Dusty Roach
Greetings and Salutations! Another day in petroleum paradise! Normally I pick a certain topic and attempt to drive it home and put it in the garage. However this month I’m covering numerous topics to mix it up a bit. I hope you enjoy the ride!
Let me start of by saying that for me safety is a passion, but it didn’t start out that way. I was assigned the position because I had a propensity to accomplish goals and I knew operations. There are some inherent hazards in becoming a safety person. Most accidents happen shortly before quitting time, on a Friday. The invitations to parties seem to fade away quickly. However, for all of that, safety is an often a gratifying profession, at least when you meet your goals! Along the way, it requires a great deal of study, trial, and error.
It is also nice when you’ve been working with some hard cases (people with a disdain for safety in general), trying to earn their trust, and there comes a day they call out conditions that could be safer! When it’s unsolicited and they point out a hazard that has been missed and needs attention, it is a feel-good moment for both management and the employees—especially when the hazard has been mitigated!
A win-win situation.
A phrase that is one of my least favorites is “All safety is overkill.” The very term “overkill” aggravates me. I am not aware of any accident in the oil patch where an accident was caused by too much safety done properly. Overkill definition: excessive use, treatment, or action; too much of something. So we are supposed to reduce the safety to the point where it’s only a little dangerous? Hmm. Interesting concept… A dangerous concept.
Personally speaking, the only aspect of safety as a profession that I am not fond of the administrative aspect. There is usually a copious amount of paperwork in the safety industry. My wife reminds me often that I’m administratively challenged in my organizational skills. To which I respond, no I am not! IF I could find my last review that I had, I would show you! Besides, I am now up to 10 words a minute on my typing skills.
To which she retorts, “Did you mean 10 minutes per word?”
Environmental issues are about to become a hot point. I see where the governmental entities have already started implementing the current Administration’s agendas. Our industry does not, as a whole, subscribe to the urgency. The government doesn’t mind using a lesser quality imported oil, thus contributing to a greater amount of pollutants in the atmosphere. The hypocrisy is mind boggling. Meanwhile, when it comes to domestic oil, for us to embrace environmental improvements will require passing the increased costs to the consumers. American politicians do enjoy making it more complicated.
We as safety professionals are constantly attempting to be proactive on Driving Safety.
Somehow the regions with the worst drivers—those regions that have high rates of fatal car accidents involving speeding, drunk driving, distracted driving, and breaking traffic laws—are Southeast New Mexico and West Texas. I know that we, in Texas and New Mexico, always strive to be number one, but this is not anything to be proud of. I’m particularly intrigued by the fact that as smart as we think we are, we cannot manage something so simple as turn signals. If you challenge these numbers, try driving on I-20 or Hwy 285 on weekdays. All you need to do is join West Texas Oilfield Traffic on Facebook and you would be surprised of the numbers on daily entries. It is mind boggling.
Fall Protection is the #1 most frequently issued OSHA violation. Fall protection has held that title for over ten years. It appears that we have a learning curve of an I-beam.
Handrails, safety harnesses, ladder safety, lifting people up on a pallet 10 feet up, and multi-level platforms—goodness gracious we need improvement.
The Top Ten Indicators of an Accident About to Happen!
- We’ve always done it this way.
- Y’all get back.
- Nobody is around!
- Let me show you a short cut.
- Watch this!
- I’ve done it this way a hundred times before.
- That takes too long.
- I’m not sure if there is pressure.
- I’m in a hurry!
- I’m pretty sure that it will work.
The good news is that safety as a profession has a need of talented safety professionals. You need someone you can trust and who is innovative. My generation is slowly bowing out. I’m optimistic of the talent coming up, before the oil and gas industry is pushed out. My bet is that we will still be around for quite some time.
The safety professionals have to learn that the bottom line is the bottom line. There is not a finer place to be than our industry. As a profession, there will always be an opportunity for safety.
It isn’t how many hits you have in baseball that wins games. It’s how many times you reach home safely!
-Dusty
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Dusty Roach is a safety professional based in Midland. He is also a public speaker on subjects of leadership and safety, and he maintains a personal website at dustyroach.com.