safety hazard

The 3 biggest safety hazards in the lumber industry

Author: BLR

Logging remains one of the most dangerous industries in the United States. Federal statistics were used by the publication USA Today to rank the most dangerous private-industry jobs in America. The fourth-highest job fatality rate was reported for logging workers, who have led the national rankings in some years. The 2021 death rate was 13 times higher than the typical American job, and the nonfatal injury rate ranked 191st. The hazards carry over from the forest to the lumber yard, where employees routinely operate various types of saws and other hazardous machinery.  

We asked Jennifer Rudy, corporate safety manager for Swanson Group, a forest products company based in southern Oregon, what three safety hazards keep her up at night and what she’s done to address them.  

1. Forklifts 

Forklifts are a common site at Swanson Group, and Rudy has good reason to be concerned about them. Forklifts or industrial trucks cause about 96,000 injuries each year in the United States alone, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Of those, more than a third—about 34,900—are serious injuries, and 85 are fatalities.  OSHA requires all employees to undergo specific training before operating a forklift, and fines can be as high as $10,000.  That’s a lot of worker training to manage. One of the easiest ways to keep track of who has had forklift training is by storing records online with a training management software system. 

2. Lockout/Tagout 

In a lumber mill, there’s hazardous equipment at every turn. There are machines that process the logs by stripping away the bark, round saws to cut them in half and sawmills to break them into squares.  There are also transfer chains and kickers to move the logs along, which are also dangerous. Rudy realized it wasn’t enough to train workers just once on the various types of equipment, so each work is trained at every machine center once a year. Swanson Group also has a color-coated and number lockout/tagout program. They also use the “buddy system” where employees are required to not only review the procedures for using unfamiliar equipment, but also have hands-on training under supervision. Jennifer stated, “Our policy is that they have to read the job hazard analysis before they start a new job. But if you’ve never done the job, nothing replaces spending time working alongside someone with more experience.” 

3. Trips and falls 

Working at heights is part of the routine for many Swanson employees. Although some have been working there 10 years or more, they frequently rotate jobs to learn new skills, Rudy said. That means on any given day, there may be several employees working in an unfamiliar area. Even seasoned veterans need reminders of the proper anchor points for their fall protection harnesses and other safety elements they may miss.  That’s why in addition to reviewing JHAs like they would before using new equipment, employees who are working in a new area are paired with someone who has more experience in that location.  “The buddy system takes a lot more time, but it’s really worth it,” Rudy said. “We’re giving them the fair amount of time they need to learn the job.”

Personal protective equipment (PPE) to the rescue

Wearing the right personal protective equipment, such as hard hats and safety goggles, is a basic responsibility of each worker. But with so many employees spread across the state, Rudy can’t watch every worker at all times. That’s why she relies on her supervisors and conducts rigorous audits. 

Using a safety software system for the past three years has helped Rudy manage the risks most common to her industry. It has also allowed her to track incidents and near-misses and take proactive steps to avoid them. A versatile and robust EHS management system ensures EHS professionals can seamlessly interweave into their companies’ approaches to sustainability and corporate responsibility. BLR offers the most comprehensive Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS) management tools on the market that helps you move the needle in your organization and allows you to invest in what really matters: your people. For more information, schedule a consultation here.