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No matter what you do, where you work, or what your facility specializes in, there’s always the chance for accidents. Things can break, workers can get careless, and sometimes it seems like there’s no way to prevent these mishaps. Quite the contrary, though – many of these accidents can be prevented through careful planning and mindfulness, and it may not take as much work as you might expect. We’ve got a few tips here to help get you started in preventing some of the more common – and expensive – warehouse accidents and mishaps:

 

Trip & Fall Hazards

One of the most common hazards in any warehouse environment are slip and fall dangers, such as sawdust, loose flooring, and excessive floor debris. It’s vital to both keep your workers aware of these hazards and take steps to prevent them where possible. Keep any frequently traveled high-traffic areas clear of things like lengthy cables and loose debris, make sure all work areas are properly lit, and make sure you and your workers are always watching out for and cleaning up after any sort of liquid spills like grease, water, or gasoline. The best prevention for floor-based hazards is simply to pay attention.

 

Clearly Marked Exits

It’s not an easy thing to consider, but just in case of some kind of major emergency you need to have clearly marked and easy-to-access exits all throughout the facility to ensure all workers can locate and access the exits clearly. Make sure there’s never any obstructions preventing usage of the exit, and install bright and easy-to-see signs to allow visibility from all areas of the warehouse floor.

 

Properly Installed Equipment

Once you’ve cleared the floor and labeled the exits, the next step should be to make sure all of your industrial shelving and heavy equipment are properly installed, maintained, and fastened down. If your warehouse has any heavy machinery such as drill presses or lathes, make sure their work areas are cleaned and that the machinery is maintained as recommended by the manufacturer for correct functionality. Any storage options such as wire shelving should be probably affixed to the floors or walls to prevent damage or injury to your workers, property, and installations.

 

Properly Trained Workers

The final step is perhaps the most important – keeping your workers trained and up-to-date on safety practices. Make sure your employees are trained on things like proper equipment usage (particularly in the case of heavy equipment like forklifts), and try to reinforce the need for constant vigilance for things like spilled oil or sawdust on the floor to help lessen the chance of slip and fall accidents or equipment malfunctions. It might sound like a big time investment, but you’ll quickly decide it’s worth it once you see how much safer your facility has become.

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