Safety in IT

Everybody is responsible for safety. 

CERN has a formal safety policy (SAPOCO/42) and each department has a Departmental Safety Plan. The Staff Rules and Regulations require you to be familiar with, and to comply with, these regulations.

If you see a problem

If you see something that is unsafe (e.g. a fire door blocked open or a pool of water on the floor) then please act! You do not always need to contact a safety officer.

You can contact the Service Portal (Tel: 77777) to arrange for the problem to be fixed.

Any other issues which cannot be reasonably resolved by yourself or SEM Support should be referred to your IT Safety Officer.

IT-specific risks

For most people in IT, the greatest danger is from the usual occupational hazards---slipping, falling and the risk of fire. So, make sure you know the evacuation procedures and behave sensibly - don't climb up on a wobbly chair to reach the top of your bookcase! (Simple falls are the most common form of accidents at CERN.)

The machine room in areas in B513 and B613 have special risks:

• the false floor - removing false floor tiles creates a hazard for others and care is needed when working under the false floor.
• special equipment - such as the STK silos or the motorised "clerk" used for lifting palettes
  electrical risks - not all sockets are protected with differential circuit breakers
• last, but not least, a fire here puts the CERN programme at risk.

People with access to the machine room must be aware of the rules that apply here.

Office environment

Safety at CERN also covers issues of ergonomics - your office environment should be comfortable and not damaging to your health.

So, make sure your chair is safe and that your desk is set up correctly for using a keyboard and monitor - see the SC Safety Note Recommendations for the habitual use of VDU screens.