Safety Excellence in Trying Times

Puritan Medical Products expansion, Pittsfield, Maine

SAFETY

n By Anthony Falcon & Scott Knowlen

The combination of challenges faced by The Cianbro Companies in 2020 have been daunting, and not without adverse effects on our business and daily lives.

Maintaining the positivity needed for sustaining our culture of safety excellence became a high priority for all of us. It is very easy to yield to distractions without deliberate effort to maintain the safety plan the Company has laid out. The potential for distractions and preoccupation with current external events is at an all-time high.

Our landscape on the job has experienced significant change. COVID-19 has taught us much about microbial hazards, how to prevent their spread, and how to make our workplace safer and healthier. Our clients have placed strict control on who enters their facilities, requesting confirmation that team members are fit for duty before entering the job site. Social distancing, monitoring our health and the health of those close to us, wearing facial coverings, and disinfecting surfaces have quickly become new habits to get used to.

Adapting to Change

Although most of us are wary and cautious when it comes to colds, viruses, and the flu, COVID-19 quickly made us become super effective at preventing the spread of microbial diseases. Always ready for the challenge, our team members set their job sites up for hygienic success. As essential workers, they knew that “No One Gets Hurt” meant “No One Gets Infected.”

Start with a Plan

Our senior management team met daily to set the direction of the organization. Following the CDC guidelines and working collaboratively, plans were put in place to support our role as an essential business while supporting our clients. The steps in their plans assured that people maintained social distance on the job, in vehicles, on breaks, and even in emergency situations. Guidance was given for times when team members could not avoid social distancing and facial coverings became a mandatory means of spread prevention. Strict attention was given to high touch surfaces. Even a seemingly harmless activity like signing a safety meeting roster became an unsafe practice. The cleaning and disinfecting of shared spaces went from something we should

do to a mandatory and frequent must do. Workstations were modified where needed, to include barriers, sneeze guards and other necessary protection. Hand washing stations were essential, as was hand sanitizer. Health screenings became a daily function for the team whether it was self-performed, checked at gates by clients, or both.

Technology was leveraged to assist us wherever possible. We quickly built a CARE Audit process. Within three days of concept, a mobile app was deployed for managers to measure behaviors within our COVID protocol and determine where additional resources may be needed. We also developed a COVID screening app for team members to self-certify fit for duty. Every day, team members self-evaluate symptoms, possible exposures, and travel. The app then either clears you for work or directs you to contact our medical provider. As we learned more about this pandemic, we updated and modified our guidelines at all levels of the company.

In addition, our site teams utilized this guidance and developed plans that fit the size and team member dispersion at their locations. These plans were thorough, covering all of the areas and activities that carried potential for personal contact or frequent surface sharing.

Taking Care of Our Team

Cianbro Medical Director, Dr. Craig Curtis and his team have played a significant role in taking care of our team members. They have provided guidance on travel, contact tracing, testing, and return-to-work. Working within our framework, based on CDC guidelines, Dr. Curtis and the team have been instrumental in helping us navigate all the different scenarios that arose to protect our projects, our team members, and our families.

Our teams’ efforts have proven to be highly effective with the minimal presence of COVID-19 on our job sites.

We also developed a COVID screening app for team members to self-certify fit for duty.

COVID screening app