| We have all been doing fire drills since we | | | | primary action of evacuating the |
| were in grammar school. But in a modern | | | | building.When executing a one at a time fire |
| industrial environment there is a lot more to | | | | drill training plan, be sure to include every |
| consider than just marching the students down | | | | one. Even those whose only duty is to get |
| the hall.In a manufacturing situation, there | | | | themselves out of the building. Walk with |
| are specific actions that need to be taken by | | | | them to the exit so you know they know which |
| machine operators to shut down the machines | | | | one to use.Also consider lines of progression |
| safely and to minimize the restart expense. | | | | as an employee may be temporarily promoted to |
| And if you are not actually shutting down | | | | a different job task from time to time. Make |
| your machines for a drill, then you don't | | | | sure you arrange to train them on the |
| know if your procedures actually work.OSHA | | | | emergency duties of the temporary advancement |
| and other regulating bodies have various | | | | position as well as the regular |
| rules about how often evacuation drills are | | | | duties.Another aspect to consider in |
| to be practiced. This article in no way | | | | evacuations and evacuation drills is the |
| supersedes those requirements. This article | | | | event of inclement weather. It does not help |
| is designed to give you advice on how to make | | | | to have employees evacuate a burning building |
| your actual fire drill practice a more | | | | only to die from hypothermia on the |
| valuable experience.When I worked in a | | | | outside.Make sure you have considered the |
| printing facility handling flammable liquids, | | | | possibility of an evacuation during cold or |
| each employee had specific duties that he was | | | | wet weather. Make arrangements for alternate |
| expected to perform on his way out the door | | | | shelter or protective clothing and practice |
| in the event of a fire. These duties | | | | the use and distribution of such during your |
| included things like pressing an emergency | | | | actual evacuation drills.Another very |
| stop button, releasing a safety latch to | | | | important aspect of evacuations is the |
| cover flammable liquids or closing a door to | | | | accounting of personnel. You must have a |
| a room where flammable liquids were stored.In | | | | quick and accurate method of accounting for |
| a standard evacuation drill, there was no way | | | | all personnel including visitors, vendors and |
| to observe if every one did their jobs | | | | contractors that are on the site during the |
| correctly or if they even knew what these | | | | evacuation. Many modern electronic |
| jobs were. Practicing these jobs only once | | | | attendance monitoring systems have made this |
| or twice a year was ineffective in making | | | | task even more challenging as you don't |
| sure the workers were trained in the | | | | always have a computer print out of who is at |
| tasks.Because it was very expensive to | | | | work with you during an evacuation.You must |
| restart the printing presses after any | | | | prepare in advance a system that is |
| shutdown, we had to minimize the actual | | | | accessible to supervisors so that they can |
| machine stoppages as well.The most effective | | | | accurately account for their personnel in the |
| method we found for training personnel in | | | | event of an emergency. Overlooking a single |
| their evacuation duties was what we called | | | | person in unacceptable in such an instance. |
| the one at a time fire drill.About once a | | | | So is the needless endangerment of emergency |
| month, our fire and emergency procedures team | | | | responders looking for a person who is not |
| would take a list of employees and arrange | | | | really trapped.Assigning small group |
| with their supervisor to have them lead the | | | | supervisors or team leaders the |
| trainer through their evacuation duties. The | | | | responsibility of tracking their employees |
| trainer would observe their actions and | | | | and keeping a written record of their |
| compare what they did to the written | | | | presence or absence in the facility is one |
| procedure. If necessary, the trainer could | | | | simple method of handling the accountability |
| take corrective action immediately and give | | | | issue. Make sure you practice this |
| feedback on how they followed the written | | | | accountability during your full evacuation |
| procedure.If there was a deviation in the | | | | drills as well as one on one with he |
| actions of the employee from the procedure, | | | | supervisor or team leader.Evacuation drills |
| the team member determined if training was | | | | are not just a required nuisance. They serve |
| required or if the procedure need to be | | | | a very important role in responding to an |
| modified to match current work practices. | | | | emergency and minimizing your business loss. |
| Therefore, the one at a time fire drill | | | | Through proper planning and training you can |
| accomplished two valuable purposes - | | | | minimize the business interruption and |
| Procedure review and training.Since the | | | | restart costs.Injured workers will |
| machine was not actually shut down and the | | | | significantly delay your restart and impact |
| work crews not fully evacuated, the cost of | | | | your future productivity and profitability. |
| this training exercise was minimal. Usually | | | | Money spent on training and planning for an |
| the only cost involved was that of having an | | | | emergency will save your many times the cost |
| extra staff member on hand to fill in for the | | | | in the event of an actual emergency. The one |
| one being trained.We found this method of | | | | at a time fire drill training procedure can |
| training to be very effective. Many | | | | also be used to build familiarity with |
| operators who had been in their jobs for | | | | equipment making your employees even more |
| several years had never been given the | | | | productive. And, if they feel safe at work, |
| opportunity to actually walk through their | | | | they will be work more effectively as |
| fire control duties before we instituted this | | | | well.Mike Strawbridge is the owner of Straw |
| program. We found several procedures that | | | | Solutions Performance Improvement Consulting. |
| were unworkable as they interfered with the | | | | |