OUR SAFETY PARADIGM IN PRACTICE
At Barnhart, safety has always been one of our core values - a longstanding and ongoing commitment to protect people, communities, the environment and our customers. We have always had well-established Compliance Based Safety rules that go beyond industry norms, and we hold our employees strictly accountable. In striving to go above and beyond the norm and reach our goal of Target Zero, we developed a new paradigm called Risk Based Safety, an experience-based practice of analyzing current conditions to make informed safety decisions.
Tactical Self-Preservation (TSP) is the implementation of this paradigm. It’s not just a buzz-phrase, but a detailed, comprehensive plan of action intended to prevent injuries to property or workers at our jobsites. In essence, through TSP: The responsibility is placed on the individual to take initiative BEFORE a task to develop a detailed, specific plan that protects themselves and others from harm. It is the recognition that there are accountable steps that can and should be taken prior to a negative outcome. And, ultimately, that each individual is responsible for that outcome.
You'll see it on our hard hats, cranes or job trailers — the upside down triangle that we call the TSP Shield. It has a special meaning to our workers, and the sight of it creates instant recall. It's there, in plain view, as a continuous reminder to practice Risk Based Safety. As such, we require our workers to be exceedingly proactive, using what they know and what’s around them to determine the best and safest course of action.
Each employee receives rigorous training in the TSP philosophy after joining the Barnhart team, which is then reinforced through regular safety refreshers. This training goes beyond learning rules and regulations to also include risk assessment (thinking), proper actions taken to minimize the risks (mitigation) and teamwork (communication).
Safety is a continuous process that is integrated into our company culture. Starting with a pre-job hazard analysis, Barnhart crews scout the site for potential hazards and implement systems to deal with those hazards. In the performance of the job, any Barnhart employee on a jobsite can stop a job without fear of reprisal. This ensures the safety of our employees and assures our customers that their investment is protected. We then perform a post-job analysis to study ways to achieve even greater excellence.
At Barnhart, the documentation of successful training is the Qualification Card, or Qual-Card. This is Barnhart's stamp of approval that a person is qualified to safely operate a piece of equipment. The individual knows and can identify the hazards and is trained to manage those hazards.
Barnhart has followed the ASME standard B30.5 for years and has the processes, tools and training in place to implement OSHA 29 CFR 1926 Subpart CC: Cranes and Derricks in Construction.
Barnhart has always supported third-party crane operator certification and was one of the founding companies to use NCCCO. All of Barnhart’s crane operators have been NCCCO certified and hold Barnhart Qual-Cards to ensure they know how to safely operate our cranes.
Barnhart has developed a new Signal Person training curriculum, with written and practical tests for all field employees, to meet OSHA’s stringent certification requirements. Journeyman and Master Rigger courses are also key elements. Additionally, Industrial Training International (ITI) has joined Barnhart as a third-party training partner and offers a wide variety of specialized crane and rigging classes.