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07/01/2005
Safety & Education Committee Update
Night Work - Risk vs. Reward
Risk – Chance of something going wrong; The danger that injury, damage, or loss will occur.
As all construction personnel know when at work, risk is inherent. We in the tower industry have become extremely good at managing risk in all situations. Whether on the tower, in a ditch or in transport from the office to the job site, we all make decisions that place ourselves in hazardous scenarios. Some of these scenarios are un-avoidable, but then again some are self imposed.
One instance that has come into play both regionally and nationally is the opportunity to do not only work that involves hazards, but to add onto that, doing it in the dark. Most maintenance work costs the carrier air time. It then is very profitable for them to require work to be done at night when air time is non-revenue producing. The decision then becomes, “Are you willing to assume the risk of sending crews out to work in an environment that is neither ideal nor comfortable for tower work, and if you are willing, how can one limit the risk that our tower hands are putting themselves into?” Obviously, this scenario raises the question whether the reward is worth this risk.
After the decision is made to succumb to night time work, there are some things that can be done to reduce the amount of inherent risk and resultant liability that you are assuming:
1. Conduct a pre-job visit both for safety and for feasibility reasons. Many jobs are not conducive to doing work at night because there are many tasks that take an extensive amount of communication both verbal and visual. The visual communication is hindered, at best, while working in the dark. This communication is more critical for some tasks than others and the pre-job walk will confirm some concerns that would not be known otherwise.
2. Know when to say “No”. In some situations the work will be more hazardous than can be accepted. The customer knows that the work needs to be done. They can and will find a time during the daytime that suits both the climber and the carrier. Decisions that are made with confidence are respected as long as the decision maker attempts to overcome obstacles and does what they can to finish the job as promised.
3. Use artificial lighting in such a way that it is not a detriment to any one worker. Lighting is helpful, but it can be just as blinding as darkness from the wrong angles.
4. Make sure of your medical resources before starting work. Some medical facilities close during the night hours; the research needs to be made prior to start of work so that there is not any extra delay in the event of an emergency.
5. Have a contact outside of the working crew that has access to any paper work or materials that may be needed during the time that work is being done. Night crews need support in the office just as day crews do.
6. Lastly, spend time around the crew members who are working at night. The crews working at night generally do not have the direct supervision that day crews do. These men need to know that someone is there watching and that they are there for them. It is a necessity to get a feel for how they are doing. In most cases the “night guys” sadly get slightly neg-lected because they are not seen very often. This can be rectified by just being present when they arrive at the office and being available to talk to.
These issues are a few that can be helpful in many instances. All of the different situations that can be handled are not only a challenge, but have the opportunity to be enjoyable. Remember that risk is manageable, but with inherent risk insist on much reward. Let all of us proceed cautiously yet fervently for the good of every man involved in our cause.
Ryan Tracy is a member of the NATE Safety & Education Committee and is the Vice President of Legacy Telecommunications, Inc. of Burley, Washington. He can be reached at 253-858-0214 or ryant@legacytowers.com
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