Office Interior Design Blog |

Potential Office Safety Hazards part #3

Continuing on with my blog about the potential office hazards let me give you a few more tips that can benefit your office area.

Potential Trip Hazards

         Loose debris or spills on the floor

         Electrical wire or cables in walkway

         Torn or loose carpeting

         Missing floor tiles

         Broken stair tread edges

         Uneven walking surfaces

Slips, Trips and Falls

         Pick up debris and loose objects (waste paper, pencils, paper clips, etc.)

         Wipe up spills immediately

         Report floor defects to Facilities Services

         Wear “sensible” shoes (sturdy heels and non-slip soles)

         Use a ladder or step stool when necessary

         Walk, don’t run!

Stairs

         Avoid distractions

         Take one step at a time

         Don’t load your arms so full of materials that you can’t see

         Keep one hand on the  handrail

         Don’t congregate on the stairs or landings

         Watch where you’re going

Stay tuned to my blog to learn more about Potential Office Safety Hazards at SPACE, Inc.

I usually blog about how SPACE team members impact the external community, but this Christmas the SPACE team came together to support one of our own. 

One of our team had to have surgery and may need a second surgery.  He has been on unpaid leave for several weeks after he used up all his compensated time off.   To help his family, Carol suggested a “giving tree” filled with a variety of gift cards. 

SPACE team members got together and purchased all sorts of cards from Meijer, Walmart, gas stations and Target.  The tree was filled with red and white tags, miniature Christmas balls, and candy canes.  In addition, the company (thank you Kathie and Lisa) matched the gifts. 

So, the company core value of “community service” isn’t just for events that are more visible in the community.  It works quietly out of the public eye, too. 

What a great way to say “Merry Christmas” to a fellow employee!

Over the next couple of weeks I will be discussing some common mistakes that happen within the office setting that could prove as Safety Hazards.

Potential Office Safety Hazards include the following:

• Ergonomic issues
• Fire & evacuation
• Electrical cords & equipments
• Heat-generating sources (coffee pots, heaters)
• Hand tools
• Office machines (copiers, paper cutters, shredders, jammed machines)
• Slips, trips & falls
• Housekeeping
• Furniture/layout

Here are a couple of tips to secure your office area

Workstations

         Position equipment securely (away from furniture edges)

         Place frequently used items within safe reach

         Don’t restrict leg room with equipment storage

         Keep all chair legs on the floor (don’t tilt!)

Lighting

         Area that have too much or too little light can cause headache, strain and fatigue

         Use adjustable task lighting for tasks that require greater illumination

         Take visual “breaks” every 30 minutes (look at objects at least 20 ft away)

         Get regular eye exams… let your eye doctor know if you are working at a computer

Stay tuned to my blog to learn more about Potential Office Safety Hazards at SPACE, Inc.

SPACE, Inc. held our annual Christmas party this Friday following our quarterly team meeting.  Yes, we had a lovely setting, fully and beautifully decorated.  Yes, we had Secret Santa gifts for each other.  Yes, there was a delicious meal that received rave reviews.  But…

We also used the opportunity to create holiday memories for others in our community who aren’t as fortunate as we are.  Kathie and Stacy baked almost 200 cookies.  Each team member got 6 cookies to decorate with frosting and all varieties of toppings.  Enjoying the camaraderie of our tablemates, we created festive, colorful cookies.  After the frosting set, they were donated to Hidden Harvest, a local non-profit that distributes food to soup kitchens, food pantries, and shelters.

Even our Secret Santa gifts reflected commitment to a larger community.  Some team members gave back by donating funds in honor of the recipient’s favorite cause.  Beneficiaries were the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, the American Cancer Society, and Heifer International.

Thank you to all the SPACE Team for sharing with others during this Season of Giving.  We live our core value of community service every day.  Merry Christmas to all!

SPACE, Inc. may not have Santa’s sleigh or workshop, but we’ve got a 24′ truck and a few elves that work just as well!  Last Sunday both were put to good use transporting Sharing Tree gifts from the United Way building to the distribution center at Blessed Sacrament School. 

Sharing Tree is a program of the United Way Volunteer Center that matches needs with donors and provides Christmas gifts to children and families that may not otherwise get them.   Requests are received from non-profit agencies, churches, and schools and are cataloged and sorted in a database that eliminates duplicates.  Colorful tags are printed with the gift request details (specific toy, clothing sizes, color preferences, etc.) and hung on trees placed in prominent positions throughout the community.  People take the tags, fill each request, and return the wrapped or bagged gifts to designated drop-off points or the United Way building.  

That’s where the SPACE “sled” comes in.  On the Sunday before Sharing Tree Monday, SPACE donates a truck to help move all the gifts from the United Way building and other drop-off points to the distribution center.  This year the move took about 4-1/2 hours to complete.

On Monday, hundreds of volunteers move all the gifts from the storage site at Blessed Sacrament to the individual agencies that distribute the presents.  Volunteers serve as unloaders, runners, checkers, wrappers, and kitchen help.  In a 6-hour span on Monday, several thousand gifts are checked in, carried to agency tables where they are logged in, and then boxed up for transport back to the agencies. 

Midway through the morning, one of the classes from Blessed Sacrament strolls through the halls and gym singing Christmas songs.  You can’t help but feel good inside knowing that you’re helping to make Christmas for so many.  Everyone wears a smile….even after 5 hours of running gifts.  Now that’s what Christmas is all about!

‘Tis the Season, fa-la-la-la-la, la-la-la-la.  While most of us are busy shopping, wrapping, baking, partying, and decorating this time of year, SPACE team members add at least one more item to that list:  giving back to the community and those less fortunate.

Feed the Need

One of SPACE’s core values is volunteerism and everyone impacts their community in some way throughout the year.  But, Thanksgiving begins the season of major giving.  SPACE participated in “Feed the Need” this year and collected several bags and boxes of food to help local food pantries replenish their depleted shelves.  One of our team members donated a turkey to her church group which had a goal to feed 5 families a complete turkey dinner with all the fixin’s.  They ended up able to feed 7 families!

As Christmas approaches, some of us will spend an evening at Shelterhouse wrapping gifts, singing carols with the families, helping children pick out donated gifts to give to parents and vice versa, taking pictures with Santa, and reading Christmas stories.  Others volunteer at the Santa parade and Santa house.  Some team members will select a family to receive a Christmas dinner.  And, we can’t forget United Way’s Sharing Tree.  SPACE donates a truck to help with that event!

Our SPACE team thoroughly embraces the true meaning of this Season!

Yes, it’s true!  The Zonta Club of Midland’s annual fundraiser, Homewalk, makes it happen. 

Here’s how it works.  Zonta is an international service organization of business and professional women working to advance the status of women world-wide.  Our local chapter starts in early spring to secure 5 or 6 homes to be exhibited as part of Homewalk.  Once the homeowners are on board, they are matched with local design firms and decorators to map out how best to decorate their homes for the holidays.  The homeowners agree to open their homes for 2 days on a December weekend to allow the public to visit and view unique and beautiful homes fully decorated for the holidays. 

The entire Zonta club membership serves as volunteer hostesses at each home, ensuring the safety and security of both visitors’ and homeowners’ property while explaining the history of the home.  A Zonta member may also recruit non-Zontians as hostesses.  That’s where the SPACE team comes in.

SPACE has two team members who are Zonta members.  Several other SPACE employees volunteer to work one, or even two, 4-hour shifts as invited volunteers.  Those team members who don’t participate in the walk may purchase raffle tickets instead, which also goes to fund Zonta causes. 

Homewalk proceeds go directly to a scholarship fund that helps six young women each year advance their education.  Two of 2009’s local scholarship recipients have gone on to win another scholarship at the district level.  One of them became only one of twelve women around the world to receive a $5000 scholarship at the international level.  For further details about these amazing young women and the impact they’re having on the world, check out the October and November newsletters under our Newsletter tab on the Zonta website.

This year’s Homewalk will be the weekend of December 5th and 6th from 1:00-5:00 each day.   So put on your festive faces and come out and enjoy the holiday scenery!

The following complies a number of safety no-no’s and misconceptions we probably see everyday.

• Workplace safety is only the responsibility of the person(s) wearing the Safety hat.

• People have different work styles. Workers who work best with piles of materials about their areas are just as safe from accident and injury as workers who have a clean and well organized office.

• A sloppy worker is only a danger to himself.

• Safety is just common sense. The Company doesn’t need to waste time training people not to put their hands in a shredder.

• Workers should walk around spilled liquid on the floor and leave it up to the cleaning crew to clean up.

• All we can afford is the furniture we’ve been given. If the chairs don’t adjust and we use tables instead of fancy desks, it won’t hurt anyone.

• Chairs or stools can be substituted for a ladder to get items out-of-reach as long as an employee “spots” the person using the chair or stool.

• No one needs instructions on how to use a ladder.

• Anyone can safely pick up a fire extinguisher to put out a fire.

Remember to be observant and do not safety for granted. Remember what you could be missing as a result of not living your daily life safely.

Personal Accountability.

The willingness to claim 100% ownership for the results provided as a consequence of your involvement, both individually and collectively with others.

While an individual may have a responsibility to accomplish a task we all should have a sense of personal accountability to give guidance in when and how the task may be preformed. We can sit back and wait or we can intervene. While we may not actually perform the task when we intervene and give guidance our actions may lead to the task being accomplished.

Personal accountability is opportunity. It is opportunity to contribute to the organization of which we are a part.

We all need to take this approach in our everyday lives. Be accountable, intervene, give guidance whenever you can.

It was reported here last week that our SPACE team United Way campaign concluded successfully by exceeding our goal by $300.  This past Thursday the community campaign results were announced in an event held at Midland Center for the Arts. 

Drum roll, please……

Once again the community came together to produce amazing results.   The $4.8 million goal was met and passed by almost $50,000!! 

A video presentation highlighted people in our community impacted by the services and programs supported by United Way campaign dollars.  This is where you really see how you make a difference.   (Video link will be in a future blog.  In the meantime, here’s a written preview.)

A tearful woman explained how she finally felt safe when she went to Shelterhouse.  As she passed through each door, it was locked behind her.  That’s when she truly felt she wouldn’t be hurt any more.

An older man told how he and his wife enjoyed building planes, flying them together (she drove, he navigated), and traveling extensively.  They don’t do those things any more because his wife has Alzheimer’s.  He expressed his appreciation for the Seasons program offered by Senior Services Midland County Council on Aging.  It’s an adult day program that helps her maintain her dignity and stay active and alert. 

The SPACE team can be proud to know they are helping people just like this every day through their donations to our United Way campaign.  SPACE is part of the Retail and Services Division of the campaign and that division surpassed it’s goal by 38% !  And SPACE helped make that happen.  Thank you to everyone on the team who committed to making a difference in our communities.