June and July Safety Recognition Awards
Featuring some of Sanford Lab's most notorious safety gurus.
Congratulations to Curtis Jones, infrastructure technician, and Robyn Varland, Davis Campus custodian, who were recognized for their commitment to safety by Sanford Lab’s Safety Committee. Jones received the June 2018 Safety Performance Program honor, while Varland was recognized in July 2018.
Curtis Jones
As Jones was preparing to leave the 17 Ledge on the 4850 Level after his shift, he noticed a potential hazard. Just beyond the storage area for rubble, Jones noticed there was no signage to warn people of the hazard.
Locating several signs that were not in use, Jones created a sign that indicated a warning, then hung it across the drift section, closing the area to traffic. This ensured that no one would walk into the area without caution, while prompting work to be done to rectify the hazards in the area.
“Curtis is always looking for ways to enhance safety at Sanford Lab,” said Bryce Pietzyk, Sanford Lab underground access director. “He is constantly on the lookout for potential issues pertaining to safety—we count on him to appropriately address even the most minute details.”
Robyn Varland
Varland was at work atop a scaffolding, cleaning the Water Tank in the Davis Campus, when her hardhat fell to the ground. Upon impact, the headband broke, but the outer shell was visibly undamaged.
Varland included the incident in her daily report, which prompted her supervisor to call her, telling her to replace the entire hardhat, as there could be microfractures in the shell and safety equipment should always be replaced after an impact.
When her supervisor contacted her, Varland said she had already replaced it: “I didn’t know that it was general practice, but I felt like it was the safe thing to do.”
“SURF has had some great Safety Recognition Award winners lately, and Robyn absolutely deserves to be counted among them if for no other reason than because of her consistency and her genuine buy-in and attitude toward safety,” said Jaret Heise, Sanford Lab science director. “Hands down, she is one of our brightest safety stars!”