When he safety judges come around, they are looking for safe behavior both in the pits and aournd the robot. Thhis means wearing safety glasses at all times, using gloves when using power tools like drills or reciprocating/jig/circular saws. Te safety tokens are so that teams can reward other teams for their behavior. The UL Industrial Safety Award is for the team that the judges found to act in the safest way. I have learned all of these lessons the hard way, and am in no hurry to repeat them. In the three regionals I have gone to, we have won all of the safety awards (2005 and 2006). As safety captain, I want to share what our team has learned:
-Safety glasses must be very comfortable. Get the most expensive kind, because it's worth it in the long run. (Forgetting that you're wearing safety glasses is a good thing!)
-Do not buy tinted (colored), shaded, or reflective safety glasses. With the tinted ones you cannot see certain colors (yellow glasses makes gas flame invisible
) and the shaded/reflective ones prevent eye contact.
-Before the build season begins, gave a tool crash course and also a shop safety course so that new people get used to the safety rules.
And finally...
-Make sure everyone follows the safety rules that your team createss and make NO exceptions.
This is as much as I can think of. The very best safety captain is your own common sense.
Have fun, and always remember Safety FIRST!!!