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Time to Purchase the Safe?
By Mike Hyland
Executive Director, NEPPA
I was told once that if you want to keep darks secrets from the world, buy a safe. Lawsuits, divorces, arrests, etc. – buy a safe, put the documents in there, and the truth will never need to see the light of day. But add the letters T and Y to that monstrous metal clad safe and you have ‘safety’.
The definition for the word “Safety” in the Oxford Dictionary reads: “Safety is the condition of being protected from or unlikely to cause danger, risk, or injury.” Sounds about right.
But these are only words – not actions.
I started in the utility industry in 1983 and while learning the ropes in a generating plant, I quickly learned that folks like to ‘talk up’ safety – but many times it’s just that – talk. They handed me a cute sticker and told me to put on my hard hat. The sticker read, “Safety First”. How cool! I was excited about the emphasis on safety, as I was a bit nervous on my first day on the job. The #6 oil plant was old, vintage 1905, and the promotion of safety by my employer provided a glimmer of comfort.
But, as days turned into weeks, I saw employees walking around, on hot days in the plant, without that same hard hat on their heads, or without wearing protective eyeglasses while working on the old pneumatic metering and control systems. At each juncture along that 6-month stint, I would receive memos about the importance of safety. I’d have to watch old black and white safety videos, and we would meet every morning in the generating house shanty to receive our safety message of the day. Again…. it was just words. Gospel to some, a comic book to others.
Thus, my introduction to the term “Safety” was somewhat jaded in these early years, and I would have long conversations about my concerns and observations with my father. He was an old Westinghouse turbine gang man, and he told me that safety was like integrity – it’s what you do when no one is watching that counts. Safety matters, and don’t let others tell you different. These were very memorable words for me, but then again, they were just words.
Some intelligent people say it takes decades to change a culture. For safety, we in the utility industry must not have all received the same memo. Safety advocacy for the electric utility employee has been around for a long time, more than a century in fact. The National Bureau of Standard Circular 49 was produced in 1914 – Safety Rules to be Observed in the Operation and Maintenance of Electrical Equipment and Lines. This ultimately morphed into the National Electrical Safety Code, commonly known as the ‘Code’ or the ‘NESC’. I’m proud to say that I was Chair of that document for both the 2012 and 2017 Editions. Did my work and advocacy save a lineworker, protect a grunt, or allow a general foreman to retire with all appendages intact? I don’t know, but I hope my time mattered.
To say I’m frustrated, that safety is still not priority #1 at all utilities, would be a polite way to express my feelings. Rather – I’m ticked. The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration was created in 1970. For many of the utility employees that travel through the halls of NEPPA’s lineworker apprentice program, OSHA had already been in play for over 30 years before they were even born. Now that these same ‘kids’ are enrolled in the NEPPA line school, and work at their NEPPA utility, we (collectively) have been given over a 50-year head start to keep them safe and teach them properly.
Hmmm, so where are we failing? Well, when I was at APPA I had the opportunity to travel around the United States and spend time with the different associations. Since I oversaw areas such as reliability, security, and efficiency, I was asked to attend many conferences where I would present to the audience. I came to NEPPA about 3 or 4 times over those years, but regardless of where I went, I tended to end up in safety conversations with the members. While in Minnesota, I chatted with lineworkers about the new fall arrest systems and almost got thrown out of the state. In Missouri, I mentioned my work on FR Clothing systems and ended up with a beer poured over my head. Lock to lock, cradle to cradle, ground to ground glove rule? Yep – almost lost my teeth on that one.
I think we are all faced with the challenge of lineworkers pushing back on safety programs and leaders struggling to put safety up against a 100-year utility culture. It is seen with the first class lineworkers who haven’t had proper training to instill good safety habits and with the general foreman putting apprentices into hotline situations before they are ready, with the excuse: Why not? That’s the way I was taught! It is felt in the budgets, which limit the purchase of mandatory clothing or equipment with the justification that 'We are small and we don’t have the money for it'
Well, maybe it’s time you looked in the mirror. If that doesn’t work, maybe it’s time you buy the safe.
Cheers
-Mike
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Upcoming Training & Events | |
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Early Bird Rates End July 26th!
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NEPPA's 2024 Annual Conference
August 25 - 28, 2024
Omni Mount Washington Resort
Bretton Woods, NH
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Hoisting 1B-1D
July 23, 2024
8:00 am - 12:00 pm
Hoisting 2A-2C
July 24, 2024
8:00 am - 12:00 pm
NEPPA Training Center
Littleton, MA
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Tactical Tuesday
August 13, 2024
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Held Virtually
Presenter: Tomer Borenstein,
Co-Founder & Chief Technical Officer of BlastPoint
Topic: “How Utilities Use Data & AI to Increase Engagement, Grow Programs,
and Improve Satisfaction”
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Substation II - Session I
September 10 -13, 2024
8:00 am - end time varies
Littleton, MA
Tactical Tuesday (Virtual)
September 10, 2024
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm (EST)
Metering II
September 24 - 26, 2024
8:00 am - 2:30 pm
Littleton, MA
Public Utility Management Program (PUMP) - Virtual Session II
September 24, 2024
8:30 am - 12:00 pm (EST)
Substation II - Session II
October 1 - 4, 2024
8:00 am - end time varies
Littleton, MA
Tactical Tuesday (Virtual)
October 8, 2024
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm (EST)
Hoisting 1B - 1A
October 15, 2024
8:00 am - 12:00 pm
Littleton, MA
Hoisting 2A - 2C
October 16, 2024
8:00 am - 12:00 pm
Littleton, MA
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Crew Leadership
October 16 - 17, 2024
8:00 am - 2:00 pm
Littleton, MA
Substation II - Session III
October 22 - 25, 2024
8:00 am - end time varies
Littleton, MA
Public Utility Management Program (PUMP) - Session II
October 29 - 31, 2024
8:00am - 4:00 pm
Littleton, MA
2024 Energy Connect Conference*
October 2024
TBD
OSHA-10 Plus T&D
November 6 - 7, 2024
8:00 am - 4:00 pm
Littleton, MA
Substation II - Session IV
November 19 - 22, 2024
8:00 am - end time varies
Littleton, MA
Tactical Tuesday (Virtual)
November 12, 2024
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm (EST)
Tactical Tuesday (Virtual)
December 10, 2024
2:00 pm - 3:00 pm (EST)
*Please contact communications@neppa.org to be notified as soon as registration opens.
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Supreme Court: Supreme Court overturns the Chevron doctrine… | |
Regulations: IRS releases labor rules for IRA energy tax credits… | |
Transmission: NERC Unveils Plans for Interregional Transfer Capability Study. | | |
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Mark Barakian, General Manager for Boylston Municipal Light Department won the APPA Larry Hobart Seven Hats Award. This award recognizes managers of small utilities serving fewer than 2,500 meters. These managers have a very small staff and must assume multiple roles.
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Weijun Li, Engineering and Operations Manager for Braintree Electric Light Department won the APPA Harold Kramer-John Preston Personal Service Award. This award recognizes individuals for their service to the American Public Power Association.
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James Ritchie, Marketing and Communications for Braintree Electric Light Department, has been honored with the Communicator of the Year award by the Municipal Electric Association of Massachusetts – Communications & Energy Services (MEAM-CES).
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ENE & MMWEC Named to Energy Transformation Advisory Board | |
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July 2024 -- Ronald C. DeCurzio, Chief Executive Officer of the Massachusetts Municipal Wholesale Electric Company (MMWEC), and John G. Tzimorangas, President & CEO of Energy New England, LLC. (ENE), have both been named to Massachusetts's new Energy Transformation Advisory Board.
The Healey-Driscoll Office of Energy Transformation (OET), created earlier this year, formed the advisory board to provide advice and guidance to the Office as it focuses on affordability, decarbonizing the peak, and transitioning away from the Everett liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal. The advisory board includes a broad range of stakeholders, including utilities, generators, labor, finance, environmental justice advocates, technology providers, building owners, developers and others.
The Office of Energy Transition is charged with affordably, equitably, and responsibly accelerating the gas-to-electric transition and readying the electric grid to meet the state’s climate and clean energy mandates. OET’s first three priority focus areas are transitioning away from the Everett Marine Terminal LNG facility, decarbonizing how we meet peak electric demand, and establishing alternative mechanisms to finance the clean energy transition.
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Wakefield Utility Manager Named to National Electricity Subsector Coordinating Council | |
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Ludlow, MA – July 3, 2024 – Wakefield Municipal Gas and Light Department (WMGLD) General Manager Peter Dion has been named to the national Electricity Subsector Coordinating Council (ESCC).
Dion is one of four public power representatives on the Council, chosen by the American Public Power Association. Other Council members represent the Edison Electric Institute (EEI) and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA). He was appointed to a three-year term.
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TransGard Names William Marks VP of Sales | |
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York, PA - June 12, 2024 — TransGard LLC, a leading provider of animal-deterrent equipment to electrical substations, announced today that William Marks has been promoted to the newly created position of Vice President of Sales.
In this role, Marks will focus on sales team leadership, development and management of sales strategy, revenue growth, and enhancement of customer relationships. He will also continue to serve as TransGard’s Director of Sales, U.S. East, a position he has held since 2022. Marks’s base of operation will continue to be York, Pennsylvania.
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Open Meeting Law Amendments
Take Effect July 1, 2024
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Waterbury Center, VT - June 26, 2024 - On May 30, 2024, Act 133 (S.55) was signed by the Governor and enacts permanent amendments to Vermont's Open Meeting Law, which take effect on July 1, 2024. According to the General Assembly's Act Summary, This act amends the Open Meeting Law (1 V.S.A. §§ 310–314) to authorize some public bodies to meet through electronic means without designating a physical meeting location.
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Keeping You Connected...
Events & Opportunities | | |
A Monster Opportunity to Boost Community Engagement
Kids need heroes now more than ever. With our two child-centered programs, you can bring the heroes of public power to local students. It’s proven, it’s simple, and it’s designed just for kids!
Students will have monster-sized fun as they learn the importance of public power in your community.
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Be TICK Aware
Tick bite prevention is a critical first step to prevent Lyme disease and/or other tick-borne illnesses. Each year, ticks are becoming more active beyond tick season (spring to late summer/fall). They are also expanding their geographical footprint. Lyme disease cases are increasing. You can be bitten by a tick in your own backyard.
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LAST CALL:
Directory Advertising!
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2024 NEPPA Directory of Consumer-Owned Electric Utilities in New England **Advertising Available**
Dear Member, our publishing partner E&M Consulting is in the process of producing our Northeast Public Power Association Directory of Consumer-Owned Electric Utilities in New England.
If you have any interest in advertising in the Directory, you can view the advertising options and sign-up online through https://www.reserveyourad.com/NEPPA/
Don't hesitate to call Ryan at 978-301-6361 if you have any questions. As always, your support of the Northeast Public Power Association is greatly appreciated.
Click here for rate sheet and form
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