According to safety meeting notes provided by the State Compensation Insurance Fund, entitled “Ladders – Make Ladder Safety a High Priority,” a majority of accidents that occur on work site locations are a direct result of improper ladder safety.  They strongly believe that workers should consider the following: “Before using any ladder, check its condition.  Make sure there are no broken, cracked, or missing rails and that the ladder rungs are not slippery from grease or oil.”  The condition of ladder rungs is very important to avoid slip and fall accidents.
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Based on an article by members of the Alliance Program Construction Roundtable, through the OSHA Alliance Program, fall fatalities in the construction industry are more prevalent than they should be.  Out of a total of 433 fatal falls for 2006, 68 were from ladders.  These falls could be the result of ladder rungs without a slip resistant coating.  Portable and fixed ladders are a necessity to the construction industry, making slips and falls a possibility on a daily basis.

The following statistics make it apparent why slip and fall prevention on ladders is crucial.  When falling from a ladder, by the time you react, your body will be four feet below where you fell.  A realistic reaction time for a human is one second. In one second, under the force of gravity, a body will fall 16 feet. Using a reaction time of .5 seconds, on the higher side, your body center will travel four feet downward.

Non slip metal ladder rungs and covers are a permanent sturdy solution to slips and falls.  Slip resistant ladder rungs can be easily incorporated into building and designing new ladders, and are also designed to be easily retrofitted over existing dangerous ladder rungs.  Non slip ladder rungs and covers are a small cost in comparison to the costs of an injury or even worse, a fatality. Architects can help eliminate fatalities by specifying slip resistant ladder rungs to be incorporated into new projects to ensure the safety of pedestrians and workers. Construction site managers are also responsible for equipping personal portable ladders used to complete jobs with slip resistance, and keeping employees safe.

Alliance Program Construction Roundtable. “Prevention of Fall Fatalities and Injuries in Construction”

When developing a safety plan or objective, checklists are an important component to staying organized and analyzing a situation.  In order to keep a job site safe, materials and tools must be checked multiple times throughout the course of a project to avoid accidents.  One of the most frequently employed tools on a construction site is a ladder.  The main component of a ladder is the ladder rungs.  Ladder rungs must be properly maintained to ensure safety during use.  Due to constant climbing up and down these ladder rungs, wear and tear can happen.  Checklists are essential in keeping track of all of the simple but potentially dangerous details of ladder rungs.
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In an article entitled “Use a Scientific Approach to Prevent Slips and Falls” by Kenneth Fisher, OSHA states that “Slip resistance can vary from surface to surface or even on the same surface, depending upon surface conditions and employee footwear.  Slip resistant flooring material (or treatments) such as textured, serrated, or punched surfaces and steel grating may offer additional slip resistance.”  Slip resistant flooring should be installed in areas that are slippery due to wet and oily conditions.
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The Texas and Florida Departments of Transportation (DOT) have made SlipNOT® the standard for bridge expansion joint covers.  SlipNOT® non slip plate is the ultimate solution for covering expansion joints.  SlipNOT® durable, permanent non slip plate covers keep pedestrians and workers on their feet.  The non slip surface helps prevent slips and falls while the surface hardness of 55 to 63 on the Rockwell “C” scale and bond strength of at least 4,000 psi, ensures strength and longevity.
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According to an article entitled “Reducing Slips, Trips and Falls in Stairways” by Wayne Maynard and George Brogmus, “More serious upper and/or lower extremity injuries occur traveling down a stairway than when traveling up a stair way.  In stairway decent, the tread depth – or horizontal surface – must be adequate for the ball of the foot to land on the tread without extending over the step below.”  There are specific recommendations for riser and tread dimensions to help prevent these injuries from occurring.
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SlipNOT® aluminum punched plank is an excellent alternative to smooth bar aluminum grating for applications that need to be ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliant.  SlipNOT® aluminum punched plank meets the standards set by the ADA for wheelchair accessibility and high heel traffic.  The SlipNOT® punched plank provides a high coefficient of friction, excellent structural strength, is light weight and less expensive than ADA compliant smooth bar aluminum grating (7-4 spacing).  The diagonal punched pattern still allows light and liquids to drain through, like aluminum smooth bar grating. SlipNOT® also offers unpunched plank for those applications where a solid decking is required.  Whether punched or unpunched, SlipNOT® planking is low maintenance.  This is a superior alternative to smooth bar aluminum grating with plate on top, and is more cost efficient.
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According to an article entitled “Slip and Fall Accidents” by Ashwini Kulkami, slip and fall accidents “are the second leading cause of injuries in the United States.”  Approximately 16,000 deaths arise from slip and fall accidents.  Kulkami goes on to state that the most common places for slips and falls outside of the home include malls, schools, parks, roads, among others.
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According to an article titled “Steps in Safety Strategy: The Gap Analysis & Implementation Plan” by Thomas Krause, the first steps to developing a workplace safety strategy involves building a foundation for the change required and developing the knowledge and emotional commitment of the organization’s leaders through a communications and governance structure.  Once these steps are established, it is necessary to develop an implementation plan that bridges the gap between where a company stands now and where it wants to be.
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President Obama created the Food Safety Group in order to advise the administration on how to upgrade food safety for the 21^st century. The Food Safety Working Group is recommending a new and public health-focused approach to food safety based on three principles: prioritizing prevention, strengthening surveillance and enforcement and improving response and recovery.
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