Third Annual Control the Pressure Gas Safety Summit Focuses on Learning From Peers

The Control the Pressure peer-to-peer committee held their third annual safety stewards summit on August 12 at the IBEW 1245 hall. The agenda included a presentation of testimonials, a workshop on valve changing equipment and tailboards, and a break-out session by classification which enabled safety stewards to focus on issues specific to their work duties.

The 32 attendees covered a wide range of topics, including an extensive discussion surrounding the remediation of asbestos wraps in the field and possible exposure. Nevada Energy peer members shared their procedures with PG&E members. According to the safety stewards from PG&E, asbestos remediation procedures are not a settled training matter.

The presentation portion of the program gave members a chance to candidly discuss incidents in order to learn from one another’s experiences. Committee member Adam Weber described an incident in which he and an apprentice were working in a six-foot hole on the final steps of a 90 lb. valve replacement. A brass part provided by the manufacturer was the improper size, so when the part was seated and the valve opened there was an uncontrollable release.

“The noise was so loud all I could do was cover my ears,” Weber recalled to the group. “Luckily, there was a valve nearby in the trench and as I was turning the handle all I could think of is this thing is going to light off.” Weber also reported that the manufacturer denied its role in providing the part that was the cause of the release.

Committee Chairman Ernie Pena informed the group of the employee emergency notification program that PG&E is currently developing. The program is designed to notify PG&E employees of specific locations where employees have been threatened or assaulted, in order to prevent other employees from going into those same areas without notice.  The phone notification program has been in place with gas service for two years, and a company-wide program is under review by the Chairman’s Safety Council. The overall hope is to turn this program out to OMC and other lines of business in the future.

The CTP peer program continues to grow. Additional safety stewards will be joining the program in the near future. In September, all new safety stewards will be trained by committee members on their duties and then installed.