for many months or years.
- Hepatitis B can be prevented with a vaccine. At the present time there is no preventive vaccine for HIV.
- No cure is presently available for HBV or HIV.

If you administer first aid to an injured person in the workplace and there is a potential for contacting any body fluids, you should adhere to the following "universal precaution" guidelines:
- Wear impervious gloves when there is a chance of exposure to blood or body fluids.
- Wear a face shield to protect your entire face, and safety goggles to provide the most complete eye protection.
- Use resuscitation devices when performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
- Report all BBP exposures, or potential exposures to your supervisor immediately.
- Immediately wash your hands and affected areas with soap and warm water.
- Flush your eyes, nose or other mucous membrane areas with water, if exposed.
- Wash down areas which body fluids may have been contacted with the use of a mild solution of household water and bleach (10:1).

This information is provided by: Assurance Agency

Lead Exposure Overview - TBT

Lead exposure can threaten you if you perform activities like abrasive blasting, sanding, scraping, cutting, burning, welding, and painting during repair, reconstruction, dismantling, and demolition work. If you are not properly protected, your chances of exposing yourself to lead poisoning are high.

What are the hazards?
A short-term high-dose exposure could result in a brain disorder escalating to seizures, coma or even death. Long-term low-level exposure can decrease reaction time, cause nervous system damage, kidney disease, reproductive impairment, or death.
When absorbed into the body in certain doses, lead is a toxic substance. Lead is absorbed when breathing or eating, and through the skin when in certain forms. OSHA limits the concentration of lead in work area air to 50 micrograms per cubic meter for an 8-hour workday. This is the permissible exposure limit (PEL).

What must my employer do?
If lead is present at your worksite in any quantity, your company must determine whether OSHA’s action level for workers has been reached/exceeded or not. You will be notified of the results.
If exposure is above the PEL, your company must try to minimize exposure with controls like:
Using HEPA vacuums

• Distancing employees from abrasive blasting operations 
• Using chemical removal instead of hand scraping
• Replacing lead-based painted building components
• Brushing/rolling paint instead of spraying
• Substituting other coatings for lead-based coatings.

What should I do?
You should use the following good work practices to help protect yourself when working with lead:
 Use the correct, clean respirator.
* Keep the worksite clean. Use only a vacuum with a HEPA filter or wet cleaning methods when removing lead dust. Never use compressed air for cleaning.
* Eat, drink, or smoke in areas outside the worksite. Keep all lunch boxes and coffee cups away from the work area. Use a separate lunchroom.
* Wash your hands and face before eating, drinking, smoking, or applying cosmetics.
* Use protective clothing. Store street clothes separately from work clothes. Never wear contaminated clothes home.
* Shower and change into clean clothes, including shoes, before leaving the worksite so that no lead contamination is carried home.

Respirators — Respirators are used with engineering controls and work practices. They are put on and removed outside the lead area. Fit testing guarantees a tight seal.

Signs — If exposure exceeds the PEL, you’ll see the following message posted: WARNING, LEAD WORK AREA, POISON, NO SMOKING OR EATING

This information is provided by: Assurance Agency

Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs)

Overview
Nearly 350,000 people die of sudden cardiac arrest each year. Currently, the chances of surviving sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) without the aid of an automatic external defibrillator (AED) are one in twenty.

However, with an AED, chances of survival improve to one in three. The use of AEDs could save 100,000 livesper year!

What is SCA?
The heart normally has a rhythmic beat which causes the blood to move in a consistent, predictable way. When someone has an SCA event, the heart begins to pump irregularly and ineffectively. This is called ventricular fibrillation (VF). VF is not to be confused with the heart attack where blood flow to the heart muscle is blocked. With VF, the blood stops circulating adequately, breathing stops, and eventually the victim will die.

Another SCA event is ventricular tachycardia (VT), when the heart muscles start to “quiver” instead of working together to push blood through the system.

CPR alone does not replace defibrillation in an SCA incident. CPR can only assist the victim for a short time until medical help arrives. However, medical assistance can be many minutes away. According to the American Heart Association, the chances of survival decrease 10 percent with each passing minute that the heart beat is not returned to normal. Very few people have survived SCA after 10 minutes with no medical treatment.

Unfortunately, we don’t know why SCAs occur, nor how to prevent them. We do know, however, how to fix them if they occur—AEDs.

What is an AED?
You’ve seen full-sized defibrillators on television. When the doctor shouts “Clear” and shocks the victim, they are using a defibrillator. The AED works the same—it shocks the heart back into a normal rhythm to restore a pulse.

Manufacturers have developed lighter, smaller, battery-operated, computer-controlled models which nearly anyone can use.

Signs and symptoms of SCA
Symptoms of SCA are very sudden and dramatic. Typically, the victim will collapse, and show no sign of a pulse. At this point, emergency medical help must be summoned, and the AED used.

The victim’s chest is bared, all visible jewelry or medicine patches are removed, and the electrode pads are attached.

This information is provided by: Assurance Agency

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Windy Conditions and Construction

Windy conditions are a fact of life in this area during many times of the year. The goal is to maintain safety and production while dealing with this issue. Sometimes it is just too windy to work. A collapsed wall, employee injury or other related incident will cost far more than any production gains that can be made in high-wind conditions.

Wall Bracing:
How much bracing is needed? Watching the weather report is a good plan to take. A sunny day can turn into near-tornado conditions by the next day. There is no formula for proper bracing. However, experience is the primary method. Be conservative and brace assuming strong overnight wind.
- The future weather should always be a concern that is monitored.
- Some crews have made California Corner braces to increase the breaking strength of the brace.
- The point of brace contact on the floor needs to be strong. A brace nailed into the flooring needs to be nailed through a floor joist as well.
- The point of brace contact on the wall should not be damaged or split wood. Damaged lumber will not likely hold a substantial wind load without failure.

Standing Walls:
A plan needs to be established when placing walls with regard to wind. (The goal is to take precautionary measures to avoid an incident rather than reacting to a wall tip-over.)
- Make certain the appropriate man-power is available.
- Wall braces may need to be placed prior to standing the wall during windy conditions.
- The bottom of the wall may need to be strapped even on 8 foot 2x4 walls if the winds dictate.
- Determine if it is too windy to lift the walls. This may be your best decision of the day.

Bracing Roof Trusses:
Proper bracing is usually left to the discretion of the roof crew. Keep in mind that a gable truss recently broke a 2 x 4 support causing an injury. The supporting brace may subject to loads that will break a standard 2 x 4 during windy conditions. If it is becoming windy, additional bracing and sway bracing will be needed. When monitoring this on the job, ask the roof crew to support the trusses for substantial wind. Be willing to stop the work.

Roof Sheathing:
Sometimes the best protection is to suspend work. If the work will continue based on the best judgement of the foreman, the following items should be considered:
- Nail down what you place the same day.
- Always walk on the wind-side of the plywood sheet. This way, you can let go of the sheet rather than being blown off the roof. (If it is this windy, you should probably suspend roof work.)
- Storing material on the roof: The top several sheets of plywood need to be secured to prevent them from blowing off the roof. The entire plywood bunk may need to be secured based on wind or anticipated wind.

Other Operations:
- Suspend top plate work if the wind creates an unacceptable hazard.
- Unsecured material stored in a vertical position are at risk at being blown over and should be taken down or secured.
- Ladders should not be stored in a leaning position.
- Caution needs to be paid to cutting operations. Always stand up wind of the cut so the saw dust will not blow in your eyes.

This information was provided by: Assurance Agency

2017 Annual RCEC / HBAGC Golf Outing

Thursday, May 25, 2017
The Highlands of Elgin, 875 Sports Way, Elgin
Registration 9 am / Shotgun Start 10 am 

You can also go to rcecusa.org

Download the Flyer - Includes registration and sponsorships.
If you use the mail in form be sure to send the form to Cathy Kirin.
1333 Burr Ridge Parkway, Suite 200, Burr Ridge, IL 60527

Register and pay online - Sponsorships only.

Register and pay online for golfers.
Register and pay for Dinner Only.

Golfers: $155 per person-Check or Cash
$160 per person-Credit Card
Dinner only: $55 per person-Check or Cash
$60 per person-Credit Card

Sponsorship Opportunities:

• $5,000 Platinum Sponsor
• $2,000 Gold Sponsor
• $750 Hole-in-One Sponsor
• $750 Beverage Cart Sponsor - Sold Out
• $700 Foursome Photos
• $500  Closest to Pin (Men/Women)
• $500  Longest Drive (Men/Women)

• $500 Lunch Sponsor
• $500 19th Hole Sponsor
• $400 Bloody Mary Sponsor
• $200 Contest Hole Sponsor
• $175 Hole Sign Sponsor

Fire Extinguishers - On the job Tool Box Talks

Armed with the right type of fire extinguisher, a person can often extinguish or contain a fire before it becomes a major blaze. But to effectively fight a fire, an individual must be prepared with the right type of extinguisher, have it readily available, and know how to use it properly. Failure to be properly prepared to extinguish a fire not only reduces the chances of containing the blaze, but may also place the individual in an extremely hazardous situation.

If you lack the tools or the skills to fight a fire, no matter how small, get out of the building, call your local fire department and wait for them to arrive.

FIRE EXTINGUISHERS
There are several types of fire extinguishers available, but the best type is a multipurpose "ABC" type extinguisher. ABC type extinguishers generally use ammonium phosphate as the active chemical to extinguish a fire and are capable of putting out most common fires.
Extinguishers are rated for the type of fire they are made to extinguish.
- A - Ordinary combustible materials such as wood, paper, hay, etc.
- B - Flammable liquids such as gas, oil, grease and other petroleum products.
- C - Electrical fires.

As this listing shows, an ABC type extinguisher is capable of extinguishing most fires. When pulling out a generator or using other flammable materials or liquids, make sure there is a fire extinguisher readily available. Knows where your Fire Extinguisher is located and make certain that it is fully charged. A dead fire extinguisher is useless. Visually inspect the Fire Extinguisher daily to for proper charge.

To Operate a Fire Extinguisher:
1. Take extinguisher from mounting bracket.
2. Remove locking pin, ring, clip, level, etc. Get into a crouching position on the upwind side of the fire.
3. Point extinguisher nozzle at base of fire and squeeze the lever or handle.
4. Discharge using a sweeping motion from side to side at the base of the fire.

This information is provided by: Assurance Agency

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Flammable Liquids, on the job tool box talks

They’re called flammable liquids, but it’s not the liquid that you need to worry about—it’s the vapor that begins to form as soon as the container is opened. This vapor can explode at the first spark from a tool, a match, simple friction, static electricity or even high temperatures. Most flammable liquids are volatile, that is, they evaporate quickly and reach a concentration in the air that could lead to an explosion. Flammable vapors are especially dangerous because you can’t see them, and often you can’t smell them. Solvents, cleaning fluids, acetone, alcohol and fuels are some of the flammable liquids you may use on the job.

Working Safely With Flammable Liquids

- Control the three potential hazards: temperature, concentration of vapor and ignition sources.
- Read the safety data sheet (SDS) for each liquid you use so you’ll know its flash point as well as its upper and lower explosive limits—the range in which vapors are at the right concentration to explode if they’re ignited.
- Follow your employer’s flammable liquids safety policy.
- Always wear the correct, properly fitted personal protective equipment.
- Ventilate the area to keep vapor concentration down.
- Know which chemicals, such as oxidizers, increase the fire dangers of flammables.
- Know the location of the correct fire extinguisher to use in a flammables fire.
- Never smoke in areas with flammable liquids.
- Avoid mixing flammables; even small amounts of highly volatile liquids can lower the flash point of the mixture to dangerous levels.
- Check with your supervisor for instruction on how to dispose of flammable liquids.
- Store flammable-soaked rags and other waste materials in tightly covered, specially designated containers.
- Never pour flammable liquids down drains.
- Keep flammables away from welding, cutting and grinding operations.
- Be cautious with empty drums that have contained flammable liquids.
- Never do repair work or welding on an empty flammables drum without getting clearance first.
- Make sure that areas below where you’re working are ventilated or sealed off to prevent the vapors from flowing down into them.
- Special spark-proof switches and fixtures should be installed in areas where flammable liquids are used.

Storing Flammable Liquids

- Keep flammable-liquid containers tightly covered, and store away from other chemicals and ignition sources in well ventilated, temperature-controlled areas.
- Storage areas for flammables should be equipped with non-sparking electrical systems and heat sources.
- Store flammables separately from other chemicals, especially reactives such as oxidizers, in well-ventilated, temperature controlled areas.
- Make sure flammables are stored in authorized containers and are correctly and clearly labeled for flammability. Liquids with a flash point of 80° F or less must be marked with a red label.
- Make certain containers are fireproof and have vapor screens and vapor-tight caps.
- Attach grounding wires to flammable storage containers to prevent static electricity buildup.
- Before transferring flammable liquids from a drum to a container, be sure to connect the container to the drum with a bonding wire before pouring the liquid, since the friction of pouring can ignite the vapors.

This information is provided by: Assurance Agency