Safety Committee Minutes
School of Engineering
2/22/2019
In Attendance: Faisal Aqlan , Glenn Craig, Dave Honard, Phil Jones, Brian Lani, Lucy Lenhardt, Mike Lobaugh, Mario Loreti, Fred Nitterright, Nancy Study, George Walters, Joy Armbruster
Members Absent: Denise Brooks, Rick Coon, Tim Kurzweg, Steve Strom
Mike Lobaugh called the meeting to order at 1:03 pm
Lab Risk Assessment/Activity Report
Each committee member addressed safety concerns, changes in their lab/s.
The following required discussion by the committee:
- Mario asked about 152 Burke (Gaming Lab) and whether the lab should also be “no food, no drink”. Mario will contact Richard Zhao (faculty adviser) to discuss.
- Brian Lani reported that a new piece of equipment was added to 120 AMIC without his knowledge. The committee stressed to all that no equipment is to be added, moved or removed without the knowledge of the Lab Coordinator. Nancy Study suggested that notifying the coordinator should be added to the purchasing process.
- Lucy Lenhardt reported that safety toe caps are needed for the Plastics lab. She believes that the Integrated Safety Plan (ISP) cost sharing with EHS will help to purchase them.
Continuing Business
Unit Specific Plan Training
The committee discussed the easy access document that will be created and added to the front of the USP in the red safety binders in each lab. The document will highlight the contents of the USP and allow a better understanding of the safety hazards and requirements in each lab. Mike Lobaugh will continue to work on a draft of the document and share it with the committee for their review.
The committee will continue to take steps to provide better education of the contents of the USP and its function within the labs. Each year all individuals who teach, work, or conduct research in the labs are expected to read the USP and sign the confirmation page.
Safety Glasses Initiative
The prescription safety glasses initiative is now up and running. Employees who are required to wear safety glasses as part of their employment can purchase safety glasses that are specified by the plan at no cost to the employee. Resolved.
Food and Drinks in Labs
The committee discussed, for clarification, what labs were included in the “no food, no drink” policy. It was determined that all engineering labs and computer labs are included and enforcement it currently in motion. It was suggested that we make new signs that are brighter and more noticeable.
New Business
Annual Lab Self Inspections were completed in January. The committee discussed the signature lines on the form and decided that the PI (lab Coordinator) and safety committee chair/s should sign the forms as well. This will be a change to the form, which currently asks for a signature from the department head.
Burke 119 and 121
Changes have been made to both Burke 119 and 121 labs to change their risk status from medium to low. Resolved.
AMIC 118
The committee discussed the 2 student requirement in AMIC 118. This room is low risk but adjoins with AMIC 119 which is high risk, therefore the access to 119 would need to be removed in order to change the requirement. The concern will be further reviewed.
Mike Lobaugh opened discussion regarding the heat treat ovens in the labs, and whether the lab policy requiring a faculty member to be present if oven temperature exceeds 500 degrees should hold or be changed. The committee discussed and decided that the policy would be changed to eliminate a requirement on temperature and add that extra training and precautions need to be observed for operating ovens. Resolved.
Safety Concerns
No new safety concerns were reported at this meeting.
The meeting concluded at 2:00 pm. The next meeting will be scheduled at the beginning of April.