Safety Specialist

DIS-TRAN Packaged Substations is currently looking for a Safety Specialist to join their team. The

Safety Specialist is responsible for supporting and continuously improving the health, safety, and loss-prevention program at DIS-TRAN Packaged Substations. This position provides a high level of technical safety expertise within a manufacturing environment and is responsible for identifying hazards, evaluating risk, implementing effective controls, investigating incidents, conducting inspections and audits, coordinating training, maintaining regulatory records, and partnering with operations to prevent injuries, illnesses, property damage, and environmental releases. The position is expected to exercise sound independent judgment, use Stop Work Authority when warranted, and serve as a safety resource to employees, supervisors, and management.

CORE COMPETENCIES:

• Customer Focus
• Decision Quality
• Business Insight
• Drives Results
• Collaborates
• Communicates Effectively
• Courage
• Instills Trust
• Manages Ambiguity

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Promote and maintain a proactive safety culture throughout the facility and serve as a visible safety resource for all employees.
• Conduct routine and daily observations of production, maintenance, material handling, yard, warehouse, and support activities to identify unsafe conditions, unsafe acts, and opportunities for improvement.
• Exercise Stop Work Authority whenever an imminent danger, serious hazard, or uncontrolled risk is identified; communicate the concern, initiate appropriate controls, and document resolution.
• Perform and/or coordinate formal safety inspections, behavioral observations, audits, job hazard analyses, risk assessments, and workplace exposure evaluations.
• Lead the development, review, and continuous improvement of safety policies, procedures, programs, and work instructions.
• Ensure safety procedures are practical, understood by employees, and implemented consistently across operations.
• Investigate all recordable and potentially serious incidents, injuries, illnesses, near misses, property damage events, and other significant safety events; identify immediate, underlying, and root causes and establish corrective actions.
• Track corrective and preventive actions to completion, verify effectiveness, and escalate overdue or ineffective actions to management.
• Maintain OSHA-required injury and illness records and support required reporting, documentation, and record retention.
• Support safety metrics and reporting, including leading and lagging indicators, incident trends, corrective-action status, inspection findings, and training completion.
• Conduct new-employee safety orientation and recurring safety training; develop or update training materials based on identified hazards, incidents, regulatory changes, and operational needs.
• Maintain accurate safety training records and verify that employees are qualified or authorized before performing safety-sensitive work.
• Coordinate or support training and qualification programs for forklift operators, crane/rigging activities, PPE, Hazard Communication, lockout/tagout, emergency response, fall protection, electrical safety, fire prevention, hot work, heat stress, and other applicable topics.
• Lead emergency response activities involving medical incidents, fire alarms, evacuations, hazardous material incidents, severe weather, spills, and other facility emergencies.
• Coordinate emergency drills, evaluate drill performance, document deficiencies, and implement corrective actions.
• Inspect and maintain records for fire extinguishers, AEDs, eyewash stations, emergency equipment, spill response equipment, first-aid supplies, and other emergency response resources.
• Assist with development, implementation, and periodic review of Emergency Action Plans and other emergency response procedures.
• Support industrial hygiene activities and exposure assessments involving noise, heat stress, welding fumes, dust, chemicals, lighting, ventilation, ergonomics, and other workplace exposures; coordinate outside resources when specialized testing is required.
• Evaluate PPE requirements, assist with PPE selection, and maintain or support PPE assessments and programs appropriate to the hazards of each operation.
• Assist operations with machine guarding, electrical safety, hazardous energy control/lockout-tagout, material handling, powered industrial trucks, cranes and lifting operations, welding/hot work, ergonomics, and other manufacturing hazards.
• Review safety aspects of new equipment, process changes, facility modifications, and new or revised work practices before implementation when requested.
• Participate in contractor and visitor safety activities, including orientation, site requirements, and verification of applicable safety documentation.
• Coordinate with supervisors and managers to correct hazards while minimizing unnecessary disruption to production.
• Participate in regulatory, insurance, customer, corporate, and internal safety audits/inspections; assist with responses and corrective-action documentation.
• Monitor changes in applicable safety regulations, industry practices, and company requirements and recommend program updates as needed.
• Serve as a liaison with Human Resources, Operations, Quality, Maintenance, Environmental, and other departments on safety-related issues.
• Provide periodic safety reports and recommendations to the Safety Manager and facility management regarding trends, significant hazards, incidents, corrective actions, and program performance.
• Support safety committee activities, toolbox talks, safety meetings, safety campaigns, and employee engagement initiatives.
• Maintain confidentiality and professionalism when handling incident investigations, employee information, and other sensitive safety records.
• Perform other duties as assigned by the Safety Manager or management.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE:

• High School Diploma or GED.
• Minimum of five (5) years of progressive experience in manufacturing, industrial safety, construction safety, or a closely related industrial safety environment.
• Experience working directly in an active manufacturing or industrial facility is required; experience in steel fabrication, welding, electrical equipment, material handling, or heavy industrial operations is preferred
• Demonstrated knowledge of OSHA requirements and practical application of safety programs in an industrial workplace
• Demonstrated experience conducting incident/accident and near-miss investigations, including identification of root and contributing causes and development of corrective actions
• Minimum of three (3) years of experience as an emergency responder, or related public safety position.
• Emergency Medical Technician Certification preferred
• Experienced in conducting post-accident investigations
• Ability to work independently and make sound decisions during emergency and non-emergency situations.
• Experience conducting employee safety training.
• Hazardous Materials Operations or Technician Certification preferred.
• Certified Occupation Safety Specialist Certification
• Forklift Trainer Certified
• Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel, Power Point, and Access required.