The following are some examples of the many ways that Hofman can assist you evaluate and upgrade your safety and health program. Hofman prides itself in tailoring its work effort to the needs of individual clients.  A suggested sequence of activities is provided below.

Evaluate Accident and Illness Records

Hofman will review your company's recent records to identify problem areas, types of accidents/illnesses, and apparent causes of work site injury/disease. This would include a review of workers compensation claim information and accident investigation reports.  This review will help prioritize areas needing attention.

Evaluate Programs and Training (Paperwork Review)

Hofman will conduct a review of written or operational programs in place, flag the need for programs that are not in place, and evaluate your company's implementation of such programs. We will review employee involvement, e.g. safety committees, work groups, communication routes. We will evaluate the supervisor's role in implementing required programs including responsibilities, authority, and enforcement. Safety training records will be evaluated. All programs and training will be compared to OSHA requirements, at a minimum, especially as that program/training relates to the accident/illness records discussed above.

Programs that will be evaluated may include:

·       Hazard Communication

·       Emergency Plans

·       Hazard Assessment & PPE Certification

·       Lock-out/Tag-out

·       Respiratory Protection

·       Hearing Conservation

·       Confined Space

·       Electrical Safety

·       Accident Investigation

·       Bloodborne Pathogens

Facility Inspection (Physical/Operational Review)

Hofman will conduct a mock OSHA walk-thru inspection to identify major problems (site hazards) with your physical facility. We will evaluate OSHA compliance concerns with an increased emphasis in areas with apparent injury problems. An evaluation of the applicability of any OSHA-required programs will be made. Facility personnel, e.g. maintenance foreman, safety committee team members, are encouraged to accompany Hofman on this audit in order to immediately begin training workers to identify site hazards and OSHA violations. During this task a preliminary review of operations and behaviors will be conducted. Specific analysis of safe job procedures and more detailed tasks analysis may be recommended. Some of the issues that may be evaluated during the audit include:

·       Fire Exits and Evacuations

·       Walking/Working Surfaces

·       Hazardous Chemicals

·       Ergonomic Concerns

·       Machine Guarding

·       Personal Protective Equipment

·       Dust, Noise, Vapors, Ventilation

·       Material Handling

·       Fire Prevention

·       Housekeeping

·       Forklifts/Mobile Equipment

·       Signs/Warnings

·       Lockout/Tagout of Hazardous Energy

·       Confined Space

·       Behaviors/Operations

·       Electrical Safety

Corrective Action Plan

Information gathered during the tasks above will be used to evaluate the company's programs. Tools such as OSHA's "Safety and Health Program Management Guidelines" and the "Program Evaluation Guide" may be utilized. The company will be provided with a written "Report of Findings" including recommended corrective actions. Recommendations will be grouped by priority. Each area or division, depending on the size of your facility, can be reported separately to facilitate implementation of corrective actions.

Implementation

At your request, Hofman Safety will work with you side-by-side, as an arm of your organization, to assure programs, training, exposure assessments, hazard correction, job safety procedures, ergonomic strategies, employee involvement, and management oversight can be developed, implemented and monitored in a meaningful way. Where on-site expertise is available, Hofman personnel can be used to complement available resources.

The audit report can be used as a road map to guide your company into compliance. Obviously, the main thrust of our collective efforts must remain focused on reducing or eliminating workplace hazards and behaviors that result in injuries and illness and impact the bottom line. Accident, illness, first aid and near-miss statistics can be used to measure our progress/success. However, moving toward an accident free culture should be the ultimate program objective.

Hofman is composed of dedicated, experienced professionals who truly appreciate the opportunity to work with client companies on the enhancement of their safety programs. We stand ready to assist you in whatever way we can.