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Safety Posts
When the heat takes over
By Cotney Consulting Group. How extreme temperatures increase jobsite risk. Extreme heat doesn’t usually cause the first mistake on a job. It causes the second one. The missed step. The rushed movement. The decision felt fine at the moment, but it wasn’t. Crews understand heat. They work through it every ...
Ladder safety: Getting the basics right across every trade
By John Kenney, Cotney Consulting Group. Consistent ladder safety protects your people, your productivity and your reputation. Walk any outdoor jobsite — whether it's a landscaping project, a tile installation, a lighting upgrade, a pool equipment repair or an outdoor living build — and you’ll see the same tool used in all ...
Watch your step
By John Kenney, Cotney Consulting Group. Fall prevention and trip hazards across outdoor worksites. Whether you're installing tile, setting pavers, running conduit for outdoor lighting, maintaining athletic turf or building a pergola, every trade shares the same silent threat: uneven, unpredictable walking surfaces. Most contractors think of fall hazards as working ...
Walking-working surfaces: The everyday hazards that put crews at risk
By John Kenney, Cotney Consulting Group. Across all industries, slips, trips and falls are a leading cause of injury. In outdoor construction and maintenance, the risk increases exponentially. On any outdoor jobsite — whether you’re building a patio, running electrical lines, maintaining irrigation, installing tile or servicing a pool — workers spend ...
Staying grounded: Safe material handling for tile and stone work
By John Kenney, Cotney Consulting Group. In tile and stone work, safety and craftsmanship are inseparable — and both begin with staying grounded. Walk onto any tile or hardscape job, and you’ll see craftsmanship in motion — crews lifting heavy stone, moving pallets of pavers or setting large-format tiles with precision. ...
The hidden strain
By John Kenney, Cotney Consulting Group. Preventing back and knee injuries in hardscape work. Hardscape work demands skill, strength and precision. Every day, crews lift stone, carry pavers, kneel on rigid surfaces and maneuver awkward loads into place. It’s some of the most physically demanding work in the outdoor living industry — ...
Electrical awareness for maintenance technicians
By John Kenney, Cotney Consulting Group. When maintenance technicians operate with consistent awareness, they protect not only themselves but also every person who relies on the systems they maintain. If there’s one area of maintenance work that demands absolute respect, it’s electricity. Technicians work around it every day — replacing lighting, ...
Housekeeping on the jobsite: The foundation of every safe work environment
By John Kenney, Cotney Consulting Group. Safety, productivity and craftsmanship all begin with a well-kept work environment. In every outdoor trade — whether you're laying pavers, installing lighting, building outdoor kitchens, maintaining sports surfaces, landscaping or servicing pool equipment — the quality of the jobsite starts with a straightforwardpractice: housekeeping. It’s ...
Hazard awareness: Building a worker’s ability to see problems before they happen
By John Kenney, Cotney Consulting Group. Awareness isn’t luck. It’s discipline. And in every outdoor trade, it’s what keeps workers whole and projects moving. In every outdoor trade — tile and hardscaping, landscaping, pool and spa, lighting, sports surfaces, agronomics, maintenance and outdoor living builds — there’s one skill that separates safe ...
Fall hazards in everyday repairs
By John Kenney, Cotney Consulting Group. When crews stay alert and respect the hazards that hide in daily work, they reduce injuries, build trust and keep operations moving safely. When most people think of fall hazards, they picture roofs, scaffolds — elevated platforms. But for maintenance technicians, the most dangerous fall risks ...
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