Workplace Blog

Health and Safety at Musical Concerts

Posted on March 05, 2014

Fill a venue with thousands of charged-up fans, bring in their favorite band, pump up the volume, add some alcohol and crack-heads, and watch how things explode. Musical concerts are notorious for causing bizarre accidents, which sometimes lead to loss of lives and serious injuries. Take the 2010 Pearl Jam performance at the Roskilde Music Festival in Denmark, for instance, where some 50,000 spectators showed up. The rear rows could not hear their idols grunge, so they started pressing forward. Before anyone knew it, gigantic human waves had already become unstoppable, and eventually crushed 11 people to death. The unfortunate accident wasn’t the worst of its kind, as some other music venues have caused hundreds of casualties in a single night. It is not a surprise, then, that the government takes health and safety at musical concerts very seriously and strictly holds the organizers and the management accountable for any untoward incidents taking place du...

How to Start up a Business

Posted on February 25, 2014

Maybe you’re tired of your current job. Perhaps you are bored of the 9 – 5 routine. Or you could just be yearning for the freedom and flexibility that comes with running your own business. businesszone.co.uk/topic/business-trends Whatever the reason, there's a tide of workers turning their backs on traditional employment and opting to set up their own business. As many as 500,000 people opt to set up their own business in the UK every year, and that number is steadily climbing. In the last 13 years, the number of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in Britain has rocketed by 29%. Although the credit crunch and double dip recession has impacted on some economic ventures, the opposite eff...

Health and Safety Essentials for Outdoor Events and Festivals

Posted on February 19, 2014

Events and festivals come in all shapes and sizes, ranging from weddings to fetes, from farmer's markets to horse shows, and from charity run to game fairs. Regardless of their nature and purpose, outdoor events always pose significant risks to life and property. The temporary nature of the activity, lack of proper planning, shortage of time, exposure to elements, open cables and electrical connections, weak structures, inadequate experience, and the crowd itself are just some of the reasons why accidents are waiting to happen at outdoor event venues. Health and safety at outdoor events is such a serious concern that the HSE has dedicated a whole portion of its website to the subject - www.hse.gov.uk. Event organizers have been made legally accountable for any and all accidents taking place during the event. The Peterborough City Council has issued elaborate guidelines for event managers and organizers...

Order Picking Trolleys - Types and Uses

Posted on February 18, 2014

As petty as it may seem, it is important to think twice before you choose a trolley for your workplace. A heavy duty trolley would seem useless in a grocery store, whereas as a shopping cart has no business whatsoever in a warehouse. With the increasing varieties of trolleys in becoming available each day, retailers should choose wisely for their own convenience. Warehouse Trolleys Warehouses are large buildings that are purpose-built for storing goods. Shipments are regularly loaded and unloaded in warehouses; hence, warehouses are generally equipped with loading docks. The frequent transfer of heavy consignments calls for firmly-built and spacious order picking trolleys. The trolleys that are usually found in warehouses are "ladder trolleys" and "heavy-duty bin trolleys". Tons of goods are brought and stored in warehouses everyday; hence, a lot of shelves are needed to store them. Ladder trolleys make it easier to carry and tack goods. Ladder trolleys are equipped...

Steps to Improve Safety in Your Warehouse

Posted on February 13, 2014

As much as we don't like to think about it, accidents in the workplace do occur. These common occurrences will negatively impact the level of efficiency at which a company operates. Because a warehouse is the location where items are arranged, stacked and stored, top priority is keeping the structure and the goods contained in it as safe as humanly possible. This can be accomplished with the use of warehouse steps. High industrial shelves are the norm in warehouses. As such, some means of reaching the goods on those shelves is needed. But ordinary ladders won't do. A quality set of warehouse steps that suits the application can ensure the safety of many of the other elements of warehouse work. What Are Your Options For Warehouse Steps? Although warehouse...

First Aid Kits for Different Workplaces

Posted on February 07, 2014

Regardless of how much you guard against the, accidents can still happen. That's why it's important to have a well-stocked first aid kit in your office or workplace to attend to accidental injuries or medical emergencies immediately after they happen. The NHS suggests that your basic first-aid kit should contain the following items: Basic first aid kit - Plasters: The numbers and sizes are not specified, but you should have a variety of shapes and sizes. - Gauzes: Your basic first-aid kit should have small, medium and large sterile gauze dressings. - Eye Dressings: At least two sterile eye dressings are recommended. - Crêpe Bandages: These would be used to apply pressure, dissipate swelling, restrict movement, or hold the splint in place. - Safety Pins: Carry a number of them in different sizes to hold small, medium and la...

Medical Scissors for First Aid Kits

Posted on January 27, 2014

If you look through the list of contents for the first aid kits on this site, you will notice that some of them contain scissors and some contain ‘shears’. Most people think of sheers as something you cut hedges with, so we did a bit of research into the history of scissors to try and find out more about the different types. Scissors were invented in ancient Egypt in around 1500 BC. The oldest known scissors were discovered from archeological digs at what was once Mesopotamia. These are 3000–4000 years old "spring-scissors", comprising two blades joined by a curved flexible bronze strip. Between that day and now, scissors have come a long way, finding thousands of applications in fields such as engineering, agriculture, grooming, and medical, apart from regular everyday use in homes and offices. Medical scissors today are made from stainless steel, nitinol, titan...

How Speed Ramps Play a Role in Urban Traffic Calming

Posted on January 21, 2014

Construction sites, heavy traffic times, and weather hazards can make roads dangerous and speed ramps are playing an important role in helping traffic to move more slowly and safely. Known as traffic calming devices, speed ramps or speed bumps are used both in residential and commercial settings. Designed to slow the speed of vehicles to safer speeds of fewer than 20 mph, speed ramps are usually constructed of high-density rubber. These systems have been employed on European roads for decades, and have proven to make both driving and walking safer. Today, traffic-calming measures like the speed bump are in use in North America and around the world. As a result, thousands of traffic accidents and fatalities have been avoided. In Residential Neighbourhoods Traffic calming speed bumps, when employed in a residential setting have made them safer and more pleasant to live in. The reduced volume and speed of traffic that speed ramps offer has reduced not only the severity...

Common Uses for the Kick Step Stool

Posted on January 20, 2014

BUY KICK STEP STOOLS direct here The kick step stool has been around for many years... it is used in so many different ways for such a high number of applications that you may not even have noticed the kick step the last time you visited a store or other public place. History of the Kick Step Stool Although there is not a single number for every type of kick step stool, one brand name was traced back to 1940, when a safe-making business was sold and then its product line expanded. The new and improved product line included step stools and rolling ladders. The safe-building company already had much experience with the bending of steel, and so the creation of these stools and ladders was not at all beyond its expertise. The first incarnation of the kick step was called a 'ladder bell', which was simply a retractable castor sitting in a round housing. This contraption was then attached...

Awesome Office Organisation Ideas

Posted on January 15, 2014

The environment where you work has a huge impact on your work productivity. Spending all day every day in the office can make you lose concentration, especially if the place is not arranged in a way to make you feel comfortable. Therefore, it's important to keep your office organised in order to be able to focus on the important things and actually get things done. There are several things you can do to make your office a more lovely place that gets you in the right mood to work effectively. Here are our tips on how to improve the environment at your place of work and organise things so that you don't get distracted by unimportant factors. De-Clutter Your Desk Perhaps the very first thing you should start with when trying to organise your office is to de-clutter your desk. A desk can be quite a distraction, having in mind all of the office tools and piles of paper that are covering most of the surface of your desk, making the whole office look like chaos. According to...

Hazards in the Office

Posted on January 07, 2014

You don’t have to be rock climbing, skiing or playing rugby to have a injury serious enough to be hospitalized. There are plenty of hazards around the office that could cause health problems ranging from minor respiratory problems to serious traumas and chronic, terminal illnesses. The following hazards might force you to take a second look at your office from a new, safer angle. Air The stale office air that we breathe can give rise to numerous minor or major health problems. The recycled office air can be swarming with viruses exhaled by a sick person. Some of these viruses can survive up to 72 hours in the warm and unventilated office air and attack healthy employees. Cough, cold and flu are the common infections transmitted through the office air. Dry, heated air can cause respiratory problems and trigger asthma attacks. Breathing in a confined space can cause people to inhale air with lower amounts of oxygen and higher concentrations of carbon-dioxide, l...

Common Skiing Injuries and How to Avoid Them

Posted on January 02, 2014

With thousands of people heading off to winter resorts, combined with the shocking news about Michael Schumacher's skiing accident, we thought it was appropriate for our resident writer (and Doctor) to outline a few basic precautions for those of you about to take to the slopes. Whether you are a beginner, intermediary or even an advanced skiier who's been lucky to avoid a skiing injury so far, then read on to learn about three most common skiing injuries and how to prevent them. Thumb and Hand Injuries The most common thumb or hand injury is caused during a fall, when the skier or snowboarder either fails to let go of the ski pole or throws out a hand to stop them from hitting the snow. Incorrect falling technique can result in a torn UCL ligament in the thumb, or a dislocated thumb or hand. If you hurt your thumb during a fall, you might need to...