On Monday, June 28th, Tri-M held its first safety event geared specifically for our High Voltage teams. Members from both the High Voltage team and EnerGTest were in attendance. The event was kicked off with a presentation by Lee Shelby, who spoke about the importance of safety while working a hazardous job. Shelby shared his story of how he lost both of his hands due to a safety accident with high voltage thirty years ago. Shelby also reminded the group of how important it is to take notice of the “little things” and to take accountability for your mistakes.  

Following the keynote speaker and breakfast, each attendee was divided into a different “task” group and spent the day going to various training stations. Most of the stations focused on refreshing the group on different safety measures. The stations included: competitions, project communication, air switch operations & inspection, bucket/line truck setup/chainsaw use, and puller tensioner. The groups spent forty-five minutes at each station. 

The theme of the event was “No Excuses”, supporting the idea that you should always do the little things right when it comes to high voltage safety.  

“Providing employees training opportunities like this, ensures that they have the technical skills they need to execute their work safely, leaving the choice to do the right thing in their hands and not up to chance” said Mike Hecker, Safety and Training Manager. “Having a well-trained group of skilled professionals taking care of our customers has been our model for years and proven successful.” 

At the end of the day, awards were given out to the winners of the competitions. Despite the hot and humid weather, it was a beautiful day to spend outside and learn something new.