Safety Week: Makeshifts, Fall Hazards and Electricity are Areas to Watch

During a 45-year career, a construction worker has a 1-in-200 chance of being fatally injured on the job, according to Safety+Health magazine. This can be reversed to a degree, and organizations have a key role in promoting better construction safety. Reliance Worldwide Corporation (RWC) underscores how some of its plumbing solutions can help make job sites safer for contractors.

RWC prioritizes the safety of both installers and end-users by manufacturing plumbing products that comply with code regulations and go above and beyond to address OSHA requirements and eliminate risks associated with makeshift or traditional installation methods. Here are a few examples of how safety should be prioritized: 

• Removing dangerous makeshift methods during installation. Makeshift methods of pipe supports and no-hub fitting restraints are reliably inconsistent, meaning they could fail and cause a pipe system to fall, causing harm to workers. But using engineered solutions designed to safely support pipes and fittings overhead and in-slab, reduces the risk of injury. 
• Reducing fall hazards. When performing DWV testing, there are often dangerous risks associated with traditional test balls or makeshift methods. Products, such as HoldRite's DWV testing device TestRite, are designed to ensure safe and speedy testing by preventing water spillage and removing the need to climb onto roofs to complete the necessary DWV test. To help eliminate further tripping hazards, products such as HydroFlame firestop sleeves also meet OSHA hole cover requirements with an adjustable safety cap. 
• Helping avoid electrocution. Core drilling also gets the floor wet and exposes workers to electrical hazards from wet power cords on the floor. Engineered products like HydroFlame firestop sleeves are installed even before the concrete pour, which eliminates the need for core drilling.