Plant Safety Intern, Logan Braundmeier, has spent her summer at Prairie State creating training videos, instruction manuals, and a Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) matrix.
So far this summer, Logan’s projects have varied greatly. She has been studying and working with new Powered Air Purifying Respirators (PAPR) to help redesign an instruction and manual sheet, along with finding a proper means to store them. Another task for Logan is creating a PPE matrix of the plant; this will determine which PPE should be restocked and which should be discarded. In any down time, she creates training videos through Vyond; these are assigned to new hires or as annual employee refreshers.
All of these projects are coming to a close. Logan expects that, following final edits and approval, the three projects will be done by the end of July. After completion, the PAPR tutorial and information sheet will be posted around the plant, the PPE matrix will be given and used by the warehouse workers, and the Vyond videos will be shown to those needing to be trained or retrained.
Logan has enjoyed seeing the processes in place at the plant. “I enjoy seeing how coal is converted into the energy that we use daily. More specifically, it is great to see a company so focused on and driven by the safety of their employees over everything. My favorite part of this internship has been going up nearly 400 feet in the steam stack and overlooking the surrounding area, while also getting to know more of the environmental side.”
This summer, Logan has learned a lot of important details about the daily tasks of a safety professional, including how to assess hazards and what to look for in routine plant walk throughs. She has also become familiarized with various types of PPE, along with daily use and emergency use safety equipment. “Certain experiences I will remember include going down into the coal mine on our intern tour and the intense heat in the power plant while doing inspections.”
This internship has solidified Logan’s career decision. “I am studying a field that constantly keeps me interested and always has me interacting with co-workers. In my opinion, this is a field where there is no limit to the amount of learning and growth a person can have.”
This fall, Logan will return to Murray State University, where she plans to graduate in May 2022 with a master’s degree in environmental health and safety. She then hopes to begin her safety career and earn designations as a Graduate Safety Practitioner and Certified Safety Professional. After gaining years of experience, her goal is to become a director of environmental health and safety.