Proforma Safety Blog

Standardized, Fleet-wide Hand Signals Help Avoid Miscommunication

Posted by proforma on April 6, 2010

Here’s another instance where miscommunication resulted in a dangerous workplace situation: A floorman signals a crewman using hand signals different from what the crewman was accustomed to. Instead of opening the valves to fill the trip tank, the crewman disengaged the auxiliary brake handle; the drawworks brakes overheated,  the driller could not stop the blocks, which then ran into the top drive rail stops. Among the causes cited were the lack of standardized hand signals and understanding of the rig operation and systems.