Health and Safety
How to Prevent Ladder Accidents in the Workplace
Posted on October 24, 2012
Despite recent campaigns from the Health and Safety Executive to raise awareness of the risks of working at height, there are still hundreds of cases of falls from ladders in the workplace all over Britain. Just this month, it was reported that an employee fell from a ladder, injuring his collarbone, breaking several ribs and cutting his head, just months after a similar fall. These kinds of accidents should not happen in the first place – and when they do, it is vital that the appropriate safety measures are put in place. Before beginning any task involving working at height, it is vital to assess the task in hand to determine the exact equipment that needs be used. Many of risks associated with working at height are due to poor management control rather than the actual equipment – and is often the result of failure to recognise problems or provide a s...
Read MoreEquipping a First Aid Room
Posted on October 11, 2012
Employers should consider having a first aid room if their workplace has significant hazards or where access to medical facilities is difficult. If you set-up a First Aid Room you will need to think about the following factors regarding the room: Requirements for privacy Entrance needs to be able to accommodate a stretcher or wheelchair Ideally has a wash basin and nearby toilet facilities If possible a ground floor location Adequate ventilation/heating/lighting Someone needs to take responsibility for the room and its contents (out of date/stock items, cleaning etc) The First Aid Room The Medical or treatment room needs to be equipped in a way that is appropriate to your workplace – there's quite a difference between a large factory using hazardous materials/machinery and a medium-sized office. First Aid Rooms will require some or all of the following: ...
Read MoreGetting to Grips With Manual Handling
Posted on October 03, 2012
Over a third of injuries that keep people off work for more than three days at a time are caused by manual handling – falls and trips account for much of the rest. As a consequence there are many regulations governing activities such as pulling, pushing, carrying, lifting and loading. The following provides some suggestions on how to improve manual handling techniques and reduce accidents. The first thing to consider is whether the object needs handling at all – can the process be mechanised or made easier with handling aids such as sack trucks, pallet trucks, conveyors or other lifting devices. Has there been sufficient training for the person doing the moving, whether this involves the type of load, mechanical aids or other risk factors? Before doing any lift or handling of an awkward item it is advisable to have some kind of plan of action – this can include simple things such as removing obstacles out of the way or checking for potential trip hazards. For a particularly diffi...
Read MoreDon't Be the Fall Guy in Your Office!
Posted on August 21, 2012
Our range of office and external cable protectors are now on sale Thousands of people in the UK each year have accidents at work simply from tripping over. Some of these accidents are difficult to prevent if the individual isn't paying much attention to what they are doing! However, tripping over loose and trailing cables can be avoided by using cheap and easy to install cable protectors. Careful cable management can play an important part in helping to ensure a safer environment in your workplace, and cable protectors are needed for compliance with the Health & Safety legislation preventing accidents at work (Health & Safety Offences Act 2008). A cable tidy (protector) should be used in offices, shop floors or warehouse areas to prevent...
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