Tag Archives: SAFETY AS CORE VALUE

MY INDIA SAFE INDIA VII.

Trust all my readers are safe and are on top of the world. The summer had been hot and it was certainly energy sapping. It says that we need to take care of our Planet better than what we are currently doing. Everyone has a role to play and safety professionals a greater role. Let us all together keep this planet of ours safe and sustainable for generations to come.

Continuing their conversation Maggie and Jaggy discuss the Gemba Walk to improve and implement safety in work places. Let us join and listen in.

Maggie: “Hello Jaggy!”

Jaggy: “Hello Maggie! Trust all is well with you.”

Maggie: “Yes Jaggy as usual on Top of the world.”

Jaggy: “Great to hear.”

Maggie: “In our last conversation you were talking about a Gemba walk right.”

Jaggy: “Yes I remember and now you want to know more about it.”

Maggie: “Absolutely!”

Jaggy: “To implement safety as a culture and to ensure all are on the same page certain systems have to be put in place. One such system is a Gemba Walk.”

Maggie: “Can you please explain more clearly?”

Jaggy: “First you need to understand what does Gemba mean?”

Maggie: “So what exactly does it mean?”

Jaggy: “Gemba in Japanese means real place, or the place where value is created. This actually means nothing but a work place be it a shop floor in a factory or any office for that matter.”

Maggie: “So in essence a Gemba walk means walk through the work place.”

Jaggy: “Yes that is correct. Walking through the workplace when everyone is working.”

Maggie: “But how does just walking about a work place or shop floor improve on the safety?”

Jaggy: “Gemba walks are not for safety alone but can be used in a number of ways. The walks when done with a purpose will not only increase productivity but can address a lot of other concerns too.”

Maggie: “Come to the point Jaggy! Let us talk only about Safety.”

Jaggy: “Gemba walks were developed in Toyota keeping view their policy of continuous improvement which in Japanese is called Kaizen.”

Maggie: “Sounds great. Even I have heard of Kaizen.”

Jaggy: “Safety Gemba walks have a 3 elements. 1. Go and See. 2. Ask questions. 3. Show respect.”

 Maggie: “Can you be more specific?”                

Jaggy: “The first thing any safety official will do is to go and see the place where work is being done. He will see whether the safety policy and compliances are being followed or not. He will observe if there are any violations, minor or major and make a note. 2. He or she will ask questions on the process, compliance and mistakes. Suggestions for improvement are also asked. 3. He or she will show respect by not insulting the employees at that place even if a violation is observed.

Maggie: “How does this help?”

Jaggy: “This helps in 1. Compliance and standards are being followed. 2. Employees being a part of suggestions and improvements. 3. Correction of unsafe conditions on the spot. 4. Brain storming on how improvements can be made or maintaining the standards at all times. As the employees are involved throughout this helps the managements improve productivity as well as safety.

Maggie: “Are there any checklists for the walks?”

Jaggy: “Yes there are checklists which are designed by the managements according to their standards and best work practice.”

Maggie: “What should be the frequency of such Gemba Walks?”

Jaggy: “The frequencies can be fixed. Walks can happen as per a fixed schedule or sometimes even impromptu. These walks are intended to catch people doing the right thing rather than the wrong ones.”

Maggie: “Thanks Jaggy on enlightening me. This was certainly a good discussion. We will catch up on more such safety aspects soon.”

Jaggy: “Sure Maggie stay safe, be safe.”

I would like to all my readers to share in the comments section whether Safety Gemba walks are done at your work place and when would you plan to do the same in your workplace. Please let me know how useful are all my blogs till date. Just stay safe and be safe till my next blog.

LIVE LIFE – SAVE LIFE.

Seshadri Varadarajan.

MY INDIA SAFE INDIA VI

Hello Readers! It has been a while since I had posted my last blog. Sometimes Life throws you into a vortex and it takes time for you to come out of it. March was hectic with the training schedules and travel, April gave me a scare and a shock. Scare on the account of an unexpected health issue, which was immediately followed by the shock of the untimely passing away of my mentor Mr. Jayasheel Adapa, on whom I had written my blogs “Innovate or Evaporate” in 2 parts in 2020. Jayasheel Adapa is the younger brother of our main character Jaggy aka Mr. Jagadish Adapa. Both the incidents had their effect on me and the recovery process took its own time.

The other challenge I was grappling with was the eternal question -what to write? After serious contemplation, I decided to continue with my series “My India -Safe India” for this and the next post; and then move on to another topic.

Maggie and Jaggy continue their conversation on OUR AIM – ZERO HARM.

Maggie: “Hello Jaggy! Long time, no see.”

Jaggy: “Yes Maggie, had been busy in March and had a tough April.”

Maggie: “Tough month of April!!!! What happened?”

Jaggy: “The first month of the new financial year is always tough. New plans, new targets and the annual conference.”  

Maggie: “Yes, it is always tough.”  

Maggie: “Jaggy, Now that we have met, can I ask you something?”

Jaggy: “Go right ahead. You don’t need my permission.”

Maggie: “Last time we had discussed the theme for the National Safety Week which was “Our Aim- Zero Harm”. How do we achieve that?”

Jaggy: “There are 2 ways in which we can do that. (1). TBT and (2). Gemba Walk.”

Maggie: “TBT and Gemba Walk? I am just perplexed.”

Jaggy: “These are jargons used by safety professionals all over the world. TBT stands for ‘Tool Box Talk’. Gemba walk is a Japanese concept called ‘Safety walk.’”

Maggie: “Can you explain both of them, in your ‘unique’ style?”

Jaggy: “Let start with the Tool Box Talk (TBT). A TBT is an informal safety meeting that is a part of the organization’s safety culture. It is a meeting which is conducted just before the starting of a job or a shift in a work place like a factory or site.”

Maggie: “Oh I see! What do they discuss in the TBT?”

Jaggy: “The discussion revolves round the work or task for the day, followed by the HIRA to be done and of course the reporting and analysis of any incidents the previous day. Sometimes it is just a topic on safety.”

Maggie: “Hey, that is another acronym that you just tossed into the mix: HIRA. Now, what is this one?”

Jaggy: “HIRA is Hazard Identification Risk Assessment. Do you not remember?”   

Maggie: “Sorry Jaggy! It slipped out of my mind. How long do these meetings last?”

Jaggy: “The meetings are brief, lasting not more than 30 minutes. They may go on for even longer if there were any incidents.”

Maggie: “What is achieved in the TBT?”

Jaggy: “A reminder about keeping the work place safe, not taking any undue risks, stopping the work if there are unsafe conditions etc.”

“The objective is to ensure the work planned is done without any harm to anyone. Our AIM- Zero HARM.”

Maggie: “Who conducts and leads the talks?”

Jaggy: “Good question. Usually the Safety executives lead it but anyone can lead the talks. Visualize the huddle in football or hockey or cricket or before any game starts. In the huddle, any player can give a pep talk.”

Maggie: “What if there are no incidents or accidents to discuss?”

Jaggy: “The meeting is used for a pep talk on safety, sharing safety practices observed or even any news of incidents or accidents elsewhere.”

Maggie: “Tool Box Talk seems to be an excellent way to start the day at work. Do different work places have different names for TBT?”

Jaggy: “Yes, though the nomenclature differs. They are called Safety talks or Morning Safety Meeting or something catchy which people love.”

Maggie: “Thank you Jaggy. You said something called Gemba Walk. What is that?”

Jaggy: “Gemba Walk is a walkthrough done by the safety executives when the actual work is being done.”

Maggie: “Can you elaborate?”

Jaggy: “Not today, Maggie. Too much of information is difficult to absorb for anyone.”

Maggie: “Ok. Take care of yourself.”

Jaggy: “You too stay safe and be safe.”

A Tool Box Talk is a good way to start the day. People and organizations who believe in safety as a Core Value treat these talks with a lot of respect and seriousness. It is never too late to have TBT or safety talks in your work places. Let us make it a habit as habits always tend to remain with us for a long time.

Keep reading, keep enjoying life. More in my upcoming blogs.

Live Life – Save Life!

Seshadri Varadarajan.