Tips to Ensure Employees Are Prepared and Protected
Maintaining a safe working environment is vital for your employees. Warehouses can be dangerous places, and operating large machinery in the warehouse is something that should never be taken lightly.
Try these tips for ensuring your employees are effectively prepared and protected.
Keep Up With Training
Training is the first (and perhaps most important) step in preparing your employees to operate machinery. Safety training is necessary for new operators as well as maintenance or setup personnel when new or altered safeguards are added to a machine.
Proper operator training should include the following:
- Identification and description of any hazards associated with particular machines
- Explanation of safeguards, how they provide protection, and what hazards they protect against
- How and why to use safeguards
- How and why safeguards can be removed, and by whom they can be removed
- What to do when a safeguard cannot provide proper protection (for example, if it is damaged or missing)
If you are not sure of the equipment’s proper inspection, uses, and maintenance procedures, the machine manufacturer’s instruction manual is usually a great source of information. Operating manuals typically contain specific information about the equipment, as well as details on how to safely operate it.
If you have PFlow products in your warehouse, you can find the latest PFlow VRC and lift product manuals on our Product Manuals page.
Recognize Hazards
No matter how hard we may try, we cannot predict or prepare for every possible situation that can occur in a warehouse. And most of the equipment employees use is potentially dangerous. Even the slightest change in how one handles equipment can make a huge difference in protecting oneself against hazards.
To ensure your employees know how to recognize hazards, make sure they:
- Can recognize, inspect, and adjust safeguards.
- Are aware of potential hazards for any equipment. Employees should be aware of all moving parts and any potentially dangerous areas. Workers should also know how to handle the equipment they are dealing with, in any circumstance.
- Are aware of their coworkers’ actions. Employees should know to speak up if they see something potentially dangerous going on around them.
- Know to stay ready for anything. Warning signs and safeguards can only protect against so much, so workers should always expect the unexpected and stay on guard.
- Know the proper procedure for reporting hazards.
Maintain a Safe Environment
Finally, to safeguard against the most common and more preventable hazards:
- Workers should always wear protective clothing, such as hard hats, gloves, vests, masks, belts, eyewear, and proper footwear.
- All warehouse areas should be kept clean and free of debris. They should also be inspected often for potential hazards.
- Everyone inside the warehouse should be on high alert at all times.
- All personnel should know the weight restrictions for your equipment.
- Ensure all employees know where first-aid kits and supplies are stored, as well as where to find employee safety procedures.
- Make sure emergency exits are clearly marked and that employees are aware of them.
- Inspect ladders before each and every use.
Employee safety is key to keeping you, your employees, and your company happy and healthy. Be sure to consider the above factors when assessing the safety of your warehouse.