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Creating a Safe and Productive Work Environment

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Even if you have a big or small company, workplace safety is so important, and so is learning how to create a positive work environment. A safe work environment promotes peace of mind, and also productivity.


How to Create a Safe and Productive Work Environment

Even if you have a big or small company, workplace safety is so important, and so is learning how to create a positive work environment. A safe work environment promotes peace of mind, and also productivity. While it might take some time and extra effort to set up safety policies, guidelines, and protocols, it will go a long way in fostering a positive environment for your employees. Always remember to check OSHA standards for your safe work environment and display mandated signs in your office. Keep reading to find out tips to create a safe and productive work environment. 

 

Proper Uniforms

Your employees should always have proper uniforms and know exactly when and where each piece of their uniform is required. A uniform includes a lot more than just a shirt and pants. Some jobs may require headgear, goggles, special shoes, or other protective items. Each employee should receive this information during the onboarding process, but hanging signs in the office or nearby equipment is an essay way to reinforce uniform standards.  

Emergency Exits 

It is important to identify the correct emergency exits and the protocol to follow if any emergency does happen. Place signs in your building. These are helpful for your employees, obviously, but also for any visitor or client who comes in. A quick glance at the map will give peace of mind to visitors and workers.

Health Codes 

Hand washing should be expected, but remind your employees of simple signs around the sinks in your office. Bathrooms and kitchens are also a great place to educate your employees about health code standards and cleanliness. 

Proof the Building 

This requires a lot more than just hanging up signs. Take a walk and bring someone along for opinions as well, throughout the office or workplace, and consider how every part of it could be safer. For example, putting mats that will collect water off shoes when you walk inside could prevent puddles from forming and workers from slipping. Rubber padding or details along the edges of steps can prevent someone from falling down the stairs. Maybe install motion-sensor lighting in dark areas of the building. These are just a few examples of keeping a safe work environment. Proofing your building and making it safer will give your workers extra peace of mind at their jobs. They can get their work done and not worry about accidents holding up a project. 

Set up Monthly Discussions

Short and sweet, these monthly meetings should only focus on safety and productivity concerns in the workplace. Give a forum for people to actively participate and voice their own concerns. This type of discussion can help boost morale and can also make it more practical to make sure you continue to work in a positive environment, meet deadlines and keep your workers happy. 

 

Create a Safety Equipment Checklist 

A safety equipment list is crucial to help protect employees in the workplace. But it has to be comprehensive enough to include everything your workers need to stay safe. Machinery, cutting tools, and heavy objects can all pose risks to workers without personal protective equipment (PPE). Research by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that more than 15,300 injuries involving cuts, punctures, or lacerations occur in the manufacturing industry in 2019. A quality training program, plus PPE, is fundamental to avoiding injuries like these. Here are some suggestions for an effective safety equipment list to increase workplace safety. 

 

Consider Comfort

Your employees may already have all access to all the PPE they need, such as: 

 

These personal protective equipment examples perform crucial roles in preventing injuries from cuts, flash burns, excessive noises, and heavy objects. But it can be easy to overlook comfort when choosing equipment for workers. You can focus on costs and materials, yet PPE should fit employees properly to maximize safety. Ill-fitting gloves, glasses, or helmets are less likely to be worn, which leaves workers vulnerable to injuries. Another key factor to consider when choosing safety supplies is how one piece of PPE may affect another. For example, does wearing a certain pair of ear defenders make safety glasses impractical? Could industrial earplugs be a suitable replacement? Offer workers as much flexibility as possible in your list while still aligning with regulations and standards. 

 

Involve Workers In Planning to Identify Gaps in Your lIst 

Providing basic PPE may help you meet requirements, but you can also miss out on opportunities to offer more comprehensive protection if you don’t involve workers in planning your list. Monitor workers as they do different tasks to identify aspects of their work you might have overlooked. If one of their gloves doesn’t fit correctly while handling certain tools or operating specific machines for long periods of time. Perhaps a face shield would be more suitable when cutting wood than simple safety glasses if workers need to stop machinery to wipe sawdust from their faces. That could also help reduce the risk of distractions that break concentration when handling tools. Seek worker input to build an industrial safety equipment list that reflects their needs and meets their goals more accurately. 

 

Factor Visibility and Temperature Into Your List 

Research by the National Safety Council (via the centers for disease control and prevention, or CDC) revealed that insufficient lighting was to blame for 5% of all U.S. industrial accidents.

 In the same report, the American National Standard Practice requires lighting of one half to one footcandle for “areas of slight hazard” and two to five for “high hazard areas.” Essentially, workers should have enough lighting to detect potential threats and avoid or correct them. But even if the lighting in your space meets the minimum requirements, you may still want to include visibility-enhancing items on your list. For example, head torches could prove a welcome addition to your workshop safety equipment list if workers tend to bring their faces closer to machinery or tools to see better in darker areas. Head torches can also be beneficial if they need to repair machinery or replace components away from main lighting sources. 

 

As well as weak lighting, uncomfortable temperatures can also affect a team’s ability to work at their best. The CDC states that core body temperature should stay within 1C (1.8F) of its normal level to function properly. Workers may become ill if they are exposed to high heat levels to get distracted enough to create safety risks. This is why safety equipment lists in construction projects, for instance, could include fans to help workers stay comfortable on external and internal sites. You should also consider the type of PPE that workers are required to wear and how it can affect them in hot conditions. Safety helmets and gloves can be uncomfortable to wear as well. 

Let Singer Safety help you put these ideas into practice. Singer Safety is committed to providing our customers with outstanding barrier protection products designed to create a safe and positive environment. Excellence in manufacturing and providing a superior product is our goal and passion! Reach out to us today so we can help you out. 



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