AIKEN, S.C. - A company recently honored EM's Savannah River Site liquid waste contractor with a safety award that went to just eight organizations worldwide.
Savannah River Remediation (SRR) won the Strategic Safety Associates (SSA) 2016 Project Excellence Merit Award for innovative training and implementation of SSA’s MoveSMART training. SRR uses MoveSMART training modules focusing on strength, control and balance and prevention of sprains, strains, slips, trips and falls.
SRR has collaborated with SSA of Portland, Ore., to equip workers with techniques to avoid injuries since 2010.
SSA has hundreds of customers around the world. Other organizations recognized by SSA for the award include U.S. Steel, Honda Manufacturing of Canada and United Airlines.
MoveSMART founder Robert Pater lauded SRR for its implementation of a mobile slip simulator - a portable laboratory equipped with a video monitor, ceiling support beam and walking surface, that when treated, resembles a sheet of ice. This simulator experience reinforces the balance module techniques, according to SRR Environmental, Safety, & Health (ESH) Director Patricia Allen.
“When going through the mobile slip simulator, employees experienced what it is like when walking on slippery surfaces without falling," Allen said. “After their first trip over the surface, they received instruction on the proper way to walk on such areas. Their second trip was usually much better."
One reason SSA chose SRR for the award was that it developed and implemented an employee safety campaign called Step Up to Safety. It draws from MoveSMART techniques.
“SRR has a mantra that we like to instill in our workforce, and that is ‘Walking is working,’" Allen said. “A staggering number of on-the-job injuries involve slips, trips, or falls while doing simple tasks like walking."
The campaign provides prefabricated steps with handrails where participants learn MoveSMART balance techniques to prevent slip and fall injuries. The SRR ESH programs held several training sessions at SRR facilities and site-wide safety events. Roger Staten, an SRR employee in the ESH Programs organization, led the training sessions.
"The beauty of MoveSMART is the simplicity of the techniques," Staten said. “It is amazing that simple changes in the way we step or the way we grip a handrail can increase our degree of balance and safety. I enjoyed having the opportunity to share those techniques with my co-workers.
Source: U.S. Dept. of Energy, Office of Environmental Management
