What you should know about the potential exposures from rug beaters to employees and customers!

True story…a car wash customer elects an option to clean her carpets after she gets her car washed. This particular location offers a self serve carpet cleaner adjacent to the vacuum area. She follows the directions as best as she can. Having never done this before, she gets nervous as she places the rug into the machine and it grabs it more violently than expected. Thinking that it will damage the item, she tries to pull it back out. It drags her to a point where she bends down and at the same time her pony tail flips over. She is inches away from the hair being pulled in with the rug. Fortunately, she pulls away in time but is understandably shaken from the experience. so, even though a potentially major injury has been adverted, her memory of this experience will be what she remembers of this wash.

Over the years, I have done hundreds of carwash surveys. Those locations that use rug beaters as a service rarely have adequate signage warning employees or customers of some of the conditions that could lead to injury. A few ideas are: use caution when:

1. You are wearing loose clothing
2. You are wearing loose jewelry
3. You are wearing ties or scarves
4. If you have not read the operating instructions

Some of these machines have some safety instructions in tiny print on the front. I recommend that a separate sign with large printed lettering be placed above along with the directions on how to use the device.

Remember  it is best to use experienced employees when repairing these machines; the interior parts are often very sharp and with little space to maneuver in, which could cause severe cuts.

If you are looking to add a rug beater to your operations, there are some models that are side fed and would be safer, especially for customers using a self service machine.

What are you doing at your wash to prevent injuries from this equipment?

Carwash Driving Tips

It’s time to remind everyone that customers and employees face a huge risk every day from cars at and around the wash. The following are a few tips that may help mitigate the chances that someone will be injured or worst, killed!

Driver Training 101

Assign Driver Safety Manager

·         Have written Safety Procedures

·         Provide a Designated Driver Job Description

·         Routine Onsite Designated Driver Training

·         Regular Driver Safety Meetings

·         Exterior Wash Customer Driving Safety

·         Regular updates on vehicle technological changes 

Exterior wash customer driving Safety

Keep drying areas left or right of tunnel exit

Visual directional signage is VERY IMPORTANT!

Utilize whenever possible:

·         Stop & Go Lights

·         Directional Arrow

·         Signage directing customer’s to apply BRAKE before shifting and exiting the tunnel

·         Traffic Barriers

·         Train employees on how to use hand signals for guiding vehicles on the conveyor & pointing to instructional signage

·         Employee guiding cars on conveyor should wear reflective gloves

·         Employees walking on the property should  wear reflective vests
(this is particularly important at an express exterior model) 

Full Serve Conveyor Exit area Safety

·         Keep towel drying areas left or right of tunnel exit

·         Establish designated pedestrian waiting areas

·         Establish safe pedestrian patterns 

Utilize the following:

·         Cones

·         Barriers

·         Bollards

·         Sand Barrels

·         Directional signage

·         Caution signs for pedestrian traffic

Moral of the Story

Driving at most washes is hazardous to employees and customers. Where there are vehicles, people walking, and locations that often have a tight turning radius, anything can happen!

Be Prepared.

Washing safely means bigger profits, healthy employees and happy customers! 

Email us what you’re doing or visit us
 at the car wash show in Vegas and tell us in person!!
We’re greeting everyone at booth 443.

2013 Car Wash Industry Announcement

Car Wash safety 101 is thrilled to announce a revolutionary approach to provide a variety of safety products and programs designed for the car wash industry! This exclusive undertaking is the result of a partnership with McNeil and Company, Inc, a leading national program risk management and insurance provider. With the combined power of my 18 years of car wash experience and their program expertise we are proud to present the following:


• Car Wash Safety Blog

• Car Wash E-Learning for OSHA

• Car Wash E-Learning for General Safety

• Car Wash Safety Webinars

• Car Wash Safety and Claims Committee

• Car Wash Safety Survey

• Car Wash Claims Management forms

• Car Wash Loss Prevention forms

• Car Wash OSHA compliance tools

We hope you like our new blog design and will be pleased to know that I will be posting more often.

Over the past several years I have discovered a large void in the safety plans available for many operators. Our intent is to fill that space with the resources necessary to maintain a safe environment for your employees as well as your customers.

My sincere hope is that you will join me in embracing this new opportunity. Not only will it help save you money due to fewer claims, but will help you reach new levels in your service!

Carwash Safety Leads To Higher Profits

You may not be aware that carwashes with low incident rates earn higher profits.  It is a myth that your insurance will pay for all of the costs associated with a claim.  This is known as the 'Iceberg Effect' - those hidden/indirect costs.  The following is an illustration of a simple claim:

Incident - Employee Injury equals direct costs totalling $1,500

Using the formula developed by the National Council on Safety for calculating indirect costs on claims under $3,000:

Direct Costs x 4.5 =  Indirect/Hidden Costs

$1,500   x   4.5  =   $6,750

Then of course we add the hidden costs to our direct costs for a total claim of $8,250.

Here is how that affects your bottom line.  Assuming our wash has $300,000 sales with a $75,000 profit equating to a profit margin of 25%, you would need to generate $33,000 in Net Sales (Gross Sales less overhead/operating costs) to completely cover the total costs of the $1,500 claim.

Just think how many cars you have to wash in a given month to simply cover this 'Iceberg Effect'.

So what are indirect costs?  This is just a small sampling of them:

Lost time spent by supervisors investigating the accident
Lost time by supervisors completing paperwork
Lost time by clerical staff completing and following up on paperwork
Damage to tools and equipment that will need to be replaced or purchased new
Cost of training a new employee replacement
Loss of production and productivity
Loss of business due to damaged public image
Loss of efficiency due to break-up of crew
Failure to promptly service your customers
Lost time by other employees discussing the accident
Loss of productivity due to employee moral

As you read this remember that your competitor may already be aware of this.

A safe wash protects people and profits!

Accident Investigation 101 Part VI - Reporting

An accident investigation is not complete until a report is prepared and submitted to management for further review.  

In our previous blog we discussed how to take the proper information to document an incident at your wash. The next step is using this information to initiate a process to determine why this happened and how to prevent it in the future.

Your company may have a standard form, but if not we have included a sample report below for your convenience.  Regardless of what form is used, the accident report should cover the following four sections:

Background Information

a.       Where and when accident occurred

b.      Who and what were involved

c.       Operating personnel and other witnesses

Account of the Accident

a.      Sequence of events

b.      Extent of damage           

c.       Accident type

Discussion (Analysis of the Accident)

a.       Direct causes (energy sources; hazardous materials)

b.      Indirect causes (unsafe acts or conditions)

c.       Basic causes (management policies; personnel or environmental factors)

Recommendations (to prevent recurrence) for immediate and long range action to remedy:

a.        Basic causes

b.       Indirect causes

c.        Direct causes

 

Download the sample Accident Investigation Report

Accidents 101 Series – Preparing for Accident Investigation

To be prepared to conduct an accident investigation, a kit should be assembled containing the basic tools needed for the investigation.  The following is a list of basic tools every kit should contain.  However, additional safety equipment may be needed depending on the situation being investigated.

• High visibility tape or rope
• Pencils
• Ruler and measuring tape
• Graph paper
• Camera with Film or cell phone with photo capabilities
• Photography log
• Plastic bags and envelopes
• Containers with caps
• Clip board and note paper

In addition, personal protective equipment should be worn if needed while conducting the investigation at the accident scene.

Let us count the ways!

We blogged about chemical safety, OSHA requires it, there have been a flurry of articles recently and it's a hot topic at an upcoming trade show.  So it's obvious that many people in this industry believe this is a message that must be heard.  However, if the message is never implemented it is meaningless. 

Case in point, a carwash manager asked a employee, with only 1.5 months of carwash experience, to transfer a chemical from one barrel to another.  During the process the hose slipped out spilling some of the solution on the employees' sneaker.  Most likely because the employee was unaware of the danger, he did not mention the mishap right away.  As his foot began to bother him he reported it to the manager and was told to go home to remove his shoes and socks.  It was assumed the he would report to work the next day.  By the time he arrived home the burn had progressed so severely he had to be taken to the hospital.  Four months later, after several skin grafts and rehabilitation the employee was able to return to work. 

This is currently an open claim already surpassing $30,000. 

So how does this really impact the owner of the wash?  Let us count the ways!

1. New employees are one of the most costly investments.  Here the employee had to be replaced immediately.
2. Countless hours of paperwork and time with doctors, insurance claim and employee.
3. Significant loss that will be part of the owner's record for three long years when placing his insurance.  This can equate to an increase in premium from 20% - 40%.
4. Four months from a young employee's life not to mention the fact that he will have scarring for his entire life.
5. Negative impact on other personnel with regard to safety issues.

The real kicker......it could have been avoided if there were three basic protocols in place.

1. Proper employee training - including chemicals
2. Proper use of MSDS sheets
3. Procedures to address employee injury/accident

Had the employee been properly trained on the importance to safely handling chemicals and then how vital it would have been to immediately report the accident, and the manager had a procedure to follow, refer to the MSDS sheet for direction and rinsed the employees' foot immediately he may not have been disfigured.

The only way to respond instinctively is to be trained repetitively.  Have procedure, train it and practice, practice, practice it, to make it perfect.  Because when an accident occurs and you are scared, worried or in reactive mode.....you will know what to do, where to go and who can help.

Those of you who are reading this are probably thinking, I know all this, but do you practice it?  And if you do, do your employees?

If you have any suggestions how to ensure chemical safety is properly followed please share with our readers.

Washing safely means bigger profits, healthy employees and happy customers!

Dismemberment at a Car Wash!

At a car wash in mid-west a machine called an industrial centrifuge extractor was being used to dry towels. An employee had his arm pulled from his torso when he reached into the extractor while the internal drum was still spinning. As a result of an inspection conducted after the accident three citations were issued by the Secretary of State. One issue before the Commission alleged that there was a willful violation of an OSHA machine guarding standard. The Secretary imposed a penalty of $28,000 for the violation. So not only do we have a catastrophic injury to an employee but in addition to the insurance payout the wash incurred the following costs; loss of business, loss of a valued employee, cost to retrain a new employee, personnel cost to process the paperwork, loss of productivity due to moral and the $28,000 penalty. In this particular case safeguards were circumvented and proper training was absent.

Another case in point, an employee took a short cut through the tunnel. As he was exiting, the intake vent on the blower sucked the jacket he was carrying up in to the machinery tearing his arm from his shoulder. Although there was a guard it was inadequately designed to prevent this terrible incident.

In both of these cases the outcome was a successful limb reattachment, however, they would never have the full use. With the proper training both incidents could have been avoided altogether. It is imperative that all employees understand the dangers associated with car wash machinery. Repetitive training for both new and existing employees is an absolute if you are to maintain a safe environment.

Train....Train....Train!

"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."

To coin a phrase, Benjamin Franklin's quote tells us that the investment in preventive safety management saves money! The average cost due to theft at many carwashes is $25,000. 80% of that loss is damage to either the building or carwash equipment, not the loss of actual currency.

Most carwashes have a minimum $1,000 deductible which is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes this kind of loss. Consider, an important hidden cost is the decrease in volume due to the communities perception that your location is now unsafe. Finally add to that the increase in premium you will most likely experience on renewal from the insurance company. This incident has now resulted in a large out of pocket direct expense.

There are some very cost effective solutions to minimize these expenses to both you and your insurance company. One example is, for the cost of the average deductible, you can install shock and vibration sensors. These will be very effective if your wash has automated tellers. Many of the newer machines are equipped with these devices pre-installed, however, unfortunately most are not connected when setup. You can also retro fit machines that do not have sensor devices pre-installed. (Check out Safeco Alarms for more information.) If you have this exposure my advice is to at the least wire them to a local alarm. The majority of these types of thefts are spur of the moment looking for an easy target. A local siren or alarm eliminates that scenario. If possible I would also suggest tying it to a central station alarm if you have it. The local alarm prevents the immediate damage to the equipment while the central station will hopefully keep them from coming back at a later time. To help reduce the cost of this installation do your own wiring. Sensor applications could also be applied to change machines, vending machines and vacuums.

Other safety considerations would be; superior lighting, developing a rapport with the local police, video surveillance and plenty of security signage.

In these economic times more and more of these crimes are being committed. Even if you have not been effected by this yet the odds are sooner or later it could happen to you. Don't be a victim.

What really good things have you done at your wash to prevent crime?

One death is too many!

Over the past 15 years I have administered the National Carwash Insurance Program. During that time I have experienced three death claims. Even though this is the most extreme consequence to the many hazardous operations at carwashes, it should impress upon us the importance of safety for both your customers and your employees.

We have to take that first step if there is any chance of providing a safe environment for all. This is the impetus for my blog. To get the word out to as many operators as possible that the time is now to be proactive and develop your own safety action plan.

At a recent meeting of over 150 operators I asked the question, "How many in this room have any kind of safety plan?" Less than 5 people raised their hand.

The intent of this blog is to offer you simple solutions to begin your 'Safety Management Program'. Let's get started.

Buy yourself a binder to collect your safety tips in. You can find these here on my blog or Professional Carwash & Detailing, ICA - Safety Resources, NRCC Claims Categories & Preventive Actions and CarWash College to name just a few.

Implement monthly safety meetings where you discuss these tips and hold trainings for your employees on best safety practices. I have created a few documents that will help you get started; Safety Meeting Agenda Sheet and Safety Meeting Roll Call Sheet . Helpful hint - use one of your newer employees to run the meeting.....wait let me explain. What I have found is that most often they have not had time to create bad habits and they often will pick up on things to that may be overlooked by your seasoned employees.

Do you have a safety tip that you would like to share?