210 lines
12 KiB
Markdown
210 lines
12 KiB
Markdown
---
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title: "Youth Safety"
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tags:
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- onboarding
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- safety
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- conduct
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- youth-protection
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- required
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type: training-module
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track: entry
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owner: 2890
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growth: tree
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---
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# Youth Safety
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> Read this before you touch anything in the shop. This is not optional.
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## Why This Matters
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The robotics shop has real tools. Saws, lathes, grinders, welders, batteries that can start fires if you treat them wrong. The work here is exciting and hands-on — and it will hurt you if you don't respect it.
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Safety isn't about following rules because someone told you to. It's about not getting hurt. That's it.
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I've seen students rush through something because they wanted to get it done, skip a step because it seemed minor, and end up in the emergency room. Not at this team — I've never seen it happen here. But I've seen near-misses that should have been warnings.
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The rules in this document exist because someone, somewhere, got hurt doing what you're about to do. Learn from their experience, not your own.
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## Workshop Safety — The Non-Negotiables
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These are not suggestions. These are how you stay in one piece.
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- **Safety glasses on.** Always. Not when you remember, not when it's just a quick cut — always. A particle in your eye will ruin your day permanently.
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- **Closed-toe shoes.** No exceptions in the shop. Flip-flops and sandals are for the beach, not the machine shop.
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- **No working alone.** Every tool operation needs a second person nearby. If you're using a power tool, someone else should be in the shop with you, watching, not just in the building.
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- **Hair tied back.** Loose hair catches in lathes and drill presses. It's an easy fix — ponytail, bun, whatever works.
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- **Gloves only when appropriate.** Not on rotating tools. Gloves can catch on a spinning shaft and pull your hand in. Use gloves for welding, for handling rough materials, for moving heavy things — not for anything with a spinning blade or bit.
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## Tool-Specific Rules
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Every tool in this shop can hurt you if you don't know what you're doing. Here's what you need to know about the ones you'll use most.
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### Lathe
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A lathe spins your workpiece while you cut into it with a stationary tool. Used for making round parts, cylinders, threads.
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**What kills people on lathes:** loose clothing, rings, or watches catching on the spinning stock; holding the workpiece by hand instead of clamping it; reaching across the spinning chuck.
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**Rules:**
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- No loose clothing, no rings, no watches, no bracelets. Long sleeves must be fitted at the wrist.
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- Always clamp your workpiece. Never hold it by hand while the lathe is running.
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- Let the tool do the work. Forcing the cutting tool causes chatter, bad parts, and broken tools.
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- If something sounds wrong — a chatter sound, a vibration that isn't normal — stop the machine and check before continuing.
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### Mill
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A mill holds a cutting tool in a spindle and moves it into your workpiece, which is clamped to a table. Used for flat surfaces, slots, holes, and more complex shapes.
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**What kills people on mills:** the spinning endmill catching loose material or clothing; improperly clamped workpieces being thrown by the cutting force; touching the cutting tool while it's still spinning.
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**Rules:**
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- Secure your workpiece to the table with clamps or a vise before you start. Never rely on the friction of the table alone.
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- Bring the cutter down to the workpiece slowly. Use the rapid override carefully near the material.
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- Let the chip escape. Accumulated chips are hot and can burn. Use a brush or chip hook to clear them, not your fingers.
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- After cutting, let the spindle stop completely before adjusting anything or clearing chips.
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### Drill Press
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A drill press holds a drill bit and pushes it down into a clamped workpiece. More precise than a hand drill.
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**What kills people on drill presses:** clothing or hair catching on the drill chuck; holding the workpiece by hand instead of clamping it; using too much pressure and breaking the bit.
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**Rules:**
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- Clamp your workpiece to the table. Never hold it with your hand.
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- Long hair must be tied back. A drill press grabs hair just as easily as a lathe.
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- Use the correct speed for the material and bit size. The drill press speed chart is on the wall by the machine.
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### Welder (MIG)
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Welding joins metal by melting it with an electric arc and fusing it together. We use MIG welding (Metal Inert Gas), which feeds wire through the gun and uses a shielding gas to protect the weld from contamination.
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**What kills people with welders:** eye damage from the arc flash; burns from hot metal; fumes from welding galvanized or painted metal; fire from sparks landing on flammable material.
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**Rules:**
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- Welding helmet on *before* you strike the arc. Off only after the last weld is complete and cooled.
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- Wear leather gloves, long sleeves, and a closed collar. Sparks go everywhere.
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- Fire extinguisher must be within reach before you start. Know where it is.
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- Ventilation matters. Welding produces fumes that will make you sick if you breathe enough of them. If the space doesn't have good airflow, don't weld until it does.
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- Inspect your equipment before every use: wire spool, ground clamp, cable condition. Damaged equipment doesn't just fail — it can catch fire.
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### Angle Grinder
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A grinder spins a disc at high speed for cutting or grinding metal. The disc is fragile and can shatter if damaged or misused.
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**What kills people with angle grinders:** a cracked or damaged disc exploding at high RPM; the disc grabbing and kicking the tool; sparks igniting flammable material.
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**Rules:**
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- Inspect the disc before you turn the grinder on. Look for cracks, chips, anything that doesn't look right. If in doubt, don't use it.
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- The guard must be in place. It routes sparks away from you.
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- Hold the grinder with two hands. If it kicks, you want control.
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- Face the grinder away from your body and away from anyone else in the line of fire.
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- Let the disc reach full speed before you touch it to the material. If it sounds wrong, stop and check.
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### Band Saw
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A band saw has a continuous toothed blade that runs between two wheels. Used for cutting metal stock to length, curved cuts, and more.
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**What kills people on band saws:** reaching across the blade while it's running; removing cutoffs before the blade has stopped; using the wrong blade tension or speed for the material.
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**Rules:**
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- Never reach over the blade. Ever. Even if it's a small piece.
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- Let the blade come to a complete stop before adjusting the workpiece, changing the blade guide, or removing the cutoff.
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- Remove cutoffs with a push stick or a piece of scrap wood. Not with your fingers. The piece gets hot, and your fingers are in the path of the blade if it slips.
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## Electrical Safety
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FRC robots run on **12V lead acid batteries** and powerful motors that draw significant current. A fully charged battery can deliver enough current to cause serious burns and start fires if shorted across metal tools.
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### Battery Rules
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- **Never touch both terminals with metal at the same time.** A wrench or screwdriver across both terminals = instant short = severe burns and possible fire. This is not hypothetical. This has injured FRC students.
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- **Check the battery case for cracks or leaks before you use it.** If the case is damaged, do not charge or use it. Take it to a mentor and tell them.
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- **Charge in a safe area.** Nothing flammable nearby. The charger can produce heat.
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- **Transport upright.** Lead acid batteries can leak acid if tipped. Keep them upright always.
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- **Keep terminals covered.** When a battery is not in use, keep the terminal covers on to prevent accidental shorts.
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### When the Robot is Powered
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- **No working on electrical systems while the robot is powered.** This means disconnect the battery before you touch anything in the electrical bay. Not "be careful" — disconnect.
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- If you need to test something with power, tell a mentor and make sure you're using proper technique.
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- **If you smell burning — burning plastic, burning metal, anything wrong — disconnect the battery immediately, step back, and tell a mentor.** Do not continue. Do not assume it'll be fine.
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- 12V can also charge capacitors that hold charge after the battery is disconnected. If you're working on high-capacitance circuits, discharge them before touching.
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## FIRST Youth Protection
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FIRST requires all teams to follow Youth Protection guidelines. These are non-negotiable.
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### Two-Deep Leadership
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No adult is alone with a student. Ever. If a mentor asks you to stay after a meeting one-on-one, if an adult is regularly messaging you on a private channel, if someone you barely know wants to spend time alone with you — that's not normal. Tell Mr. Slater or a mentor you trust. You will be heard. Nothing you report will get you in trouble for reporting it.
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### Background Checks
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Every adult who works with students on this team has a current background check on file. If you see a new adult in the shop working with students and you don't recognize them, it's okay to ask if they're on the roster. You have a right to know.
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### Communication
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Students and mentors communicate in shared team channels. Nobody should be in a private DM relationship with a mentor that nobody else can see. If you get a message that feels wrong — even if you can't explain exactly why — tell someone.
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### The Rule
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> If something feels wrong, it probably is. Say something.
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You will never get in trouble for reporting something. You might get in trouble if you knew something was wrong and stayed quiet.
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## Online Conduct
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Our team communicates through Discord. This is a professional space, not a gaming chat.
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**Be respectful.** What you say here represents the team. Don't forget that other teams, sponsors, and members of the public can see what you post in public channels.
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**No harassment, slurs, or targeted cruelty.** Zero tolerance. This includes jokes that aren't jokes, comments about someone's identity or background, and anything that makes another team member feel unsafe.
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**No sharing personal information** about yourself or others in public channels. Your real name, your address, your phone number, other people's names — keep it in the team space.
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**Keep it on topic in each channel.** #build-chat is for building. #programming is for code. General is for things that don't fit elsewhere.
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Violations don't get warnings. They get consequences.
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## Consequences
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- **Minor mistake, nobody hurt** — We talk about it. You learn.
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- **Repeated minor mistakes** — One-on-one. Parents notified.
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- **Dangerous behavior** — Removed from the shop until a safety review.
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- **Intentional harm or harassment** — Removed from the team. No debate.
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Mr. Slater makes the call on anything beyond minor. But the point of consequences isn't punishment — it's so everyone goes home in the same condition they arrived.
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## When You're Not Sure — Stop and Ask
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This is the most important sentence in this document:
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> If you don't know how to do something safely, **do not guess**. Ask.
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A mentor, a senior student, Mr. Slater — it doesn't matter who. "How do I set up this piece in the mill?" is not a stupid question. "I didn't ask and now my hand is hurt because I assumed I knew what I was doing" is a stupid thing to explain to an urgent care nurse.
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You will not be judged for not knowing something. You will be judged for not asking.
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## Pre-Shop Checklist
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Before you touch any tool in the shop, make sure you can answer yes to all seven of these:
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- [ ] Safety glasses on
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- [ ] Closed-toe shoes
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- [ ] Hair tied back (if applicable)
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- [ ] A mentor or senior student is in the shop with you
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- [ ] You know where the first aid kit is
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- [ ] You know where the fire extinguisher is
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- [ ] Someone has shown you how to use this tool — not just told you, shown you
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If you're not sure about any of these, ask before you start.
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---
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**Previous:** [[2890-our-story|Hawk Collective 2890 — Our Story]]
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**Next:** Complete the Entry Path — you have finished the required onboarding for Hawk Collective 2890. The garden branches from here. |