Empowering employees to make good decisions and hold themselves accountable for their actions can be a sound management policy that provides a multitude of benefits to a company and protects the bottom line. A key facet of empowerment is providing the right tools for employees so they can perform their jobs well and accomplish tasks efficiently.
In today's business environment, the word "tools" can take on many meanings. Primarily, we associate the word "tools" with proper training for employees to perform a specific job. Second, but no less important, are the actual physical tools used in the performance of the job. Having the right tool for the task at hand is necessary for proper safety, employee empowerment, and efficient completion.
One tool that tends to get overlooked is the containment pool. A portable spill containment pool is a device and methodology that allows the user to carry — whether by hand, stored on a vehicle, or placed at a location near the possible source of a spill — a compact container capable of collecting an unregulated release of fluids (a spill) in a preventive capacity or in an emergent situation. Prior to the innovation of the portable spill containment pool, there were several variations of this containment concept, such as the enduring yet space-consuming 5-gallon bucket, the fixed-size or inflatable "kiddie" pool, and various other complicated structures that require extensive periods of time to set up before use. Although these attempts have had some success, they fail to truly pass the test as tools and meet specific needs like the portable spill containment pool.
A portable spill containment pool should have features and benefits that facilitate the process at hand, like any tool, and allow ease of use so that employees jump into action and make use of the portable spill containment pool instead of being bystanders. Whether it is an emergency or just proactive deployment for use in today's environmentally conscious climate, providing the right tool — the portable spill containment pool — to empower employees is a good and necessary goal.
The first feature a portable spill containment pool should have is portability. Essentially, it should be small and big at the same time. It should be small enough to be easily stowed/transported in a vehicle. It should conserve valuable space and not get in an employee's way. However, the pool should also be large in capacity. It has to be able to contain the maximum volume of fluids present and/or buy the employee enough time to take the necessary appropriate actions. For example, for a 150-gallon fuel tank on a semi-tractor, it would be wise to consider a 150-gallon portable spill containment pool.
Next, the portable spill containment tool should have the benefit of being easy to use. Its use should be second-nature for the employee, no different than putting on a pair of gloves. If the portable spill containment pool is labor-intensive or requires multiple parts to assemble, chances are it will not get used or parts will be lost. This can definitely affect the company's bottom line, should a spill occur and the employee does not have a functioning spill containment tool. One must also consider the possible impact of negative media coverage for the company, given that just about everyone has a cellphone capable of recording video and posting to social media.
And finally, a portable spill containment pool should just work — no excuses. Whether it's part of an employee's proactive approach to a job or to deploy a portable spill containment pool in an emergency, it should simply deploy and contain. There should be no time or energy wasted on doing a manual setup — unfolding, straightening, or cautiously watching to make sure it works. Time wasted is time lost, as leaking fluids could be causing environmental damage, perhaps running down a storm drain. A portable spill containment pool needs to be fast and easy, and, once deployed, it should contain the spill.
This type of portable spill containment pool allows an employee — the first person on the scene — to immediately act in a proactive capacity, mitigating the effects of the unregulated release, then calling the proper authorities to report and request assistance according to their company guidelines and regulations. Empowering the employee to positively impact what could be a liability for the employer is a good and necessary goal.
A portable spill containment pool that meets the requirements of a tool for empowering employees is the Andax Tank Trap. The Tank Trap is the fastest portable containment system in the world. Once removed from its compact storage bag, it opens to 20 times its stored size in three seconds or less — no inflation, no assembly, and no setup.
The Tank Trap portable spill containment pool is designed with a patented, self-erecting, encapsulated spring-wall system that pops the pool open and raises the containment wall to its full capacity of up to 150 gallons. The containment wall of the Tank Trap is specifically engineered to allow 100% capacity at only 9 inches from ground level. This unique low-profile feature allows the employee to easily place the Tank Trap portable spill containment pool under the source of a leak or spill, potential or active. This can be extremely beneficial, considering the ground clearance issues of working on pipeline flanges, valves, fittings, or even semi-tractor fuel tanks and hydraulic equipment fluid reservoirs.
Another feature of the Tank Trap is the ability for employees to deploy the Tank Trap and place it under the equipment, or roll the equipment into the portable spill containment pool. The side walls simply pop back up and allow for proactive containment while servicing a variety of equipment, or just refueling in the field or on a customer's site.
The Tank Trap is easy to use and simple to put away. The overall design of this tool is clean and efficient. The Tank Trap portable spill containment pool's interior is free of material folds, creases, or pockets that can make cleanup labor-intensive. Consequently, the smooth interior is easily wiped down and the Tank Trap can be placed back in its storage bag for the next use. Just like any good tool, the Tank Trap is reusable.
The Tank Trap portable spill containment pool is a tool that empowers employees to be proactive in their company's efforts to reduce and eliminate spills, thus protecting the bottom line. Because of its ease of use, fast and efficient deployment, and reusability, it is the tool employees will want to use and actually will use.
The Tank Trap is an employee-empowering, proactive portable spill containment tool, made in America by Andax Industries. It is available in 20-, 50-, 100-, and 150-gallon capacities. For more information, visit www.andax.com, email [email protected], or call (800) 999-1358.
