Safety part of lesson for building trades and electricity programs at BOCES

Posted 5 October 2022 at 8:51 pm

Photos courtesy of Orleans/Niagara BOCES – Building Trades students Max Raines (Lyndonville) and Ben Olson (Lockport) are shown with Jim Drzewicki (PRO Operations Manager – Lehigh Construction Group) and Matt Stoklosa (Safety Director – Lehigh Construction Group).

Press Release, Orleans/Niagara BOCES

MEDINA – Orleans Career and Technical Education Center students in Matt Anastasi’s Building Trades program and Bill Leggett’s Electricity/Electronics program recently got a lesson on the job safety.

Mr. Anastasi reached out to Nick Denofrio, a Compliance Assistance Specialist with OSHA, about coming in to speak to the classes. He brought along Jim Drzewicki, PRO Operations Manager of Lehigh Construction Group and Matt Stoklosa, Safety Director of Lehigh Construction Group, who Mr. Denofrio often collaborates with when talking to career and technical education schools.

Mr. Anastasi asked them to specifically talk about falls on the jobsite. “Since falls account for most accidents, they focused on specific areas that will help our students to better understand the rights workers have as well as the rights their employers have supplying fall protection, training and implementation.”

Mr. Anastasi added, “Having a mix of viewpoints from the OSHA inspector to the Safety Director and the field supervisors the classes really had a great way of receiving examples of fall protection. The speakers explained the various types of safety equipment and let the students try them on to understand the differences.”

The students all enjoyed the talk and seeing the different equipment. It was a valuable lesson to learn the various techniques these pieces of equipment play depending on the type of construction they would be working on.

Electricity/Electronics students Padraigh Crowley (Medina) and Ryan Schnepf (Lyndonville) learn from Jim Drzewicki (PRO Operations Manager – Lehigh Construction Group) and Matt Stoklosa (Safety Director – Lehigh Construction Group).