Personal Protective Equipment Speech

Personal Protective Equipment(PPE)

The use and wear of PPE is not exactly the most romantic of things to talk about but then again the results from not wearing and maintaining it are even less romantic.  We all want to go home at the end of the day from work with all of our fingers, toes, eyes, ect.  This is why it is very important that when in a hazardous environment in the work place that you wear your PPE ie safety boots, gloves, glasses.  Lets go over a few of these items along with the proper wear and care for them.

Wearing of them is very important so pick what is comfortable because you will wear it if its more comfortable for you.  Safety glasses come in a wide variety of sizes, colors, brands.  Pick the one that fits you best. Although unfortunately some things are just not going to be comfortable due to their purpouse such as goggles and aprons. Then there is hearing protection basied upon what you are doing determins the type you will need for most things the disposable ones that go in your ear will work just fine.  But once you are in a location that is louder you will need to upgrade your hearing protection to ear muffs possibly even both if you are in a high noise envrioment.  Safety boots are also very individual preference just as long as they have a solid rubber non-slip sole and the toe cap meets the current ANSI spec.  Myself I prefer Redwings that have a composite toe cap.  Gloves come in many styles also from the latex ones for handling mild chemicals to heavy rubber ones for stronger ones.  Then there are the work gloves that are made from various materials depending upon what you are doing.

Taking care of you PPE is also very important if you take care of it then it will take care of you.  Clean you safety glasses when ever they are dirty so you can see what your doing.  If they become scratched or unserviceable dispose of them and get a new pair.  When you no longer need them put them in a case to prevent damage.  Hearing protection is also very important to maintain the disposable ear plugs are the easiest obviously since you can only wear them a couple times before they get dirty and wont create a good seal anymore.  Your ear muffs should be inspected daily for cracks and tears on the muff part because if that’s damaged it lessens its noise deadening ability.  They should be wiped off at the end of every time you wear them and put away in a safe location.   Safety boots should be cleaned up when they get dirty to preserve them for longer wear.  Also they should be aired out at the end of the day or when ever your done wearing them to prevent them from rotting out on the inside.  If you should notice that the toe cap is becoming exposed you need to put a protective coating over it or elese dispose of them and aquire a new pair.  Also if your tread is worn off the bottom of your boots they are no longer serviceable.  Aprons need to be wiped off when ever you are done wearing them with a damp rag to rid them of anything that is on them and then be hung up to air dry.  If they get tears in them either repair them or throw them away and get a new one.