Doug Pontsler is the Chairman and Managing Director of COVE: Center of Visual Expertise. He has extensive experience in business operations and thought leadership to safety. Doug is the former Vice President of Operations Sustainability and EHS for Owens Corning and retired in February 2018—but that doesn’t mean he’s slowing down.
Launched by the Toledo Museum of Art, I am leading a dedicated enterprise focused on the delivery of its visual literacy curriculum for industrial applications,” says Pontsler. “TMA has demonstrated success in expanding the application of visual literacy training beyond art education and into industrial operations such as safety.
At the SafeStart Human Factors Conference, Pontsler and SafeStart Chairman of the Board Colin Duncan will jointly present a session entitled Learning to See: A New Perspective on Visual Literacy in Safety. Their session addresses how visual literacy can help workers identify hazards that otherwise may blend into their surroundings. From hazard awareness and pre-job analysis to decision-making regarding risk, making workers more visually literate can help organizations improve in safety performance.
Pontsler recently wrote a piece related to visual literacy entitled 3 Practices That Can Help Identify Hazards Before An Incident Occurs. This article outlines the three things people can do to improve their ability to see what is in front of them and think more critically about what to do as a result.
A proud graduate of Miami University, Pontsler is a community service advocate and has served on the NSC board of directors, as a chairman of the Campbell Institute at the NSC, as a United Way cabinet member, and as an executive committee member for the Marathon Classic LGPA Tournament. He is also a past chairman and a current executive board member of the Regional Growth Partnership, and a member of the Independent Review Panel for JobsOhio.
With his extensive background, he can truly engage and inspire those around him. His expertise includes materials management, strategic sourcing processes and negotiation, safety and environmental management, and general leadership and sustainability.
Pontsler sat down with SafeStart’s Rodd Wagner to give you a preview of what you can expect from his presentation at the conference. You can listen to the interview here.
Don’t miss him at the SafeStart Human Factors Conference in Nashville this November!