Note:  Not all surface coating operations are authorized in all jurisdictions internationally.  References to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are used as examples.  In all jurisdictions, applicable laws and regulations must be followed.

 

I. General Responsibilities of csc REGISTRANTS

CSCs should:

a. make safety their highest priority,

b.  seek excellence in workmanship,

c.  develop and exercise good judgment, and apply sound principles of technical decision-making,

d.  recognize and manage risks effectively,

e.  adhere to prudent operating practices and personal operating parameters (e.g., tolerances, limitations, and other human factors),

f.   advance professionalism,

g.  act with responsibility and courtesy,

h.  adhere to applicable laws and regulations, and

i.   comply with training and performance requirements.

Explanation:  Code of Conduct Section I serves as a preamble to the Code of Conduct’s other principles.  It emphasizes safety, excellence, risk management, and responsibility.

Recommended Practices:

• Approach surface coating equipment maintenance with seriousness and diligence, recognizing that pollution prevention and safety depend on you. 
• Maintain each piece of equipment as if you owned it.
• Understand and comply with the privileges and limitations of your certificate, license, and any additional ratings.
• Recognize, accept, plan for, and correctly estimate the costs of implementing proper safety practices for the work environment.
• Identify and adapt to changing work conditions based on sound principles of safety, risk management and compliance. 
• Recognize the increased risks associated with equipment maintenance performed under time pressure, in distracting environments, in inclement weather, at night, and other adverse conditions.  Plan for and manage such risks using accepted risk management principles.  Never subject others to risks you would not prudently take.
• Use accepted/approved methods, techniques, and practices to perform equipment maintenance or other authorized tasks.  Use approved parts and supplies, as applicable.
• Use, periodically review, and contribute improvements to checklists, including errata, and adopt personal minimums for acceptable equipment maintenance practices. 
• Make personal wellness (both mental and physical) and an honest self-evaluation of your fitness a precondition of commencing each work shift or task.
• Be aware of personal susceptibility to (and seek to avoid or manage) fatigue, stress, extreme temperatures, and distraction.
• Listen and be heard.  Be prepared to speak up if you see unaddressed safety or compliance issues.
• Urge owners/operators to comply with regulatory compliance.
• Plan and research every task carefully.  Ensure that you have the proper knowledge, experience, and qualifications (or engage such personnel), and the tooling, materials, facilities, environmental conditions, technical data, and processes to perform or approve the required work.
• Document all maintenance tasks performed, and review product logs for relevant history.  Be prepared to provide a detailed shift or task handover to the next technicians.
• Perform operational checks and reinspect.  If practicable, have another qualified person inspect your work before return to service.
• Return equipment in an equal or better state of cleanliness than received.
• Adhere to applicable rules, methods, techniques, and practices of your organization, customer, company, Industries, and regulators.
• Communicate all discrepancies or deviations effectively and promptly.
• Provide feedback to manufacturers and regulatory personnel on discrepancies or deviations and unsafe conditions.
• Become familiar with, confirm, and perform only work permitted by the manufactures recommendations, operations specifications, capabilities list, or ratings.
• Perform only work authorized by the owner/operator.
• If applicable, notify your management if the operations specifications require updating, and seek to apply for necessary changes and/or ratings to update the operations specifications.
• If applicable, follow the procedures to add or modify new items to the capabilities list.
• Within the scope of your responsibilities and authority, ensure that all work is performed by qualified parties.Within the scope of your education, training, and authority, apply a systems approach to safety considering products, production, materials, tools, equipment, facilities, software, and human factors. 
• Consider adopting a safety management systems (SMS), a reliability centered pollution prevention framework, and a risk management approach, as appropriate.

II. Third-Party Safety

CSCs should:

a. maintain a safe work place environment,

b. manage risk and avoid unnecessary risk to product occupants, people and property,

c. brief team members on pollution prevention procedures and inform them of any significant or unusual risk associated with the task,

d. seek to prevent unsafe conduct by third-parties, including coworkers and operators, and

e. avoid operations and behavior that may alarm or disturb building occupants, customers, or other third-parties.

Explanation:  CSCs are responsible for the safety of the product usage, work area, fellow employees, and building occupants, all of whom place their health and safety in CSCs’ hands.  CSCs should exercise sufficient care on their behalf.  Such care includes, but is not limited to, disclosing unusual risks and exercising prudent risk management.  CSC responsibilities also extend to people in the community at large.

Recommended Practices:

• Keep your coworkers and building occupants as safe as possible, as though they were your closest loved ones.
• Act professionally and ethically with your colleagues, buliding occupants, and regulators.
• Promote safety among operators, owners, and other interested parties by contributing to their safety education.
• Wear (and encourage others to wear) appropriate safety equipment.  Demonstrate the use of safety equipment to third parties.
• Consider the experience, background, skills, and concerns of fellow employees.
• Provide a thorough briefing prior to shift or task handover.
• Minimize task handoffs when practicable.
• Never pressure, coerce, or allow fellow employees to perform pollution prevention tasks they do not feel confident or competent to perform.
• Insist on a safe working environment, including but not limited to lighting, noise, chemical protection, and cleanliness.
• Familiarize yourself with all applicable safety procedures.
• Seek to develop and maintain meaningful communication and rapport with the building owner, operator, and employees.
• Facilitate, where appropriate, active participation by owners in the pollution prevention of their building operation.
• Take appropriate safety actions when spray coating with people in the spray coating area.

III. Training and Proficiency

CSCs should:

a.  participate in regular recurrent training to maintain and improve proficiency,

b.  participate in surface coating pollution prevention safety education programs,

c.   remain vigilant and avoid complacency,

d.  train to recognize and deal effectively with emergencies, and

e.  maintain an accurate log to satisfy training and recent experience requirements.

Explanation:  Training and proficiency underlie surface coating pollution prevention safety.  Recurrent training is a primary component of proficiency and should include both classroom and hands-on training.  Each contributes significantly to surface coating pollution prevention and safety; and neither can substitute for the other.  Training sufficient to promote surface coating safety and pollution prevention often exceeds legal requirements.

Recommended Practices:

• Pursue a rigorous, lifelong course of surface coating pollution prevention study.
• Follow and periodically review programs of study or series of training exercises to improve proficiency.  Consider a training plan that will yield new certificates, skills, and professional credentials.
• Know current pollution prevention regulations and understand their implications and rationale.
• Attend surface coating training programs and safety seminars offered by Industries organizations; the EPA, OSHA and NFPA.
• Participate in EPA, OSHA, NFPA and trade association award and partnership programs.
• Stay updated with diverse and relevant surface coating publications.
• Conduct periodic reviews of recent surface coating-related accidents and incidents, focusing on probable causes.
• Ascertain that your training is adequate and documents are current prior to performing surface coating operations, even if you have performed these tasks in the past.
• Maintain proficiency that exceeds minimum regulatory requirements and professional standards.
• Maintain and review a log to track deviations and lessons learned, and evaluate trends for each task performed.
• Achieve and maintain proficiency in equipment set-up, calibration and efficiency requirements.  Otherwise outsource such tasks to qualified specialists.
• Recognize and understand emergency signage, posters, placards and procedures to prevent injury, illness or pollution.
• Register at www.haps6h.com to receive announcements of regulatory information, literature, and to review and complete appropriate training courses.
• Operate systems and equipment, and product usage, only after receiving proper instruction and demonstrating an ability to do so.

IV. Security

CSCs should:

a. seek to maintain the security of all persons and property associated with their surface coating activities,

b. remain vigilant and immediately report suspicious, reckless, or illegal activities, and

c. secure products and associated equipment to prevent unauthorized use.

Explanation:  Enhanced security awareness is essential for the surface coating community.  Threats to security demand responsive action.  This section addresses the CSC’s role in promoting national security and preventing criminal acts.

Recommended Practices:

• Query unfamiliar people found in safety sensitive or secure areas.  Be prepared to challenge and report irregularities, including unauthorized or suspicious people.
• Secure all unattended product and equipment. Use additional or enhanced locks or other approved anti-theft mechanisms to secure all products, as appropriate.
• Confirm that ramp access gates are closed securely behind you to prevent “tailgating” by unauthorized persons.
• Become familiar with The Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (6 CFR Part 27) and other means to report and deter suspicious activities.
• Report security concerns or safety hazards or anomalies whether or not they are in your area.
• Complete required security training.

V. Environmental Issues

CSCs should:

a. recognize and seek to mitigate the environmental impact of surface coating pollution,

b. minimize the discharge of paint, oil, refrigerants, and other chemicals into the environment during surface coating operations,

c. respect and protect environmentally sensitive areas,

d. comply with applicable personal protection procedures and mitigate product usage near sensitive areas, and

e. review and adhere to prudent hazardous materials handling procedures.

Explanation: Reducing pollution caused by surface coating operations will reduce health problems, environmental impact, and unfavorable public perceptions of surface coating. 

Recommended Practices:

• Use environmentally sound devices/procedures for disposing of coatings.
• Learn and adopt environmentally responsible methods for all aspects of product care, especially atomizing products, metal and plastic materials, and handling run-off.
• Be aware of the Material Safety Data Sheet signature of each product, and follow procedures to reduce pollution such as reducing atomization or vaporization when storing, spraying, cleaning, or disposing.
• Mitigate the impact of pollution on wildlife where practicable or required.
• Utilize subcontractors and vendors that adhere to environmentally friendly practices.

VI. Use of Technology

CSCs should:

a. become familiar with and properly use appropriate technologies, recognize their limitations, and supplement with conventional skills when helpful or required,

b. keep current with the requirements and applicable procedures for all technologies that they use, service and/or maintain,

c. recognize that advanced technologies may require a systems-oriented approach to usage, service and maintenance, and

d. contribute to the advancement of technology by providing appropriate feedback based on practical experience.

Explanation:  Innovative, compact, and inexpensive technologies have greatly expanded the capabilities of surface coating operations.  This Section encourages the use of such Green and safety-enhancing technologies.

Recommended Practices:

• When practicable, invest in new technologies that reduce emissions and advance surface coating operations.  Train to use them properly.  Learn and understand the features and limitations of such technologies.
• Recognize that technically advanced equipment and operations are a reality and require special tools, training, test equipment, and procedures.
• Develop constructive ongoing relationships with vendors, manufacturers, and service companies as appropriate, recognizing that new technologies require enhanced ongoing communications among all such parties.

VII. ADVANCEMENT AND Promotion of Pollution prevention

CSCs should:

a.  advance and promote surface coating safety and adherence to the Code of Conduct,

b.  volunteer in and contribute to organizations that promote surface coating, and use their surface coating skills to contribute to society at large,

c.  demonstrate appreciation for other surface coating professionals and service providers,

d.  advance a surface coating pollution prevention culture that values openness, humility, integrity, positive attitudes, and the pursuit of personal improvement,

e.  promote ethical behavior within the surface coating community, and

f.   mentor future surface coating technicians.

Explanation:  Surface coating has a well recognized and worsening public relations problem.  Vigilance and responsive action are essential to ensure Industries vitality and to enhance the surface coating Industries.

Recommended Practices:

• Strive to adopt the Certified Surface Coating “CSC” Code of Conduct.
• Serve as a CSC ambassador to the public by providing accurate information and refuting misinformation concerning surface coating activities, and by encouraging potential student CSCs.
• Recognize that CSC actions and attitudes reflect upon the entire surface coating community.
• Volunteer in support of the surface coating Industries, such as with youth groups and ?career days? to share your CSC expertise and enthusiasm.
• Make charitable use of your eco-friendly resources (for example, provide painting services to charitable organizations and youth programs).
• Express appreciation to other surface coating professionals for their valuable assistance.
• Participate in environmental protection fundraising events.
• Invite constructive criticism from your fellow CSCs and provide the same when asked.
• Adhere to the highest ethical principles in all surface coating dealings, including business practices.
• Expressly advise customers of intended work, rationale, and estimated cost and time, obtain express consent prior to commencing work, and seek cost effective solutions consistent with regulations and safety.  Keep customers apprised of material variances from the estimate and obtain approval before proceeding.
• Seek to resolve disputes informally and congenially.