It’s the end of a successful 2015, and as a Department Manager, I am inclined to sit back and reflect on what my department did well, what we did not do well and on how we can grow the business while continuing to exceed our customers’ expectations.
This type of introspection forces me to look at just what our “business” really is. Sure, we at Pro-Bel inspect and load test roof anchors, roof davits and most other types of fall protection equipment. But what service do we really offer our clients?
Clearly, it is important to have the Federal OSHA-mandated roof anchor/davit inspections conducted, but when I really delve into what we are offering our clients, I find myself settling on peace of mind.
The peace of mind we offer is truly a form of risk management. As a property manager, facility manager, or building owner, you can rest assured that Pro-Bel’s equipment inspection has been completed by competent, honest, and reliable technicians.
Of course this peace of mind is provided if your facility has suitable roof anchors/roof davits which have been designed and engineered for the purpose of which they are being used. What if your facility does not have roof anchors or fall protection? How is Pro-Bel meeting your needs in managing risk for those buildings, and how can we be of service moving forward?
Over the past few weeks, I’ve had some interesting conversations with Marc Lebel, our Founder and CEO, regarding this topic, and it seemed like a natural fit for the first blog of 2016.
Marc and I are working together to see how we can help building owners identify and manage the risk associated not only with workers performing suspended maintenance work on our clients’ buildings, but also with any worker accessing the roof. This ranges from your own staff to HVAC Service Technicians. At any given time, these workers may be exposed to the hazard of a fall of 4’ or greater, and as such, some form of fall protection shall be provided by the controlling employer.
But who is the controlling employer? Is it the owner of the HVAC or window cleaning company, or is it the property management firm or the Board of Directors of the condominium corporation? This question (through Marc’s help) has led me to an interesting document which discusses Federal OSHA’s Multi-Employer Citation Policy.
In this policy, Federal OSHA defines the four types of employers and discusses their responsibilities throughout a project or task. The four types of employers are the Controlling Employer, Creating Employer, Exposing Employer and Correcting Employer.
While I won’t go into detail in this blog, I will advise that throughout 2016, Pro-Bel will assist our clients in determining which category they fall into and how, by identifying this, they can minimize exposure and the risk of civil and criminal liability.
Through a program we are developing, we will identify hazards on a particular project, determine whether existing fall protection is in place, and develop a program to protect workers from injury and control employers’ risk of liability.
We will educate our clients on codes and standards, common rigging practices, and available options to ensure that any recognized hazards are eliminated.
Our goal is not to just provide our clients with roof anchors or roof davits. We want clients with a risk management issue to know there are alternatives and to assist them in developing a plan to minimize the risk that explores all options.
In 2016, Pro-Bel will work with you to explain your liability and exposure when allowing any person on your roof and how to ensure that this access is controlled.
Pro-Bel will be sending out regular updates on this blog throughout 2016, posting data that is both interesting and informative. We look forward to your comments, questions, and concerns regarding fall protection, roof safety, roof anchors, or roof davits.
Yours in safety,
Brent LaPorte
USA Inspections Manager