NMCB 7 Culture of Safety Reduces Command Mishaps in CENTCOM
Navy NewsStand
Story Number: NNS090306-08
Release Date: 3/6/2009 1:02:00 PM
By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class (SCW) Michael B. Lavender
HELMAND PROVINCE, Afghanistan (NNS) -- Safety is a top priority for the Seabees of Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 7.
Whether bulldozing piles of dirt into protective berms or piecing together pieces of furniture, each Seabee practices the command's "culture of safety."
"Our battalion has developed a command policy on safety and health which specifically rewards those who develop and continually practice safe behaviors," said Senior Chief Builder (SCW) Scott Hubler, NMCB 7's safety chief. "The 'culture of safety' is what we define as the atmosphere our Seabees adopt when they're out on a project or enjoying recreational activities."
The battalion has created several methods of rewarding individuals who practice safety habits.
"There are many aspects to our recognition program," said Hubler. "It's a pretty robust program, rewarding individuals at many levels with many incentives or rewards for their efforts. We have mini-safety stickers for the Seabees' hardhats for on-the-spot recognition, safety coins, safety certificates for companies and detachments, the Safe Seabee of the Month Award, positive counseling, letters of commendation, awards, special liberty, sleepers and the privilege of parking in the command staff parking spots in homeport."
The safety program also has other methods to help reduce the amount of mishaps that occur.
"We have had a hard push with the [commanding officer's] new safety policy," explained Hubler. "Some of that includes disciplinary examples for those who ignore safety practices at the appropriate level. However, we also have other things that assist us in achieving our command safety goals.
"One of those things is our safety petty officers. Being a safety petty officer used to be just a collateral duty, but our command has made this a full-time job."
This allows them to be constantly vigilant, ensuring safety regulations are followed, operational risk management (ORM) is in place and practiced, personnel are wearing their appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) and that administrative and engineering controls are in place and working properly to minimize safety risks."
"This command is a lot more engaged in its safety program than any other command I've been in," said Builder 1st Class (SCW) Christopher Watts, the battalion's assistant safety officer. "My other commands didn't push safety or ORM the way this command does and didn't offer the kind of incentives we do for being safe. The upper chain of command is more engaged and more people throughout the command participate in fostering the culture of safety."
Another part of the safety program is the inclusion of the ORM process in the battalion's every day operations.
"ORM is done in our initial development of project safety plans, camp maintenance tasking and daily tasking for shops," said Hubler. "We include ORM into every process, so each individual has the concept forefront on their mind when they're working, so they plan for almost every contingency. While it may not catch every risk, it does increase their awareness and allows for the utmost safe environment.
"We've found that ORM is an exceptional tool for use in this theater. There are a lot of short-fused projects and tasking which may not allow a lot of time for the development of a full safety plan, so ORM assists us in ensuring that we minimize or eliminate the risks, so the benefit outweighs the cost."
Thus far, the command's new safety program has succeeded in reducing the amount of mishaps that occur.
"Traditionally on deployments, many mishaps occur as deployment begins," explained Hubler. "Then, as deployment goes on, you see the amount of mishaps decline until right before deployment ends when you see a rise because people are trying to get their final push out the door, moving equipment, packing and following procedures they're not used to dealing with.
"We call this the 'bath-tub effect' because the tracker has a bowl-like shape over the course of deployment. What our goal has been is to avoid that rise of deployment mishaps at the end to achieve a 'ski-slope effect.' In February alone, we tracked fewer mishaps than we had anticipated."
The battalion had anticipated five mishaps for February, but only three occurred.
"Our number of mishaps was forty percent below what we anticipated and sixty-six percent below the average number for units that were previously deployed in the [U.S. Forces Central Command] theater," said Hubler.
"Though our ultimate goal is zero mishaps, this is a good step toward achieving that goal for March. Overall, if it wasn't for each individual's involvement in the safety program and the leader's guidance, there'd be no way for our program to be as successful as it is."
Hubler went on to say the best advice he could give other personnel and units is to lead by example. Influence others to build a culture of safety.
"People also need to report mishaps when they occur because in the long run, it can help protect them or someone else," added Watts. "Even if it is just a small accident, it should be reported because the overall Navy safety program will utilize it so others may learn from it.
"Remember, it might be painful and embarrassing to you when it happens, but reporting that mishap and allowing others to learn from it may potentially save someone's life in the future."
Building safety awareness begins at all levels of a command.
"Being safe on a job, doing daily safety lectures, ensuring our personnel are using the right tools and ensuring that people are focused on the mission and not just focusing on going home are all things everyone can do to help," said Construction Electrician 1st Class (SCW) Erik Dries Sr., NMCB 7's Bravo Company safety supervisor. "That's the hardest part of the job right now. Everyone wants to go home, and their head isn't always in the game.
"As a safety supervisor, I like to keep everyone in an upbeat mood and that they realize that the most important part of the mission is that they stay safe and come home with all their digits intact."
NMCB 7 will continue its safety program into its homeport cycle, with safety courses and training on driving, motorcycle, watercraft and boating, all terrain vehicle, sports and recreation, home improvement, yard work and moving.
For more news from Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 7, visit www.navy.mil/local/nmcb7/.
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