When just 7 percent of your customers are involved in a specific industry, you don’t typically make accommodating alterations in your daily business for such a small group. However, 33 Cashman Equipment employees across Nevada have completed the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) training to meet the needs of customers involved with hazardous materials.

Cashman Equipment voluntarily chose to pursue certification in order to provide the maximum safety benefits to employees and customers. While certification is occasionally recommended, the company’s internal safety committee (formed from Cashman employees from various departments and locations) determined that employee safety could be compromised by visiting a hazmat site or servicing equipment from such a job. Field and shop technicians, as well as welders, enrolled in the HAZWOPER program to secure the skills necessary to protect themselves and those around them from dangerous contact with hazardous materials, including heavy metals, carcinogens, and other chemicals.

The 40-hour class was conducted at Cashman by Eric Tofte, director of training and consultation at Evergreen Safety Council, a private, non-profit organization providing safety and health training. Cashman employees learned to handle high concentrations of toxic substances; Immediately Dangerous to Life and Health (IDLH) environments; situations that present an oxygen deficient atmosphere; conditions that pose a fire or explosion hazard; evacuation procedures; ands various dangers posed to employees in the area. The certification not only raises safety awareness among Cashman employees, it also provides customers with conscientious service, from sales and product calls to repairs and maintenance.

“Cashman Equipment is committed to unwavering safety standards, wherever we are. Securing HAZWOPER certification is simply the way to operate a business at the highest level, for the benefit to our employees and customers,” said Mike Pack, president and COO of Cashman Equipment.

Founded in 1931 by James “Big Jim” Cashman, Cashman Equipment is a full service dealer. Cashman provides new and used equipment for sale and rental, as well as parts and service to construction, paving, mining, truck engine, and power system industries throughout Nevada and parts of California. Currently headquartered in North Las Vegas, Cashman is one of the largest privately-owned employers in Nevada. Cashman is scheduled to relocate its corporate headquarters to Henderson, Nev., in late 2008.

For more information, visit www.cashmanequipment.com.

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