September/October 2016
ISRI’s annual Safety Stand-Down Day featured hands-on learning and safety inspections.
On June 15, dozens of ReMA member companies shut down their operations for at least an hour in the name of safety.
More than 60 companies representing 105 facilities and 2,200 employees, including temporary workers and contractors, participated in the third annual ReMA Safety Stand-Down Day. ReMA asked member companies to pause or shut down operations for at least an hour per shift to focus on safety awareness or provide safety training. It asked member companies to create their own events to discuss safety topics that matter most to them, offering a variety of online safety resources to assist them. Companies got creative with the day’s activities by doing facility walk-throughs to identify potential hazards, CPR training, and other hands-on events. Mobile equipment safety was a big focus this year, says Terry Cirone, ISRI’s vice president of safety. Shine Bros. Corp. (Spencer, Iowa), for example, asked everyone at the facility to sit in the cab of different pieces of heavy equipment to see blind spots for themselves.
ISRI started the stand-down day in 2014 to respond to the high numbers of injuries and deaths in the industry. This year, participants who filled out an online form with details of their safety activities that day received a certificate of recognition. The next Safety Stand-Down Day is June 14, 2017. Visit www.isrisafety.org.