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EVENTS
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December 4
December 14
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COMPUTER HELP
Click for eTicket
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REPORT SAFETY HAZARDS
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MAKE SUGGESTIONS
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REPORT WRONGDOING
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READ PAST ISSUES OF N&V
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CONNECT
 
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Ford's Focus
"They were packed in there pretty tight. They were only trapped about ten minutes, but it was a hot summer day and they were really glad to see me."
And so it goes in this week's installment of "A Day in the Life of...an Elevator Technician." Remember that this new section is intended to educate everyone about what we do here in OPP, not to highlight individuals. Every team has stories to tell. Reach out to Alex Novak or Paul Ruskin so we can hear yours.
We have another new feature debuting: Tip of the Week. The folks in Environmental Health and Safety will provide easy-to-use information for your home or office each issue.
Have a good week,
Ford
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Safety Record
Seven Is an Unlucky Number
 We've had seven injuries since our last issue, showing again that dangers lie around every corner. We had one employee twist their knee while working above a ceiling on a ladder. We had a shoulder strain while lifting skids, a neck strain while loosening pipes with wrenches, and a shoulder strain while removing ceiling tiles.
We had two two injuries from heavy equipment falling. A table fell on an employee's foot as they were moving it, and the monster hose fell when an employee disconnected it from the Giant Vac large leaf vacuum.
Finally, despite wearing the proper footwear, we had an employee slip while applying hard wood floor stripper.
Stay alert, and stay safe.
As always, please report all safety hazards, near miss incidents and safety success stories.
Call us at 863-2340.
Visit us, or even drop a note outside our office in 103 Physical Plant.
Let's have a safety record to crow about.
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Announcements & Reminders
The Murder of Crows*
*No crows will be murdered.
Cathey Chaffee from University Relations sent in one of the first intel reports:
"They were coming in from the east. The students were dodging strafing runs from Eisenhower Deck to Thomas to Ritenour. It was just like a scene from Alfred Hitchcock's
The Birds .
People looked up, but not for long; everyone was running."
Expect to hear lots of fireworks as the "bangers and screamers" are launched to scare the birds off campus. The relocation team goes into full action this week:
Tuition Reimbursement Information Session
December 4
129 HUB-Robeson Center
Any time between 11:00 am and 1:30 pm
Tickets Still Available for Martin Luther King Banquet
There are still 9 seats available for Tuesday, January 15, at the Penn Stater. Please contact Candy Wert by this Friday (December 7) if you are interested.
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Cheers
 Big cheers go out to Brett Umholtz, Dick Bryan, and John Bathurst from the asbestos removal/insulation crew and Dan Mark from the sheet metal crew. Supervisor Mark Gates received this special note of thanks from the assistant manager of housing in West Halls, Arkie Tromm:
I just wanted to write and let you know of the nice work performed by John Bathurst and his crew here at West Halls Housing. I had a noise coming from the inside of the wall, made by rubbing insulation. The students were sending e-mails left and right complaining about the noise, and we had nowhere to move them.
On short notice, John and his crew completed the work over Fall break and saved the day. I can't say enough how much we appreciate the fine work. Please give them all a big THANKS from the West Hall Housing Department.
LEDs Light-Up OPP
OPP Electricians have upgraded the Physical Plant reception areas, meeting rooms, shop areas, hallways, and some offices with cutting edge LED (light emitting diode) and reduced wattage lighting. Some areas have motion sensors so the lights are on only when needed. Even the exterior building lights are now LEDs.
Cheers to Steve Besecker and his crew for reducing our building's energy consumption. The new lights are 90 percent more efficient than incandescent bulbs and have an estimated life span of 50-100,000 hours. There are also huge savings in maintenance and relamping costs.
 Steve says "We'll probably never have to relamp these within our lifetimes." Congratulations to him and his crew members:
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Welcomes & Farewells
Welcomes
Please take a moment to send an e-mail welcome to all of the employees who recently joined OPP.
Wade Weaver is the new Waste Collector for Buildings and Grounds. He comes to us from Hospitality Services Maintenance and began work last Monday. He is from Port Matilda.
Jim Kyle is the new Custodian in District 53. He transferred from Student Affairs and began work last Sunday. He began his career at PSU in 2008 as a wage payroll employee for the labor crew. He then transferred to waste management, custodial, and then back to the labor crew. He started full time in 2011 at the HUB working for Student Affairs until transferring to the R&E position in District 53 in OPP. He is married with 3 kids and 2 grandkids.
John Robinson is the new Custodian in District 43. He is new to the University and also started work on Sunday.
Lori Jennings is the new Administrative Support Assistant for Admin and Financial Services and ITS. She started on Monday.
Farewell
We wish the best of luck to Chris Diehl. Last week he moved on from his position as a Custodian in District 42 to a new position in Housing and Food Services. Biff Myers relayed what an asset he was to the second shift team. "He was a Relief and Extra and a Team Cleaner. He will be missed, and we wish him happy days from D42."
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Carpooling
Or you can contact Alex Novak to post a request in News & Views.
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Up for Grabs
New This Issue - 12/3
FOR SALE: Puppy up for Adoption
PRICE: $300
CONTACT: Sherry Pinamonti
DEPARTMENT: Work Control Center
PHONE: 865-4731
DESCRIPTION: 3-year-old Japanese Chin named Susannah from Luv-a-Chin rescue. Very affectionate, loves humans, and gets along with other dogs.
New Last Issue - 11/16
FOR SALE: Norfolk Allen Pine
CONTACT: Candace Wert
DEPARTMENT: AVP
PHONE: 865-4402
DESCRIPTION: This is a beautiful, healthy Norfolk Allen Pine measuring 3' tall.
Any OPP employee can post an item FOR FREE with their name, department, and e-mail address.
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A Day in the Life
What is it like to be...an OPP Elevator Technician?
Dick Chronister explained it this way:
 "My day begins with checking for repairs left from the night before. Sometimes things as small as a penny can stop an elevator from working. I've had pennies get jammed in the door track so badly we had to take the door off.
I once had 22 female volleyball players stuck in an elevator in East Halls. They were packed in there pretty tight. They were only trapped about ten minutes, but it was a hot summer day and they were really glad to see me.
There are almost 400 elevators on campus. We take care of basketball hoops in Rec Hall, I.M., and White Buildings, and we repair auditorium stages, dock hoists, and all our cranes. It it goes up and down, its ours.
I even had to learn a little Italian to repair the Indoor Running Track. The equipment was manufactured in Italy and all the manuals were in Italian. I probably couldn't read a menu in Italian, but I do know their symbol for potentiometer!
Every elevator must pass State hydraulic testing every three years and car testing every five. We are constantly learning. First it was relay logic, then program controls, then frequency drives and computer controls. Our elevators are almost too safe. If the system sees anything it doesn't like, it shuts down. The machinery just keeps getting more reliable and safer every year.
My goal is to fix at least one elevator problem every day, then I can go home happy. If you ever get stuck in an elevator, wait for someone who knows what they are doing to get you out, period... end of discussion. Use your cell phone, push the phone button, or push the alarm button and wait for one of us to get you out.
Dick lives in Tyrone, has three children aged 9, 10, and 11 and keeps busy with girl scouts, cub scouts, and coaching soccer. He now has 22 years with OPP.
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Tip of the Week
Check up on Your Heating Oil Tank
Now that it is getting cold, it's a good time to do a heating oil tank check-up.
If you have an underground heating oil storage tank, consider getting it out of the ground. At Penn State, approximately ¼ of all of the underground tanks removed have been found to be leaking, and these can be very expensive to clean up! If you need to have an underground tank, consider getting one that is double walled.
Inspect Aboveground
If you have an aboveground basement-style tank, you are not home free and should still check it out. Penn State has had several releases occur from these tanks, but the good news is that if it's in your basement, you will know about it immediately. The smell of fuel oil is unmistakable! The bad news is that it will be absorbed by the concrete basement fl
oor. To get rid of the odor you will need to get rid of the concrete floor.
Better Safe than Sorry
Storage tanks should have a life span of 30 years.
However, water in the tank can allow it to rust from the inside out. At Penn State we have had four tanks recently fail this way, and all were 10 years old or less. Fortunately they were double-walled and there was no release of the fuel.
Here are more detailed tips for inspections. If any of these items don't check out, CALL A PROFESSIONAL. For more information on this article, contact Lysa Holland.
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Contact Us
If you have any comments or suggestions for News & Views, contact Alex Novak by e-mail or at 863-0432.
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