Aegion Coating Services LLC provides corrosion protection for structures and facilities around the world. The company’s Corrpro subsidiary has a heat management campaign that provides heat illness prevention training and weekly bulletins on heat management topics relevant to the company’s scope of work. Workers use the OSHA-NIOSH Heat Safety Tool app to monitor the heat index along with a company custom-built app to report and evaluate heat exposures and responses. This technology is combined with supervisors’ participation in weekly and monthly audits that directly support and improve summer safety plans. The program has resulted in two full years without any heat-related incidents among Corrpro’s 1,200 employees.

Precision Castparts Corp. is a metal foundry in Groton, Conn. During the summer, outdoor temperatures and humidity combined with ovens that reach 1,500-2,000°F put workers at greater risk for heat illness. All employees are educated about the warning signs and symptoms of heat-related illnesses, as well as the immediate actions to take until trained on-site first aid responders and/or EMS arrive. When the heat index reaches an action level for employees performing strenuous work, increased water intake is mandated, and electrolyte replacement fluids are provided. Additionally, these workers can go to a designated Heat Stress Recovery Area during the mandatory rest cycle. To minimize the effect on production, qualified employees from other departments can be brought in to replace the primary workers while they are resting.

Schnetz Landscape Inc. in San Diego emphasizes the importance of personal protective equipment to shield its workers from the sun in addition to the fundamentals of water, rest and shade. Neck visors and head wraps made of treated fabrics block UV rays, wick away sweat, and stay cold when wet. These provide workers with relief from the heat by keeping their heads and necks cool.

Source: OSHA