18
THE DAVEY BULLETIN
|
May/June 2020
Davey's safety culture is the driving force behind the
Eversource Energy account's safety practices. The work
currently being conducted by this account takes focus,
safety awareness and good communication.
The crews are currently working on resiliency tree work
(RTW), which will create roughly 12 years of line clearance
for 13 miles of distribution lines in Massachusetts. This will
create long-term protection for the backbone of their client's
system. Sixty percent of the work is off-road ROW work
and the other 40 percent is near roadways.
The crews are felling trees, conducting removals that require
climbing, using rigging equipment, running skidder buckets
and clearing around the utility infrastructure. There are lots
of moving parts involved with this work. Chris Bosch, area
manager, said each crew member is cross-trained to do all
aspects of the work.
"The crews that complete this work every day, I give them
all the credit in the world," Bosch said. "They have a respect
for what they are doing and a heightened awareness all day
long because of the magnitude of the work they are doing."
When it comes to their safety culture, it comes down to the
Davey safety basics, like job briefings, peer gear inspections,
the safety tailgates, preplanning their work and identifying
potential hazards before the work begins, Bosch said.
General foreman Magdiel Oyola's goal is keeping his crews
focused, so everyone goes home at the end of the day. He
said that good communication is the key to complete this
work safely.
"The crews communicate a lot with each other," Oyola said.
"They make sure everyone is up to standard, are aware of
their surroundings and on the same page during their job
briefings. They have their own safety stand downs out in the
field if they see something that could be a potential hazard.
If they need to call an all-stop, they communicate with each
other and try to figure out how they can fix it."
Above, crew members on the Eversource Energy account use a skidder,
which requires a three-person crew including the driver/operator, a
spotter behind the machine and a third crew member who maintains eye
contact with the driver and the spotter. All other crew members must
maintain 20 feet of distance from the skidder while it is in operation.
SAFETY CULTURE ENSURES COMPLEX OPERATIONS
OF EVERSOURCE ACCOUNT RUN SAFELY, SMOOTHLY
SAFETY
