Let’s talk hard hats

[Cameramonkey]

The point is to prevent OSHA fines.

Well, it makes as much sense as wearing a condom ALL. THE. TIME. (even when you arent having sex)

 

[Creedmoor]

Better fit…. It won't fall or blow off head from my experiences

A few of us were walking off a job site in the middle 80's in Ocean City, MD.
A good friend named Dan Bowen was wearing his hardhat when a brick was accidentally pushed off of a scaffold about 8 stories above us. It hit Dan in the side of the head and just blew apart his right shoulder.
I'm gonna guess if he had cut out one of the suspension straps, he would have been dead that day, instead of just on workers comp for a year or so.

Just an old guys opinion that got lucky and never destroyed himself at work...
I'm retired, you do you.
With one being around a few really good industrial accidents, you start taking good care of your PPE.
When you work on a open steel building, to a open elevator hoist-way you don't re-engineer your safety equipment. A spud wrench F'ing hurts or maybe is just wouldn't hurt at all.

The last thing you want is to be involved in a bad accident and your wearing safety equipment that you or others have altered.

 

[blain]

My last and final workplace, I preferred the vented style hard hat.
I hated the ratcheting type suspension systems, so I always used the pin type.
For cooling, I used the snap in terry cloths, soaked in cold water periodically through the shift.
I worked in a plastics extrusion plant, so there was plenty-o-heat to go around.

 

[shibumiseeker]

Well, it makes as much sense as wearing a condom ALL. THE. TIME. (even when you arent having sex)

I’m fighting against a stupid PPE rule right now that was created by a committee that is more interested in paying lip service to liability protection than actually increasing safety. Drives me crazy.

 

[Creedmoor]

And what is the point of wearing a hard hat to pick up trash outside in the open along the roadway? sh** aint going to drop on you from above, and a car hitting you is going to send that thing flying, so its useless.

I always shake my head when I pass those guys.

Would that hard hat be useless with rocks and gravel that bounced off a low boy trailer? rocks falling off the rear axle of a tri-axle truck?
The possibility's are endless for the reasons to wear PPE gear like hard hats.

 

[Timjoebillybob]

And what is the point of wearing a hard hat to pick up trash outside in the open along the roadway? sh** aint going to drop on you from above, and a car hitting you is going to send that thing flying, so its useless.

I always shake my head when I pass those guys.

My 7yr old self would like to inform you that yes **** will literally drop on you from above. Especially if the bird thinks his name is Luke, your head is the death star, and ear canal is an exhaust vent.

 

[Mij]

Let’s talk hard hats​

Let’s not.

 

[Mij]

Would that hard hat be useless with rocks and gravel that bounced off a low boy trailer? rocks falling off the rear axle of a tri-axle truck?
The possibility's are endless for the reasons to wear PPE gear like hard hats.

Two sides of that coin.

Working on red iron with floors, a bolt (or nut) from above. A spud wrench, the whole **** torch, a tool belt with all the tools.

Working outside on scaffolding, a brick or bat (part of a brick), a block, a shovel, brick tongs, a 4 ft level, a masons trowel.

Hope you got a hat.

Other side of coin.

Your 6+ ft tall and the scaffolding cross members are only 5 ft 11 in tall and you can’t see them because you have a **** plastic hat that blocks your view up and you finally after 24 years hit one hard enough it brakes your neck. Now doc says no more work for you.

**** wish I wasn’t wearing that hat.


But the insurance company is happy, after all isn’t that what it’s about? 1 coin, 2 sides.

Edit: Eli Lilly is the devil’s spawn. But boy they comply with insurance companies mandates.

 

[snapping turtle]

Edit: Eli Lilly is the devil’s spawn. But boy they comply with insurance companies mandates.

Eli Lilly is self insured.

We had surveillance cameras on the roof edges all over the campus. Takes a roof permit to access. Hard hat harness and lanyard one number two screwdriver. Replace ac fuse (pre POE)

Time to fix this is about 10 minutes on the roof. Time required on safety training to be able to access roof 16 hours per year. If a Monday you had the safety meeting for the project you had to attend. Time to get roof permit about four hours per incident. After the one year warranty on that install we just quit quoting Lilly work. Normal 34 precent profit was increased on all quotes to 79 precent. Changed camera manufacturers and power supply to only access the telecom rooms. Thought that would be easier than access the roof. Nope about 5 hours to get permission to get into the telecom room to change the fuse.

We just pulled out of bidding on projects even with the higher rates we charged because if the project went into safety protocols we could not make 20 precent or squeeze profit out of it.

They have the collective that does all Lilly work. We got with them and just did parts and smarts. We made a nice 40 precent on less (nearly zero on site labor).

As far as hard hats I have alway went full brim and always have a backup for when the idiots they send out to work with me left there's on the kitchen table

 

[jagee]

They have the collective that does all Lilly work. We got with them and just did parts and smarts. We made a nice 40 precent on less (nearly zero on site labor).

It's called The Alliance. I was in there for about a month until Covid kicked me out (everyone was supposed to work from home - can't do QC checks on construction work from home) I never went back, I prefer being "outside the fence"

 

[blain]

Would that hard hat be useless with rocks and gravel that bounced off a low boy trailer? rocks falling off the rear axle of a tri-axle truck?
The possibility's are endless for the reasons to wear PPE gear like hard hats.

From personal experience I know that my hard hat saved me from several good wacks on the noggin.
I worked around and under bulk material rail cars. At times of rushing or simple inattentiveness, I wasn't aware of my surroundings 100% of the time. I'm sure I'm the only member her that succumbed to such situations.
Needless to say, rail car frames are very solid. Several times I was happy I was wearing my hard hat.
It saved be bumps & bruises in the plant, working in tight spaces, around I-beams and such.
All in all, it provided more benefit to me than discomfort.

 

[Hoosier Carry]

Hard hat sweatband or a welding cap will go a long way.

 

[Creedmoor]

Two sides of that coin.

Working on red iron with floors, a bolt (or nut) from above. A spud wrench, the whole **** torch, a tool belt with all the tools.

Working outside on scaffolding, a brick or bat (part of a brick), a block, a shovel, brick tongs, a 4 ft level, a masons trowel.

Hope you got a hat.

Other side of coin.

Your 6+ ft tall and the scaffolding cross members are only 5 ft 11 in tall and you can’t see them because you have a **** plastic hat that blocks your view up and you finally after 24 years hit one hard enough it brakes your neck. Now doc says no more work for you.

**** wish I wasn’t wearing that hat.


But the insurance company is happy, after all isn’t that what it’s about? 1 coin, 2 sides.

Edit: Eli Lilly is the devil’s spawn. But boy they comply with insurance companies mandates.

Other side of that coin, without the hard hat you could have severed your spine and now be a para / quad or dead.
And who doesn't love working on Lillys property. lol

 

[Creedmoor]

And what is the point of wearing a hard hat to pick up trash outside in the open along the roadway? sh** aint going to drop on you from above, and a car hitting you is going to send that thing flying, so its useless.

I always shake my head when I pass those guys.

Heres a short story with working for a company that just doesn't take employee safety very serious.
About three years ago I did some work for a expanding Canadian company that had bought the old Herman building in Muncie at the corner of Hoyt and W Mt Pleasant on the south side.
Over a few weeks a Spanish team of a father and son ( Good Guys, I will call him, Hector and son ) were removing and installing a new fire sprinkler system. The ceilings were about 22 ft to the bottom of the roof truss's to the concrete below.
With those men using, porta bands, hammer drills, drills, a man lift, siccor lift, fork lift and so on. Not once did either of them have with them or on them any safety equipment. No safety glasses, no six point harness's, no hard hats, nothing.
And with seeing their supervisor show up once a week or so, it matter not that he was on the job with putting on said safety equipment.
When one works for a company that operates like that, I understand how other employees can easily get the opinion that you have with one wearing PPE to work, even when it seems silly or unnecessary.
Wanna guess which Fire Alarm, Fire Sprinkler Company this was?

 

[snapping turtle]

Wanna guess which Fire Alarm, Fire Sprinkler Company this was?

I bet it was not Dalmatian

 

[jagee]

Wanna guess which Fire Alarm, Fire Sprinkler Company this was?

Not RSQ.

 

[Creedmoor]

I bet it was not Dalmatian

It was not.

 

[Creedmoor]

Not RSQ.

Nope.

 

[red_zr24x4]

Does Hector and son have a theme song?
Cause when I read Hector and son I hear the Sanford and son theme song

 

[Aggar]

I was against it at first because it looked dumb, but I actually like it better than my old one, now.

Way more comfy and the holes on top allow for good air movement. Chin strap is removable as well if the job doesn't require it.

View attachment 350140

I think In 2025 all hard hats are supposed to be like this.