Radio Free Tenacity: Recent Episodes
Ergodyne
Hosted by Al Buczkowski & Allie Thunstrom, Radio Free Tenacity presented by Ergodyne is a podcast utterly obsessed with Making the Workplace a Betterplace. Featuring the latest work gear, stimulating convos with jobsite experts & innovators, & more than its fair share of surprises. Worksite safety has never sounded so good. So get switched on to Radio Free Tenacity, the Voice of Worker Safety.
Often overlooked compared to outdoor work, indoor jobs can pose a heat stress risk, too.
Lack of air conditioning and poor airflow can transform any indoor workspace into a sweatbox, with environments like foundries, refineries, welding shops, and mills being particularly hazardous.
In this episode, we'll discuss how heavy-duty PPE, such as welding helmets, coveralls, and hazmat suits, further exacerbate these risks, and explore whether cooling PPE can effectively combat these challenges.
When heat stroke hits, irreversible cell damage can set in if the temperature isn't brought down fast — within a 30-minute window. Special guest Lexi Engelbert will demonstrate how one simple body cooling method can save lives.
The truth is, thermal ratings are a performance guide, not gospel—the best direction is available through exhaustive testing and consideration of three major factors.
In this episode you'll get to know:
- What three main factors go into temperature ratings for thermal gear
- Why temperature ratings are not as straight forward as you'd like
- How to choose the best thermal gear
Featured Guest:
Claudia Weber, Queen of Cold Stress Circumspection, Ergodyne
In this quick-hitting episode we’ll take you through the essentials of staying warm & productive in cold working environments. Plus, we’ll hit you with a winter work fact that’ll shock you to the core. Ok, maybe that’s being a bit dramatic, but still, we wouldn’t have guessed it ourselves.
As the pioneer in tool tethering, Ergodyne has a long history of innovation in the category, and the Squids 3745 Tool Grip and Tether Attachment Point might be their most clever solution to date. Nate Bohmbach, Product Director at Ergodyne and Chair of the Dropped Object Prevention Group at ISEA, joins the pod to give you the scoop.
In this episode, you'll get to know:
- The challenges and pain points of tethering screw and nut drivers
- How end user feedback helped solve those pain points
- How this new tool tethering solution doesn't just improve safety and simplify tool tethering, but actually improve the usability of the tool
Featured Guest:
Nate Bohmbach, Chief Drop Cop
In September of 2021, the US Department of Labor announced enhanced, expanded measures to protect workers from hazards of extreme heat, indoors and out. Those measures included the launch of a rulemaking process to develop a workplace heat standard and deployment of a National Emphasis Program (NEP). The NEP is the agency's first-ever nationwide enforcement measure specifically targeting heat-related hazards and greenlights heat-related inspections on worksites.
In this episode you'll get to know:
- What an NEP is and its purpose
- What industries are affected by the NEP
- What compliance officers are looking for on heat-related inspections
- How cooling PPE fits in to your plan
Featured Guest:
Alsie Nelson, Heat Stress Hotshot, Ergodyne
Making sure eye protection meets and exceeds safety standards like ANSI Z87.1 is table stakes, but that doesn't necessarily mean those safety glasses are ready to take on the realities of the worksite. Ergodyne Product Director Tim Gallant joins the pod to discuss the most important standards in safety specs: the workers'. Through the lens (ha!) of the latest additions to Ergodyne's Safety Glasses + Goggles Series, he takes us through the considerations—big and small—his team puts into developing glasses and goggles that a) get worn and b) stand up to how they're usually treated on the job (hint: not very well).
In this episode you'll get to know:
- The newest additions to Ergodyne's Safety Glasses + Goggles Series
- The most important considerations in developing and selecting protective eyewear
- How workers help uncover small details that come up big
Featured Guest:
Tim Gallant, Primary Peeper Protector, Ergodyne
Slips happen. Like, a lot. And Ergodyne’s recent collaboration with Soles by Michelin looks to make them happen less. Like, a lot less. A few years after debuting the now best-selling TREX 6325 Spikeless Traction Device for winter conditions, Product Director Alsie Nelson's team has launched the TREX 6326 Spikeless Traction Device for oily, greasy and other slippery situations commonly (but not exclusively) found indoors. The new addition to the TREX line has been extensively tested and touted by workers in a diverse array of applications—food processing, wastewater treatment, food and janitorial services, car washes and more.
In this episode you'll get to know:
- The benefits of wearing a "sling style" traction device vs. tennis shoes/slip-resistant boots
- How this new solution compares to the rest of the TREX Traction Series
- The severity and cost of slips and falls vs. the simplicity and affordability of traction devices
Featured Guest:
Alsie Nelson, Resident Slips Slayer, Ergodyne
Strapless, brah. Aaron Skemp’s close collaboration with work crews––including some of the world’s biggest airlines––has helped evolve the fit, function and comfort of knee pads lightyears ahead of what many workers are familiar (and frustrated) with. And the newest work crew collabo erases THE number one complaint. These ain't your grandpa's knee pads, folks.
In this episode you'll get to know:
- How Aaron worked with work crews to eliminate knee protection enemy #1
- How the world of athletics shaped the evolution of this worksite staple
- The ins and outs of the new Proflex 550 Padded Knee Sleeve and 525 Lightweight Knee Sleeve
Featured Guest: Aaron Skemp, Resident Knee Protection Prodigy, Ergodyne
Show Highlights
In 2020, dropped objects accounted for over 45,000 injuries, over 200 fatalities, and approximately $315,000,000 in financial costs.
A major step in mitigating this damage was the development of ANSI/ISEA 121-2018 — a standard for design, testing, performance and labeling requirements for tool tethering systems and containers used when working at height. The “dropped objects standard” set best practices in place for dropped and falling objects prevention every safety manager should know but, according to the aforementioned stats, not enough do. Which is why we set out to better understand the industry’s pulse on object-at-heights workplace safety. On this episode of Radio Free Tenacity, safety advocate Cameron Swanson joins us to give his perspective on the data, how far we’ve come and the work that needs to be done to ensure dropped object safety becomes SOP when working at height.
Featured Guest:Cameron Swanson, VP of EHS and Compliance, Enertech. Enertech is a leader in engineering, technology deployment and construction services for the wireless industry.
Related Articles:How to Implement a Dropped Objects Prevention Plan
[Industry Survey] What are EHS Professionals Doing to Prevent Dropped Objects?
Overview
After professional football player Korey Stringer died from complications of heat stroke in August of 2001, his wife Kelci teamed with heat stroke expert Douglas Casa, Ph.D., ATC to form the Korey Stringer Institute at the University of Connecticut in April, 2010. The institute has identified four “big ticket” items that, if followed, will almost certainly eliminate HRI's and fatalities on the playing field AND the job site. Margaret Morrissey, Director of KSI Laborer Division joins us to talk about those big ticket items and what the future has in store for heat stress prevention.
Show highlights:
· Learn the key components to build your heat stress program around
· Explore how the world of athletics informs heat illness prevention on the job
· Uncover the biggest mistake rookie workers make when working in the heat
· Recognize those most at risk for heat-related illness
· Identify additional prevention measures when water, rest and shade aren't enough
Featured guest:
Margaret Morrissey, Director of Occupational & Military Safety, Korey Stringer Institute; President, National Heat Safety Coalition
Overview:
The traditional hard hat design actually does what it was designed to do really well, and that’s preventing head injuries from objects striking workers directly—linear impacts. What it doesn’t account for as well are glancing blows or angled impacts that create rotational forces to the brain which can have long lasting, detrimental effect to worker health.
Olof Rylander, Sr Business Developer of Safety for Mips joins us to discuss how his company is addressing this worksite risk by boosting the protection power of safety helmets with an innovative safety system aimed at reducing rotational motion.
Show Highlights:
- The current blindspot in hard hat and safety helmet testing
- The difference between angled and direct impacts
- Rotational motion and its long-lasting damage to the brain
- How Mips works to mitigate rotational motion
Featured Guest:
Olof Rylander, Sr. Business Developer of Safety for Mips
Bill Geddings, Sr. Safety Engineer at Zoox, joins the pod! Zoox is an autonomous vehicle company currently headquartered in Foster City, California, founded to make personal transportation safer and cleaner. The company is currently focused on testing on private and public roads as they move towards launching the first Zoox ride-hailing service.
Show highlights:
- The power of continuous improvement
- How next level companies approach safety
- How to leverage safety gear manufacturers as a partner in safety
Featured End User/Guest:
Bill Geddings, Sr. Safety Engineer at Zoox
Overview:
If over a quarter century of America’s Funniest Home Videos has taught us anything, it’s that people fall—a lot. But with falls accounting for over 30,000 deaths in the U.S. each year (the third highest among accidental deaths), it’s not always as funny as Bob Saget, Tom Bergeron, Alfonso Ribiero or insert dad-joke machine here make it seem.
The cost of these accidents is steep—with the average disabling claim costing a hefty $28,000. The good news? The right traction device cost just a few bucks to keep you upright and out of harm's way. But choosing the right one is key. Peter Freeberg, ACS Safety Manager at Minneapolis-St.Paul International Airport, joins us to discuss the challenges of keeping his crews upright in the frozen north.
Show Highlights:
- How to drive PPE compliance by giving work crews a deeper sense of ownership in the selection process
- How the right ice cleats/traction devices improve safety & productivity
- How the wrong ice cleats/traction devices can actually cause injuries and equipment damage
Featured End User/Guest:
Peter Freeberg, Operations Service Manager, MSP Int’l Airport
As Operations Service Manager for Delta Airlines at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, Peter and his team are on the frontline of below-wing operations. Always looking for ways to improve and do the job just plain better, Peter’s team was integral in helping Ergodyne develop the industry’s first true indoor/outdoor spikeless traction device.
Alsie Nelson, Product Director, Ergodyne
Alsie leads the development of products that combat temperature stress, including cooling PPE and winter work gear. Her dedication to mitigating the risk of temperature stress on the job has helped propel Ergodyne into one of the most respected thought leaders in the category.
Overview:
ANSI/ISEA 121-2018 established minimum design, performance, labeling and testing requirements for solutions that prevent falling objects while working at height––including tool lanyards. But what does that mean to you? Ergodyne Product Director and ISEA member Nate Bohmbach played a key role in the creation of the standard, and he joins the pod to explain exactly what it all means to the typical work site (and why you should care).
Show Highlights:
- Why the creation of ANSI/ISEA 121 was a landmark in at-heights safety
- What ANSI/ISEA 121 means to the average safety pro
- How ANSI/ISEA 121 can be used to guide the selection of drops prevention equipment
- Get a run-down of the latest & greatest 121-compliant safety gear
Featured Guest:
Nate Bohmbach, Product Director, Ergodyne
Nate Bohmbach’s passion for at-heights safety solutions includes the emerging category of Objects at Heights. As Product Director at Ergodyne, Bohmbach leads the Prevention Pillar, where he has developed innovative safety products and taught best practices to multiple industries since 2011. Additionally, Nate has served as chair for the ISEA Standards Committee for Dropped Objects Solutions and is a member of NATE (National Association of Tower Erectors). He presents for 1000s of EHS professionals annually (across almost every industry vertical) on the topic of dropped objects prevention.
Related Article:
Is Your Lanyard Legit?: Five Must-Haves for Every ANSI-Compliant Tool Lanyard
The best PPE is the PPE that gets worn. Knowing what PPE your worksite needs is one thing, knowing what your crew wants is quite another. Safety Superhero Abby Ferri and Greg Schrab (Ergodyne SVP of Product Mgmt) help us go beyond the basics to track the trends in PPE and discuss what’s hot, what’s not and what’s hip, now and wow.
Show Highlights:
- How frontline managers are selling safety to their workers (and why the words they use matter)
- What you're saying about the value of your workforce with the gear you provide
- The critical connection between worker feedback and high-performing (and highly coveted) PPE
- Catching up with the latest and greatest work gear wonders
Featured Guests:
Abby Ferri, Safety & Risk Management Consultant, Podcaster (Safety Justice League), Author (The Safety Habit)
Greg Schrab, Senior VP of Product Management, Ergodyne
Related Articles:
How to Determine the Right PPE for Your Worksite
The last year saw PPE become a household acronym with the face mask as its breakout star. But the CDC's recommendation to "cover your mug" presented a unique set of challenges for safety gear manufacturers and those working (quickly!) to set and communicate a baseline of performance standards for this overnight PPE sensation.
In this episode of RFT, we'll pick the brains of two prominent figures within ISEA (International Safety Equipment Association) to unpack those challenges, the mutual role ISEA and manufacturers play in building trust around safety solutions and what the future of face masks holds.
Show Highlights:
- How to determine the trustworthiness of your safety gear
- Why the manufacturer of your safety gear matters
- How safety gear standards are developed & why they're needed
- Why safety equipment standards are ever evolving
- How to choose the right face covering for the job
- Determining the future of face covering & face covering performance standards past the COVID-19 pandemic
Featured Guests:
Cristine Fargo, Former VP of Operations and Technical Services, ISEA
In her 25+ years with ISEA, Cristine oversaw many functions of the organization including standards development for safety equipment.
Tom Votel, Vice Chair, ISEA // President & CEO, Ergodyne
Tom founded Ergodyne in 1983 and has been a board member of ISEA since 2011--bringing a lifetime of advocacy and experience in industrial safety to his current position of ISEA Vice Chair.
Related Articles
What Face Covering Should I Use?
Overview:
One80 Solar is a commercial solar energy firm on a mission to create more clean, reliable and renewable energy sources. They also hold the honor of tackling the largest high-rise solar panel installation in US history. Faced with high winds and scorching summer heat, Patrick Attwater tells us how his team rose to the challenge to cover the tower and its six-story mid-rise companion with 2,912 solar panels (enough to generate 1 megawatt of power).
Show Highlights:
- Fostering a culture of safety and accountability on large scale projects
- The importance of proactive planning to overcome potential safety challenges, such as heat stress and dropped objects
- Demystifying tool tethering and understanding the options available to worksites
- Identifying and deploying the proper cooling PPE for mitigating heat stress
Featured End User/Guest:
Patrick Attwater, CEO/One80 Solar
As CEO of One80 Solar, Patrick leads one of the nation's premier solar energy firms focused on commercial and industrial projects. The San Antonio-based firm’s passion for building solar power plants helps clients power their own passions, whether it’s tanning skins, brewing beer, or running a school, with cheaper and cleaner energy.
Featured Product Expert(s):
Tim Gallant
Tim brings 20+ years of product management, design and development to the team, with a focus on innovating solutions for dropped object prevention and personal protective equipment including head, eye, hand and knee protection.
Alsie Nelson
Alsie leads the development of products that combat temperature stress, including cooling PPE and winter work gear. Her dedication to mitigating the risk of temperature stress on the job has helped propel Ergodyne into one of the most respected thought leaders in the category.
Related Articles:
Demand The Safety To Do Great Things: Tie or Die
Introducing Radio Free Tenacity, a podcast utterly obsessed with Making the Workplace a Betterplace™. Featuring the latest work gear, stimulating convos with experts & innovators and more than its fair share of surprises, worksite safety has never sounded so good. Get switched on to The Voice of Worker Safety! www.ergodyne.com