Safety should be the optimum priority in any workplace, especially warehouses. It’s important that there’s always a copy of your warehouse safety manual on-hand in the warehouse. One copy is the minimum recommended amount. That way, you’re informed of all the hazards and possible risks that you face every day at work. The manual will also remind you of the correct ways and procedures to carry out your roles.
- The Hidden Dangers of Working in a Warehouse
- Refresher on Training and Operation of Machines
- Accidents DO Happen
- Minimising the Variety of Hazards
The Hidden Dangers of Working in a Warehouse
Most of the time, the dangers of working in a warehouse will be plain to see. Whether it’s a mess from unpacking items that haven’t been disposed of or forklifts whizzing around the shop floor, they aren’t the only hazards that you should look out for when working.
There are various hidden hazards that can affect you and that you need to be aware of. This is why it’s a good idea to have a copy of the warehouse safety manual on-hand that outlines some of the potential hazards and situations to look out for. It’s also a great way to check whether your employers are doing all they can to protect you. The manual should specify the hazards and how to get around them.
Refresher on Training and Operation of Machines
Sometimes in warehouses, you’ll be required to use heavy duty equipment to help you do your job. As you’re not always using the equipment, it can be easy to have memory lapses and forget vital parts of your training that could put your safety in jeopardy when operating the machines.
If you had the warehouse safety manual on-hand, you could grab it for a quick read to ensure that you remember all the vital steps of the procedure.
Many accidents in warehouses happen because people try and cut corners and don’t abide by the correct procedures when using equipment. Don’t let this be you. Cutting corners may seem a good idea in the moment to save time, but it’s not worth it and can be costly if something does go wrong.
Accidents DO Happen
Unfortunately, you could be the most prepared warehouse out there and accidents will still manage to happen. Accidents are nearly inevitable. These can range from slips, trips and falls to warehouse fires.
Having a warehouse safety manual on-hand eliminates the fact that you and other warehouse workers don’t know what to do when an accident has happened. You can instantly grab the manual and see what the next steps to take are. It’s better to educate yourself beforehand so that you can act instantaneously if an accident does happen.
Depending on the scale of the accident, the moments that it’d take you to read the handbook could be crucial to the severity of the accident.
Minimising the Variety of Hazards
As we’ve mentioned, warehouses are full of hazards and risks. But combined with the number of hazards you need to look out for, the variety of them is something else that you need to be reminded of too.
Warehouse hazards can range from spilt liquids on one of the aisles to moving vehicles, depending on the size of the warehouse. It’s important that you’re always aware of how to work around these hazards and how to handle them.
A warehouse safety manual will outline the desired and correct procedures in which you should be working in to minimise the variety of hazards and the risk of injury. This will include the correct lifting method for the various manual handling tasks you’re required to do on a day-to-day basis.
It will also include the correct waste disposal methods to ensure that everybody is safe and the business isn’t causing any unnecessary harm to the environment.
Find Out More About Warehouse Safety
Warehouse safety can often be overlooked, which is very worrying. Not only are there the hazards we’ve just mentioned, but more and more also crop up throughout the day so you need to always be on the ball. If you’re not sure what to look out for or want some further reading, download our free all-in-one guide regarding warehouse safety and its true dangers.