ECN Forum Forums Safety Discussion and News Occupational Safety Discussion How do you wear your brim?

Elzappr
I had picked up a 10 hp motor out of a handler and was walking 5 feet to a cart when i bumped into a low steam pipe which knocked me off balance.I dropped the motor right on the bridge of my foot crushing it.In my pain filled stupor i then lerch backward and fell back into the airhandler sliced the back of my neck open and got the motor mount studs in my middle of the back.I had the the hardhat cranked on tight which also ripped some hair out.I ended up going off for two weeks because when i dropped the motor it broke the a blood vessel under the skin and the top my foot filled with so much blood that i couldn't put my work boot on.The supervisor was there and saw it happen.He was sure i broke my neck the way i fell.The funny thing is the 2 or 3 inches that the hardhat added to my height was enough to create the hazard.To this day i automatically walk around hunched over when ever i put it on lol.

Frank....you're not the only one who's learned the hard way about the extra heigth a hard hat adds to you.

There's a time and a place for PPE....simply wearing some magic item isn't going to solve anything, and can create additional hazards. Unfortunately, too often management takes the idiotic approach of pulling irrelevant requirements out of thin air.

Hey guys,
I have been wearing a hardhat every day for 15 years now and I will tell you that the brim forward does make a difference.

Firstly, forward or backward, you are going to misjugde your height at least once and smack your gourd.

The reason the brim stays forward (remember, hardhats were made initially for construction) is to protect your eyes from falling particles. Welding slag and such.

As far as accidents caused by hardhats, I can quote people who would not have been injured if they weren't wearing their seatbelt, or safety glasses, or gloves. Is that a reason to not use them?

I know that wearing a "headache generator" is annoying, but you do get used to it.

Ed

Duhh!!!!!!Not many of you work with the tools to make a living do you? Yes I know how to put my clothes on and how to wear a hard hat on an industrial job. Brim Back. If you have to weld, grid, use cutting torches and many other jobs you have to have your hard hat brim back to use other PPE. When your operating some equipment it is easier with the brim back. I concider most the above remarks ignorant at best.

Highkv,
And just what is that supposed to mean?.
FYI, I would say that 98% of the Members here at ECN are full-time professional Electrical Contractors and do not work behind a desk.
Another point is, who wears a Hard-Hat while they are Welding?.
You make sure that there is nothing that can fall on your head before you start cutting or welding.
For God sakes use your head, most masks don't allow you to wear a Hard-Hat under them anyway.
I've been a weldor since I was 12 years old,
I did 3 years as a professional Weldor before I started as a Fire-fighter.
I wear a leather cap to save my hair from catching on fire.
Getting people to wear the PPE in the first place is often the biggest hurdle.

[This message has been edited by Trumpy (edited 03-16-2005).]

Gee, HiK, don't I get a gold star? I did refer to the brim interfering with other PPE.

I also made the distinction as to the real problem. As a reminder, we need to have the following two questions answered before we can really give an answer:
1) Is a hard hat required at all? and,
2) Are we discussing a "fashion statement?"

Here's a new take on the whole situation.
Provided by renosteinke:
(sorry for the delay in posting this John)



John,
I can see what you are saying and I agree, there are situations where hard-hats are really required and others that don't require that sort of protection.
There is a hat here called a bump cap and that is worn in Industrial places here where head protection is required, but not to the degree that a Hard Hat would provide.

Mike.



[This message has been edited by Trumpy (edited 04-22-2005).]

Bump hats are only to be used to protect your nogin from "bumps" eg banging your head into something. A hard hat will protect you from falling things to a pointwhere a bump hat wont. I have used a bump hat in a low head room basement but found it to be designed for someone with a square head, fell off every time i ducked through a doorway.

Mash, you bring up another aspect of "safety management," one that doesn't get discussed nearly enough.

OSHA regs generally require that all safety (or protective) equipment be provided by the employer, at no cost to the employee. This rule has some "unintended consequences."
The gear is selected on a "one size fits all" basis. Everybody gets the exact same gear, without regard to any individual differences in use, size, or applicability.
It is also often purchased by either a secretary -who never worked the trade- or by someone who hasn't done any climbing (or crawling) for years. Too often, the decision to purchase is driven by the price, and a pretty picture in the catalog.

Rock climbers, and skateboarders, use protective headgear that just might be more appropriate in some situations. However, there are sufficient differences in the various test methods that one CANNOT say thay something that passes, say, Z89, would also pass Z89.1. The load applied differs in size and shape, and the "test head" is different.

There is an attitude that assumes that "more is better." This is not always the case.

I personally wish they would just allow common sense to prevail. When you are working overhead and have the bill to the front, it severely restricts your upward vision. When you are trying to get into tight places it is a lot easier to have the bill to the back. We are not allowed to go up in a lift without a person on the ground. Some of the people here say the biggest need for the hard hats are because the people required to wear them in the lifts bump their helmits (due to poor visibility) and knock them off, causing the guy on the floor to need the protection.