Portland Cement Association's Occupational Health and Safety Committee looks for examples of how the cement industry is making its plants safer places to work. The goals of the Safety Innovation Awards are:

1. To honor innovative practices, programs, and projects throughout the industry.
2. To communicate these ideas to members of the North American cement industry.
3. To raise the profile and importance of safety programs both inside and outside the industry.

Seventy-four entries were judged by members of the committee along with a representative of MSHA and a member of the PCA Board of Directors. Winners in five categories — Quarry, Milling/Grinding, Pyroprocessing, Distribution, and General Facility — received a monetary gift towards a “Celebration for Safety.” These awards are co-sponsored by the Portland Cement Association and the Cement Association of Canada. All entries for the contest since 1997 are available online at www.cement.org

QUARRY

LAFARGE NORTH AMERICA INC.
RAVENA, NEW YORK

Quarry personnel at this location designed a specialty wheel chock for mobile, rubber-tire-equipped drills used on active quarry faces. In the past, a driver would back the drill to a specific location along the quarry face, and once positioned, engage the parking brake. The practice created concern that parking brake failure or accidental release, particularly if occurring when the driver was out of the rig, might result in the drill unit rolling backward over the face. The risk seemed greater for certain areas of the quarry, where the active benches on which the units would park actually sloped toward the quarry's open face. A suggestion was made to require specially designed wheel chocks when setting up the drills on the face. For ease of use, the new wheel chock has an extension bar supporting a reflective sign that allows the driller to position the chock at the desired location. Once the chock is correctly positioned, the driver can back up against it, providing security against roll-backs in addition to the parking brake. This wheel chock also has a flashing orange LED light affixed to a reflective sign on the chock that, used in conjunction with an orange cone, helps guide the driver while backing up the rig. This enhancement mitigates the safety risk of the parking brake failing. The specialty wheel chock cost was approximately $200.

MILLING/GRINDING

ARIZONA PORTLAND CEMENT COMPANY
RILLITO, ARIZONA

This facility designed a hoist cylinder jig to aid in the removal and replacement of hydraulic cylinders on haul trucks. The hoist cylinder jig is attached to a Hyster 155 forklift tire handler. When a cylinder is loaded onto the new jig, the forklift is then used to align the cylinder into proper position on the haul truck. Using the new jig, the forklift operator can rotate the cylinder or move it left to right, or up and down, to adjust the position of the cylinder. This cylinder jig eliminates the need for employees to work immediately alongside the loaded haul truck and cuts the time in half from manually removing and installing the cylinders. The cost was minimal, iron was available in-house, and fabrication took about four hours.

MILLING/GRINDING

BUZZI UNICEM USA INC.
GREENCASTLE, INDIANA

This facility challenged itself to find a safer way for silo tenders to change the position of fuller valves. Silo tenders typically had to climb a ladder, sometimes having to straddle the pipe to gain proper access to the valves. To meet this challenge, the maintenance supervisor created a valve-repositioning handle that allows the silo tenders to make the valve changes from the ground. Beside eliminating the use of a ladder, the new valve handle also provides better leverage. The valve handle costs approximately $500 and reduces the risk of possible injury.

PYROPROCESSING

GCC OF AMERICA, INC.
RAPID CITY, SOUTH DAKOTA

This facility improved its safety guards with a fastening method that reduces fabrication and installation time, and provides for easy removal for future maintenance. This simple design uses existing handrails as a support and “spring” clamps that snap the new mesh guard onto the existing handrails. This snap-on design makes installation and removal easy, while still providing enough holding force to prevent any displacement during operation of the guarded equipment. Since these guards are so easy to work with, there is less likelihood leaving them off during extended maintenance, and they are more easily reinstalled after completion of maintenance. This design works well for retrofits, but could also be readily adapted for new full protection guard installation. For $1,500 per kiln pier, this facility's safety guard has been satisfactorily reviewed by MSHA's local field office and is simple to move without employee injury or strain.

PYROPROCESSING

MITSUBISHI CEMENT CORPORATION
LUCERNE VALLEY, CALIFORNIA

Kiln access doors, which aid in brick and coating removal, also can create a fall hazard when removed to allow for cleaning. Personnel have to enter the kiln several times during the cleaning process. If a door is physically removed, then the opening represents a potential fall hazard unless it is temporarily covered or the kiln is rotated so the opening cannot be accessed. Neither of these options makes for efficient cleaning. To address this concern, this facility installed temporary safety doors on its rotary kilns. The safety doors are mounted externally to the shell of the kiln. The doors are spring loaded and equipped with a mechanical latch so they are self-closing. The springs meet state and federal code requirements for load and can therefore act as a secondary safety to the latch. The doors are operated from the outside by plant personnel using a lightweight aluminum pole and held open using a come-along. The safety door eliminates the open-hole hazard inside the kiln during cleaning. The safety door insures easy access for the removal of spent brick and coating from the kiln, but can be closed easily, providing a safe cover for the personnel working inside the kiln. The safety door is Patent Pending.

GENERAL FACILITY

GCC OF AMERICA, INC.
TIJERAS, NEW MEXICO

This facility redesigned its battery-charging cart to minimize the risk of improper connection of charging cables. The maintenance department focused on two improvements: an on-and-off switch for the power source installed directly on the cart, and a clear marking system allowing the user to properly configure for a 12- or 24-volt system. The new charging cart has just one charging cable and two power switches; one switch for the 12-volt power and another switch for the 24-volt. A dedicated 24-volt plug was also installed to allow for direct connection of 24-volt systems that have this adapter. To complete the project, both power switches were clearly marked showing which switch controls which power source. Having the ability to connect the cables to the batteries before the power is turned on minimizes the risk of sparks or accidental grounding to other metal sources. Completion of the project was done in two days time and cost less than $50 to complete.

GENERAL FACILITY

CEMEX
DAVENPORT, CALIFORNIA

This operation has designed a means to provide safer access to electrical connections behind cabinet panels, in electrical substations and MCC rooms, by eliminating the need to open the panels. Until recently, preventative maintenance on electrical panels was accomplished by removing the panel covers (doors) and using an infrared camera to scan the connectors, looking for heat build-up. To be effective, the infrared scan had to be done while the panel was hot (energized). This was cumbersome, labor intensive, and required extreme care to prevent safety risks. By installing infrared ports in the cabinets, a single employee can now scan the panel without having to remove the door, thus risking possible exposure to energized circuits. The new ports allow the facility to undertake preventative maintenance using fewer people, in less time but in just as effective a manner, and also reduces possible safety concerns. The cost per port was $285 plus labor.

DISTRIBUTION

LAFARGE NORTH AMERICA INC.
TOLEDO, OHIO

The Truck Spotter 2000 is a device that helps truck drivers position their trailers in the proper location to use the fall protection units installed for trailer loading operations. It was observed that some drivers were having difficulty using the Carbis fall-protection units at the loading facilities. One reason was that drivers were having trouble spotting the trailer so that the desired hatch was underneath the fall protection cage. The truck mirrors did not allow them to see the cage in relation to the hatch. Plant personnel came up with the idea to build a device that would signal the driver to stop precisely when the desired hatch was positioned under the cage. The new Truck Spotter 2000 uses a photo eye to light an LED to signal the driver to stop. A piece of reflective tape is placed on the trailer under the desired hatch, which sets off the signal. The Truck Spotter 2000 is environmentally friendly because it is powered by a battery maintained by a solar panel. Initially four prototype units were tested at two locations with great success, and a decision was made to install these units at the rest of the terminals and plants in the division. A total of 54 units were built at a cost of approximately $350 each.