Team 2471 has not only a Safety Captain, but a whole safety division! The team as a whole takes pride knowing that they always put safety first. Note the word “division”; while other FIRST teams delegate all shop safety to a specialized few, Team 2471 has a large safety team-that includes every student. The safety division doesn’t function as a babysitter, rather it focuses on safety outreach and promoting a holistic safety culture. At the competitions you can pick out Team 2471’s Safety Captain and Safety Lieutenant by their “Safety Sacks” equipped with First Aid kits, safety glasses, hair ties, ear plugs and more. Team 2471 also provides battery spill kits to other FIRST teams free of charge.
SAFETY TIPS FROM TEAM 2471:
- Safety Glasses are always a must at competition and in the shop but a common overlooked personal protection item are ear plugs! Take hearing protection into consideration and always keep some ear plugs on hand.
- Keep your workspace clear, not only is it a good way to stay organized, it also prevents injuries from occurring. This also applies to the floor. A clean floor is not only nicer to look at, it also reduces slips, trips and falls.
- Closed toed shoes, hair tied back, long pants and non baggy clothing. If this isn’t already a rule on your team it would be a good idea to make it one. Accidents are bound to happen but by taking proper precaution you could save yourself from a major injury.
- Record the accidents that happen! Keeping an accurate record of accidents done in the shop and at competition will help your team correct mistakes and keep everyone safer.
- Don’t get too rowdy! While its always good to have fun, there is nothing more dangerous in a robotics shop than an overexcited student with a sharp piece of metal!
- Get excited about safety! Safety is the most important thing in FIRST and in any manufacturing/engineering job. If companies go into great extents to put Safety first, then we should too. Also if you’re not excited about safety in the shop, then you won’t be excited about it when the judges come around at competition.
- Get your whole team involved! The Safety Captain’s job isn’t to constantly make sure everyone is wearing their safety glasses. Their job is to set the examples for your team to emulate.
