NEWS IN A NUTSHELL
Sunset Ceremony
Meet
Blue Diamond’s
first Culture Change team in
Sacramento – the Safety Squad. They celebrated the
sunset of their Danger Zone project in a night full of great
food and excellent company in October 2018. The team
consisted of Training Coordinator Brandon McDaniel,
Dock Coordinator Francisco Cuevas, Inventory Specialist
Cesar Barron, and Warehouse Driver/Forklift Instructor
Darian Cooper, as well as Main Production Line Operator
Tracy Skates and Safety Department lead, Tony Toledo.
The Safety Squad’s project kicked off in January 2017. At
the event, the team spoke of the process, and their trials
and tribulations across the 18-month long project. The
inaugural team chose to rebrand the “8-foot rule,” which
was rolled out in order to stop serious forklift/pedestrian
injuries by requiring all team members to stay a minimum
of eight feet from an operating forklift. They chose the
name “Danger Zone” and gave the process a command
and hand signal to empower communication between
the forklift driver and a pedestrian wishing to approach
the lift. They employed several unconventional teaching
tools, like using a remote-control forklift to teach team
members about maneuverability and stopping distance
during a safety gathering, and an engaging video featuring
Sacramento Plant Director, Jeff Hatfield, putting himself in
the Danger Zone while strolling through the Dock area.
“This is about trust”, said Cesar Barron, the team leader of
the Squad. “We wanted to show that anyone could walk
up to anyone else, even the plant manager, and talk to
them about how to be safe.”
Safety Squad TeamMembers: (left to right) Francisco Cuevas,
Darian Cooper, Brandon McDaniel, Cesar Barron.
2 0
A L M O N D F A C T S
