Safety Specialist
Vulcan Elements · Benson
Vulcan Elements is manufacturing American rare-earth permanent magnets for a secure future. With a focus on national security and economic resiliency, we serve critical industries such as defense, aerospace, and automotive powering a high-technology future. Vulcan Elements is building a team of ambitious professionals committed to Mission Focus, Technical Excellence and Transparency.
As a Safety Specialist you will be responsible for assisting in the development and implementation of the organization’s safety program. This role will participate in cross-functional efforts identify and control hazards, reduce operational risk, and promote a strong safety culture. This role will be based at the Vulcan Elements R&D facility in Durham, NC. You will ensure health and safety compliance with applicable regulations and existing company standards. This is a full-time, day shift position.
Responsibilities
Field Leadership
- Assist in the development and implementation of the site’s safety program in accordance with OSHA 29 CFR 1910.
- Drive critical OH&S programs such as incident reporting and investigation, control of hazardous energy, PPE, hot work, fire prevention, etc. to reduce risks and company costs.
- Own the weekly tailgate program. Set the rhythm with applicable content and build supervisors' ability to run it independently
- Build and run the safety observation and suggestion program — the channel that turns floor-level instinct into trend data leadership acts on.
- Lead self-assessments and safety checks across the floor, including the paperwork behind them, evaluating risk and trends to address gaps and establish best in class safety performance.
- Provide technical guidance to engineering and operations teams regarding safety requirements, regulatory compliance, and risk mitigation strategies.
- Perform monthly checks of equipment including but not limited to emergency exit signs, fire extinguisher and eyewash inspections, and ladder inspections.
- Monitor safety equipment inventories to ensure supplies such as PPE are readily available for employees.
- Provide supplemental environmental compliance support as required by the Environmental department including but not limited to hazardous waste audits and shipping.
Program, Policy & Performance
Own the KPIs that prove safety is working — tailgate completion, observation closure, self-assessment trends, corrective action aging — and use them to drive where attention goes next.
- Watch how new processes and equipment shift the risk picture, and keep documentation audit-ready as a matter of course.
Cross-Functional Partnership
- Facilitate root cause analysis on safety incidents and higher potential near-misses and bring that same rigor to RCAs led by others.
- Partner with R&D and process engineering during scale-up so safety gets designed in before new work ever reaches the floor.
- Lead by influence — build the kind of trust with supervisors and area owners that makes them want to own tailgates, self-assessments, and corrective actions themselves.
Responsibilities and tasks outlined are not exhaustive and may change as determined by the needs of the business.
Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in a related field or equivalent education and/or experience.
- 4+ years of job specific experience.
- Working knowledge of OSHA standards, JHAs, and incident investigation methodology.
- Comfort operating with real authority and autonomy.
- Strong communication skills and the ability to build trust and credibility.
- Completed OSHA 30-hour training
Preferred Qualifications
- Bilingual
- First aid/CPR/AED certified
Physical and Environmental Requirements
- Must be able to perform activities including climbing ladders and scaffolds, lifting (up to 35 lbs), walking, balancing, and stooping.
- The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate
Must be a U.S. Person due to required access to U.S. export-controlled information or facilities.