Fermilab, Brookhaven Join with ATAP for First Multilab Safety Week
Berkeley Lab’s ATAP-led Safety Week was too good an idea to keep to ourselves! In the spirit of collaboration and knowledge-sharing, two organizations that work closely with us — Brookhaven National Laboratory’s Magnet Division and Fermilab’s High-Luminosity LHC Accelerator Upgrade Program — joined ATAP.
Multilab Safety Week builds on the successful tradition of Safety Day, which ATAP adopted on a pilot basis in 2015, with a fullfledged effort in 2016. Berkeley Lab’s Engineering Division and the ALS Upgrade Project joined us during subsequent years. It became a weeklong event, with one or two hours a day of activities, to add flexibility during the pandemic. Multilab Safety Week 2022 was held October 31 through November 4.
Scenes from Multilab Safety Week
Here are some highlights of our work.
Clockwise from top left: Shown in one of their numerous Zoom meetings leading up to Multilab Safety Week are ATAP EH&S Coordinator Pat Thomas, ATAP Deputy Division Director for Operations Asmita Patel, Fermilab EH&S Professional Amy Pavnica, and Brookhaven Magnet Division EHS Coordinator Marteenio Samms, key organizers of the event
Besides extensive physical clean-up of labs, shops, and offices, Multilab Safety Week 2022 comprised a series of seminars and management walk-arounds that focused on opportunities for eliminating, minimizing, and re-using/recycling waste materials and equipment. On Monday, October 31, 2022, over 300 attendees from the three national labs participated in kick-off meetings launching the event.
L-R: Andrew Peterson, Edward Sierra, and Angela Aparicio
On Tuesday, November 1, 2022, Andrew Peterson (Berkeley Lab), Edward Sierra (BNL), and Angela Aparicio (Fermilab) co-presented a seminar on the processes, procedures, and responsibilities underpinning the Occurrence Reporting and Processing System (ORPS). The seminar was attended by over 200 participants, who learned about the importance of capturing safety events in the ORPS.
L-R: Melanie Alexandre, Michael Kincaid, Fred Horn, Amy Pavinca, and David Cathey
The focus turned to material handling on Wednesday, November 2, 2022, with Melanie Alexandre and Michael Kincaid of Berkeley Lab, Fred Horn from Brookhaven, and Amy Pavnica and David Cathey of Fermilab delivering a seminar entitled “Material Handling and Ergonomics.” The seminar covered the correct way to handle materials, highlighted some key handling statistics, conveyed lessons learned from Berkeley Lab, and also shared tips and resources from the ergo.lbl.gov website.
L-R: Kurt Ettinger, Michael Clancy, Robert Bushek
Attendance was strong again on Thursday, November 3, 2022, with over 200 attendees hearing from Kurt Ettinger (Berkeley Lab), Michael Clancy (Brookhaven), and Robert Bushek (Fermilab), who provided their perspectives on the proper Personal Protective Equipment to use when working in labs and shops.
The essence of safety: not jeopardy
Greatest Of All Time at removing light fuels from steep hillsides… adorably. [Kelly Owen/Berkeley Lab]
Closing out the week, LBNL’s Asmita Patel, Patricia Thomas, and Joe Chew co-hosted “Not Jeopardy” on Friday. The game provided the over 150 participants with a fun opportunity to test their safety knowledge and to learn more about their sister labs: who knew, for example, that goats are employed as an effective wildfire prevention measure in the steep terrain of the Berkeley hills? Not Jeopardy was more than just a trivia game — it was a great team building event.
The material below was the “Save the Date” announcement
Save the dates and visit this page often for the latest information!
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Clockwise from top left: Berkeley Lab’s Pat Thomas and Asmita Patel, Fermilab’s Amy Pavnica, and Brookhaven’s Marteenio Samms are key organizers of the first multi-lab Safety Week
Word is getting out regarding the benefits of Safety Week! It will be a joint multi-lab activity this year, with the High-Luminosity LHC Accelerator Upgrade Program team at Fermilab and the Magnet Division at Brookhaven National Laboratory, and possibly other Berkeley Lab divisions, joining ATAP Division.
Safety Day/Week has been a successful tradition in ATAP. This year, the weeklong format will allow us a total of a work day’s worth of activities while accommodating hybrid work schedules in an all-hands, all-hazards event.
Throughout the week, ATAP Programs will be setting aside times that work best for them to participate in specific safety activities; including special safety seminars, workplace cleanups and chemical stewardship, workplace self-assessment, and management walkthroughs. Safety themes will be: Housekeeping, On-the-Job/WPC Training, LOTO and Electrical Safety, and Machine Shop Maintenance.
Safety Week Zoom Background
Show your Safety Week spirit in virtual events with this custom Zoom background.
