Five Questions with Stephanie Carey,
Maintenance Manager
Safety is the heart that keeps beating throughout the day and night at Iberdrola Renewables. In fact, it’s our top priority and the day-to-day focus of Operations and Maintenance Manager Stephanie Carey. Landowner News recently caught up with Stephanie to find out more about her job and the role safety plays at our wind farms.
LN: How would you describe your day-to-day job function?
Carey: As Operations and Maintenance EHS (Environmental Health & Safety) Manager, I am responsible for thinking things through and keeping people safe.
LN: What do you mean?
Carey: My job is to ensure everyone who works in the field is prepared with all the equipment and knowledge they need to do their job safely. At a micro level, that means managing countless little details, such as what fall protection equipment Iberdrola Renewables field personnel should use to how they should store and dispose of hazardous waste. At a macro level, it means knowing the standards, then ensuring they are applied correctly at the field level by incorporating them into the Environmental Health & Safety procedures.
LN: How much regulation is involved with safety procedures?
Carey: The United States is a highly regulated environment that requires constant monitoring of rules and standards. For example, in the United States all turbines need to be manufactured with the ability to receive a lock or a tag during de-energization. It’s a regulation that was created in 1994, but many manufacturers still do not comply with it. It’s our job to figure out how to be in compliance with the ever-changing federal, state and local regulations.
LN: How does the United States compare to other countries when it comes to safety?
Carey: A big part of my job is working around cultural differences that exist worldwide when it comes to safety. Here’s an example to illustrate the difference in attitudes between continents: I once visited Amsterdam. I was walking with some local friends and commented about the lack of railings near the bank of a river. They told me that if you fall into the river, it’s your own fault. Different parts of the world view safety differently.
LN: Your job sounds stressful. How do you manage?
Carey: To get through challenging days, I take a hands-on approach. I frequently get out into the field to understand the conditions field personnel encounter and to understand how equipment performs in context. I’ve gotten much better at thinking about safety around every turn since starting this job. I even mow my lawn wearing steel toed shoes. Ultimately, no one will listen to you if you don’t personally demonstrate that safety is integral to everything you do.
This interview is republished from Iberdrola Renewables’ periodic newsletter for our landowners, Landowner News, December 2011.
