Safety Sam of Allen Bradley
Safety has always been an issue in the American workplace and Milwaukee companies have been long known for maintaining high safety standards. With the creation of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in 1970, industries had to comply with new safety practices. Training in and implementation of, the new requirements were often time consuming and costly, not to mention boring. In 1974, Allen-Bradley devised a way to make workplace safety fun and informative. Safety Sam was born.
Created by safety director, Dick Anderson, Sam was composed of various parts from the major product divisions within the company. With a head made up of an electrical transistor reel from Electronics and a body constructed from a Bulletin 112 enclosure box from the Industrial Control division, Sam had a very unique look. Constantly equipped with the latest safety tools to educate workers, he was used throughout the company on its safety posters and bulletins. He even had his own Safety Sam leaflet series. Even though his feet were cast from concrete, Sam was an annual participant in the company’s safety shoe sale.
Years after the original was created, another Safety Sam was assembled and permanently stationed in Allen-Bradley’s Greenfield Avenue entrance as a reminder to the company’s employees regarding workplace safety.
Sam, along with the rest of the Allen-Bradley archive was donated to the Historical Society in 2003.
