October 2014 Our Leaders for Year 2014 ~ 2015 Executive Committee Chairman President Vice President Secretary Treasurer Eng. Fadhel A. Ali Mohd. Riaz Shareef Golmari Sampath Reddy Eng. Muath Al Ansari Dinesh Datta Committee Heads Technical Event Publication Govt. Affairs & Students Outreach Membership Training Env. & Health WISE Ritesh Gupta Sunil N. Sadanand Eng. Ahmad Al Lughani Satya N. Yedla Muvvala Ramu Sanjay Jaiswal Jignesh Shah Janet Najare Advisory Committee 1. Mr. Ali Khashwae, Manager (HSE), KNPC 2. Mr. Ahmed A Abbas, Manager (HSE), KOC From Presidents’ Desk.. It gives me immense pleasure to pen down this message for the September 2014 HSE Update of ASSE Kuwait Chapter for the year 2014 ~ 2015. American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) Kuwait Chapter stands for providing professional guidance, trainings, consultancy services and resources to the industrial and social sectors in the region. Towards realizing the ASSE-KC Mission; we have organized OHSAS 18001 & ISO 14001 Lead Auditor Training, Technical Meet on “Incident/ Accident Analysis, Corrective & Preventive Action”, Workshop on “AHA Certified FIRST AID course – Heartsaver® First Aid with Hands only CPR. Many members and non-members benefited out of these programs. An exclusive program for women on the First Aid and CPR is also planned by the Women In Safety Engineering (WISE) Committee of the ASSE Kuwait Chapter As we grow bigger and stronger, I request the companies and well-wishers to join hands and support ASSE Kuwait Chapter’s activities through which, we can reach our common goal of protecting people property and environment. 3. Mr. Salem Al Azmi, Manager (HSE), PIC 4. Mr. Sati S. Al Otaibi, Manager (EHS & FS), JO Wafra Mohammad Riaz Shareef 5. Mr. Ujwal Ritwik, Sr. HSE Specialist, KNPC 6. Mr. Ashok Garlapati, Sr. HSE Specialist, KOC CONTACT DETAILS 7. Mr. N. Vasudevan, Safety Engineer, KNPC P.O. Box 4047, Safat, 13041, Kuwait Tel : +965 22445588 Ext 311 Mob : +965 66846040 Fax: +965 22428148, E-mail : assekuwait@hotmail.com ; Chapter Website: www.assekuwait.org 8. Mr. M.K.S.Mohiuddeen, Senior Safety Engineer, KOC 9. Eng. Ahmad Al Attar, Safety Engineer, KNPC FEATURED ARTICLE SAFE STRATEGIES FOR EXCAVATIONS AROUND UNDERGROUND UTILITIES Nothing halts a construction project faster than the discovery of a gas pipe, electrical line, sewer tile or water pipe that nobody knew was there. If you are lucky, you will recognize the line before any damage is done, or you will quickly determine that it is a short segment of a long-abandoned leg. If you are not so lucky, you may get to see yourself on the evening news. These days, most utilities and property owners do a great job of recording what they put under the ground. However, this has not always been the case. Gas pipes, sewers and water lines from the early days of those technologies were installed with little thought given to the possibility that someone might encounter them decades later. Bigger lines with more capacity may have bypassed utility lines used many years ago, but nobody thought to go back and remove the old ones. Anyone who has ever been involved in the renovation of an old building knows that every day seems to bring the discovery of something that was not in the drawings. However, employers can take steps take to minimize the risk of unexpectedly encountering underground utilities. It takes extra planning in the early stages of the project and some additional investment, but that is a small price to pay when you consider the schedule disruptions such discoveries create – or the cost of repairing damage to a major utility line. PLANNING IS JOB ONE Workplace safety strategies always begin with a plan and for a good reason. When you take time to plan, you have the opportunity to think about all aspects of a project. You can consider the potential hazards and create strategies to avoid them, or you can build contingencies into your plan. Start by trying to obtain all drawings that may have been created for your project’s location. These include the plans for any previous structures, the utility company’s blueprints and drawings for past installations or renovations—anything that may offer clues as to what lies below the surface. Compare the drawings to identify inconsistencies. If one drawing shows a gas main in one area of the site that is not duplicated in another, it may have been missed. If you are not sure the gas main exists, assume it does until your crews prove otherwise. DAILY COORDINATION As the project progresses, include underground utilities in your daily coordination meetings with the excavation contractor. Review the drawings and discuss the strategy for working around the underground sites that have been identified. Develop a hazard analysis for each task that will be performed, and identify measures to protect workers. One general contractor the author worked with required its excavating contractors to follow a prudent practice. Workers would begin by daylighting every utility in the area where they would work, then place a piece of PVC pipe up against the line and backfill it. As a result, crews knew the exact location of the lines and could drop a measuring stick down the PVC pipe to get an exact depth at any time during work. Make sure that the contractor keeps good records of daily activities, including a log of dig numbers. This is important because if a problem with an underground utility line arises, one of the first things investigators will ask for is the dig number. Set limits for how closely excavating equipment can work to the marked line locations, and be sure to keep those markings visible throughout the project. Once underground utility lines have been exposed, take steps to ensure that workers know where the lines are to prevent damage. If you need to trench around the lines, use trench shields to protect the walls of the trenched areas. RESPONDING TO SURPRISES No matter how thoroughly you prepare, someone will inevitably discover an underground utility that was not marked. Ideally, this will occur before the worker manages to cut into it. Stop work immediately and bring in the supervisor or owner’s representative who has access to the site drawings. If you can identify the specific type of line, call the appropriate utility company. If you cannot, bring in representatives from all of the possible companies. Once the type of line has been identified, determine its path. Dig again 3 ft away to see if you encounter it. If so, continue the process until you are able to mark its entire path. If not, you may have encountered a short segment that was abandoned or left over from a previous project. In that case, try to find both ends so you can determine whether you can safely remove the line, then work with the excavating contractor to develop a safe plan for removal. If the line is broken, take steps to protect all workers in the immediate area and follow the emergency action plan. If the broken line is a natural gas line or is otherwise flammable, everyone should evacuate the area. CREATING A NEW RECORD As you proceed through the project, use information from past drawings, the locating services and any additional lines the crews uncover to develop updated drawings for the project owner. While the contract may not require those drawings, they are a valuable resource for future work, and they provide an added value that will always be appreciated. The above abstract is compiled from ASSE Body of Knowledge. Written by Jordan Hollingsworth, CSP, CRIS, CHST, CHSP, is the safety advisor of design and construction at Safety Management Group. He also volunteers on ASSE’s Construction Practice Specialty Advisory Committee. More resources are available at http://www.safetybok.org/ Third Executive Committee Meeting for the term 2014 ~ 2015 American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), Kuwait’s premier voluntary, non-profit making Health, Safety and Environmental organization, strives to provide professional guidance, training, consultancy and resources to the industrial and social sectors in the region. The Third Executive Committee Meeting of American Society of Safety Engineer (ASSE) – Kuwait Chapter was held on 23 September 2014 at Hotel Safir Fintas. The meeting started with the welcome address by the Chapter Actg. Secretary Mr. Dinesh Dutta. In his address; Mr. Fadhel Al-Ali, Chairman - ASSE Kuwait Chapter, advised the Core Committee Members and various committee heads to commence the implementation of the annual Plan established for the Chapter and the Sub-Committees. The Chapter President, Mr. Mohammed Riaz Shareef, informed committee heads to invigorate their activities. He urged the committee head to gear-up their activities with full vigor. The committee reviewed the status updates of annual plans presented by committees. On behalf of the Training Committee Head, Mr. Yousuf informed that a survey was conducted on the training need assessments among the members. He highlighted the excellent post-training feedback obtained from the participants of the recently conducted Lead Auditor (OHSAS 18001 & ISO 14001) training program. The Membership Committee Head Mr. Muvala Ramu updated the membership status, membership renewal status and the membership drive to attract new members. Occupational Health and Environment Committee Head Mr. Jignesh Shah informed that Ozone day was commemorated by the chapter with message and bulletin. A workshop on “Managing Waste” will be scheduled in the upcoming month. Technical Committee Head Mr. Ritesh briefed on the Technical meets which are planned in the forthcoming months. Women in Safety Engineering (WISE) Committee head Mrs. Janet Najare appraised the committee that, the WISE committee has planned for a First Aid Awareness for Housewives on 16th of October. She requested all female members and the spouse of the male members for participation in the said workshop. Outreach committee Head Mr. Satyanarayana briefed about the forthcoming outreach activities including awareness program for the school bus drivers and blood donation campaign in collaboration with the contracting companies. Publications committee Head Mr. Sunil N.Sadanadan briefed about the newsletter, updates on the social networking websites like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn. He informed that a smart phone application is developed for the ASSE Kuwait Chapter and final set up for use is in progress. A HSE discussion forum for members will be available in this application. The Executive committee discussed on selection of heads for the forthcoming of the GCC HSSE Excellence award and the professional development conference. The meeting was concluded with the Vote of Thanks by Chapter Vice President, Mr. Golamari Sampath Reddy, who acclaimed the voluntary efforts of the core committee and the subcommittee members and requested to continue the same efforts for keeping the society activities high. First Aid CPR Training Program Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation commonly known as (CPR) is an emergency procedure performed in an effort to manually preserve intact brain function, until further measures are taken to restore spontaneous blood circulation and breathing in a person who is in cardiac arrest. It is indicated in those who are unresponsive with no breathing or abnormal breathing. ASSE Kuwait Chapter in collaboration with Gulf CPR Training Institute; Affiliated to Kuwait Medical Association Training Center; organized the training program “Heartsaver® First Aid with Hands Only CPR (American Heart Association [AHA] standard)”. The program was organized on 26th September 2014; exclusively for ASSE members; at Kuwait Medical Association Training Center, Jabriya, State of Kuwait. The program; inaugurated by the Chapter Acting Secretary Mr. Dinesh Dutta; was facilitated by Chapter Training Committee Head Mr. Sanjay Jaiswal. Fifteen ASSE Members utilized the opportunity and benefited from the program. Hands-on training on “How to Administer CPR”; was very helpful for the safety professionals in their career during an emergency at their workplaces. The participants; who emerged successful in Assessment; received the AHA certificate & pocket cards. ASSE Kuwait Chapter continues to organize such training in future for the benefit of the community. Details about the training plans are available to the members and community members through email assekuwait@hotmail.com or 66846040. HSE Monthly Quiz (October-14) 1. Accidents are: A. Preventable B. Costly C. Part of life D. Both A and B 2. If I have an accident or injury I should A. Fix what I broke C. Keep working and not worry about it B. Tell my supervisor D. Report it within a week 3. Most accidents are caused by A. Bad weather B. People C. Equipment D. Poor directions 4. I can help prevent accidents by A. Using my own equipment C. Riding in car pools B. Doing only what I am trained to do D. Helping others with their jobs 5. Most slip and fall accidents are caused by A. Rain puddles C. Not watching where you walk B. Things left on floors and walkways D. Both B and C 6. To help prevent accidents, people who use tools must A. B. C. D. Be very careful Not wear glasses Be trained and authorized to use them Not be sleepy Send your quiz answers to: safetyquiz@assekuwait.org Photo of the week.. Dangerous entry to a confined Space Answers of the last month (September) Quiz 1) a 2)c 3) b 4) a 5)b 6)c 7)a 8)b 9)b September Quiz – Correct Answered Members 1. Hussain Shaik 2. Younus Kanoth - Kuwait Oil Company