TIME FROM OUR
TO LEARN
MISTAKES
to talk about incidents, as much as we might not want to.
“And I think that in 2024, people are a little more open to that vulnerability and how they can take that and learn from it. Accidents can happen to you, too. So try and minimize that by learning from other people,” he added.
When the guy anchors pulled out of the Pahala ash soil, they left a hole like this one. Pahala ash looks similar to normal red dirt but is far less stable; geotechnical engineering could have revealed this weakness.
LEARNING FROM OSHA
THE ALLIANCE COLLABORATIVE
But change can be uncomfortable. Domeck and Stewart note that there was a good deal of nervousness in the industry and in ACCT about the presen - tation. Some attendees admitted they really didn’t want to hear the message, and attended reluctantly. After they heard the full story, though, these same individuals praised the effort. The duo also point out that ACCT’s new executive director, Melissa Webb, both approved and attended the session, and they are hopeful that they and others will be able to work with Webb to bring some needed changes to the organization. “What we really need to do now is take action. We need to actually have some sort of mechanism or forum where these conversations can take place,” said Stewart. She suggested that might in - clude a pre- or post-Conference session, if not one during the Conference itself. Domeck added, “People in ACCT and other groups need to know that when you talk about and report incidents, you’re not going to be demonized, or lose your credentials or insurance. We didn’t lose ours.” “My hope is with the younger, up-and- coming professionals,” said Stewart. “It is a different world now, and they tend to see the value of being open with these sorts of things more than some of us that may have been around a lot longer.”
The aerial adventure industry can learn from other industries as well.
Domeck and ERi have been fans of collaboration for years. Domeck was one of the founders of the Alliance Collaborative, first pulling the group together in 2014 when he “needed some help getting some projects done,” he said. He noted that several of the Al - liance members have tried to get ACCT involved in more collaborative projects over the years, often while serving as ACCT board members, without much success. “We figured that with a smaller, more nimble group, we could do more to help support each other,” he said. The Alliance members also agreed to operate in ways that exceed the re - quirements of the ANSI/ACCT standards in some instances. That includes having engineering done in circumstances where it’s not mandated.
“Years ago we sat in on an OSHA presentation,” Domeck recalled, “and the speaker said, ‘Rule number one, don’t ever go off the ground.’ And we all laughed. But he wasn’t laughing. He continued, ‘Rule number two, if you do go off the ground, don’t fall. And rule number three, if you do fall, don’t hit the ground.’” What seemed silly at first began to make perfect sense: builders should spend as little time in the air as possible, for safety’s sake, and take appropriate safety precautions when they do get off the ground. “Those simple little rules completely changed the way we work,” Domeck noted. “We’ve got a product called a Tango Tower. It used to take us a month to build, and we’d be up in lifts much of the time. After that OSHA presentation, I said, ‘We’re going to build this whole thing on the ground from now on.’” After rethinking the entire construction process, builds went from 30 days to just seven—with only two days of work at height. If you take the time to recon - sider how you do things, Domeck said, “you can become safer and make better products. And in this particular case, make more money doing it.”
ACCT: CHANGE AGENT?
Both Domeck and Stewart emphasize that they remain strong believers in ACCT. They point to the fact they were allowed to tell their story at the 2024 Conference; they had first proposed a PVM-only session regarding the Ha - waiian incident and incident sharing in 2017, but it was rejected. They see their session as a sign the organization is opening up to having difficult conversa - tions, and to changing the culture.
Made with FlippingBook Digital Proposal Creator