Property/Life Safety Evaluation
Concerning property and life safety, most people are unaware of basic procedures. Our Bowman Specialty Services Loss Control group can assist and advise in the maintenance and testing of all safety equipment, including fire and burglary protection that takes into account:
* Sprinkler Systems
* Fire Alarms
* Smoke Detectors
* Exit Lamps
* Emergency Lighting
We at Bowman Specialty Services are familiar with all areas of fire protection, including:
* Protection for flammable liquids
* Warehousing
* Disaster planning for computer facilities
* Commercial cooking
* Plastics
* Grain storage
* Paper manufacturing
* Hotel/motel fire protection
Extra services that we provide include the following:
* Property Loss Control surverys
* Business Interruption surveys
* Builders Risk surveys
* Plan Reviews
* Loss Investigation
* Crime (Burglary, Theft, etc.)
Because many companies who lease or own manufacturing, warehouses and apartment buildings do not meet basic codes and standards, they are highly vulnerable to loss.
Our staff of Bowman professionals can evaluate your Loss Control and Safety program and offer suggestions and recommendations to minimize your exposure to loss and accidents. We can assist in implementing such a Loss Control and Safety program, to help circumvent anything from a minor accident to a major catastrophe.
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Accident Prevention/Safety Education & Training
We can also assist you in the personnel training of proper equipment usage, storage, and proper material handling. This includes equipment ergonomics and the proper use of power tools to substantially reduce needless long-term pain and suffering.
And keep in mind - even though employees do NOT complain, that does not necessarily mean there aren't any hazards on the job. Any number of problems may be lurking beneath the surface:
* Do employees have to shout to be heard?
* Are they coughing frequently?
* Is there fine dust in the air?
* Are there contaminants settling on the equipment?
* Is a worker struggling to hold onto a piece of equipment?
* Is he or she showing any signs of discomfort, i.e. squinting or wringing hands?
When workplace injuries do occur, it is important that a properly-conducted investigation be carried out to determine the cause, correct the problem, and avoid recurrences.
We at Bowman Specialty Services are fully trained and prepared to offer these Loss Control and Safety services.
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Crisis Management & Evacuation
Since 9/11, many government, industry, and community agencies have been attempting to identify hazards in order to prepare for "Crisis Management & Evacuation."
These names of these plans have evolved over time and may now be known as:
* Infrastructure Preparedness
* Disaster Management
* Emergency Management
* Emergency Response
But in reality, they all mean the same thing: Be Prepared!
Before emergency planning and evacuation in an organization can begin, basic or routine planning must be addressed. Whether routine planning is formally documented or whether it is handled on an adhoc basis, it occurs in all organizations and it can be best described as "preparing for a regular course of action."
We can extend the description by adding "normally anticipated."
Thus the routine effort centers on preparing (and subsequently following) methods of handling routine and normally anticipated situations and evacuation.
There are however, considerations above and beyond such routine planning, that must be considered and that are variously referred to as emergencies, contingencies, crises, catastrophes, and disasters.
A Crisis Management & Evacuation Plan includes:
* Types of Emergency
* The Crisis Management Team
* Defining an Organization's Needs
* Assessing an Organization's Vulnerabilities
* A General or Event-Specific Plan - Assumptions & Decisions
* Writing the Plan
* Coordinating and Testing the Plan
* Recovery
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Construction Loss Control
Many of our clients' concerns include New Construction. Construction safety begins long before the building goes up and is erected. There are many concerns, including fire department and police department access.
Underground utility mains need to be marked so as not to cause damage during excavation or pile driving. In the event of pile driving, one needs seismographic readings to avoid damage to other buildings. Trenching, excavation, material hoisting, steel erection, and the location of cranes are also a concern for new building construction.
When the building is enclosed, other concerns include scaffolding, personal protective equipment, and fall protection.
Existing building methods and new construction technology bring about loss control problems which require innovative solutions. One must mesh safety and loss control engineering techniques to develop innovative, yet practical solutions to help reduce the potential for costly construction accidents.
E. G. Bowman provides Loss Control and Safety services to a variety of industrial concerns including:
* Airport Construction Projects
* Co-generation Facilities
* Commercial/Residential Buildings
* Mass Transit Systems
* Street & Road Construction
* Waste to Energy Palnts
Our construction services include:
* Pre-Job Evaluation of Construction Operations
* Loss Control Program Evaluation and Development
* Construction Safety Training
* Hazardous Substance Indoctrination
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Ergonomics
U. S. employers spend nearly $1.5 billion a week on wage payments and medical care for workers hurt on the job, according to the 2008 Liberty Mutual Workplace Safety Index, which estimates that employers paid out over $76 billion in 2007.
Ironically, having great employees has a big unrecognized downside. Every manufacturer wants to have hard-working, highly motivated employees who want to keep working and making money, benefiting both the employee and the company. Like baseball players of old, they don't complain about "minor" aches and pains. They suck it up and keep going.
But stoic employees who don't complain don't provide valuable feedback. You might not find out until years later that:
* the employee workplace was ergonomically unsound, causing serious cases of repetitive-motion injuries like carpal-tunnel syndrome and other arm, hand and back injuries
* dangerous noise levels caused workers to develop hearing loss
* employees were exposed to years of toxic chemicals, dusts, etc, resulting in the development of silicosis, emphysema or other pulmonary disorders
So what can you do when your good workers don't complain?
1. Have an ergonomic expert measure and evaluate employees' workstations and observe them working.
2. A certified industrial hygienist measure ambient and impact noise levels using equipment such as noise-level meters and dosimeters.
3. Standard testing equipment such as pumps and filters should be used to take air samples for airborne contaminants. The samples should be evaluated by a certified lab and the final analysis presented in an official report comparing your exposures to standards.
Recommendations can then be developed to control your exposures.
Equipment should be made adjustable as possible to fit each worker individually. Chairs should be fully adjustable, with adjustable seat height and back height. Employees should be able to raise or lower worktables to a comfortable height. Footrests and ergonomic keyboards can greatly reduce physical stress.
After all, if you have motivated, productive workers, who are healthy and physically sound, wouldn't you want them to stay that way!
Bowman Specialty Services can also provide site visits to building facilities, at which time evaluations are made with respect to:
* office safety
* boiler rooms
* stairwell safety
* compactor safety
* motorized equipment
* storeroom safety
* shop safety
* flammable liquid storage
* safety management
We at Bowman Specialty Services encourage mutual management and staff interaction, for increased loss prevention and the resultant safer working environment for all.
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Special Programs
Historically, special programs, such as the Owner Controlled Insurance Program (OCIP), have enhanced our reputation as an industry leader. Bowman created, developed, and serviced the OCIP for the Northern Border Pipeline operation, which covered 823 miles from Port of Morgan, Montana, terminating in Venura, Iowa. At the time, this pipeline was the largest gas pipeline engineering and construction project ever financed by private industry.
Bowman was also instrumental in providing Loss Control services to all the Major League Baseball stadiums on the east coast, as well as the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York, the New York Housing Authority, and the Jacob Javits Convention Centre.
Bowman created, developed and serviced all of the property and casualty insurance including the "fringe benefits" program for the funded agencies of the New York City Human Resources Administration, servicing the program on a daily basis.
We served as the insurance and risk management department for the City, involving its 1600 locations, and 30,000 employees.
Bowman Specialty Services
Loss Control, Safety Engineering, Crisis Management
(a division of E. G. Bowman)
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