10 Best Ways to Improve Facility Safety – 2024
With nearly 3 million employees experiencing some form of injury each year in the United States, businesses are consistently searching for 10 ways to improve facility safety. In 2022 alone, roughly 1.2 million of those classified as non-fatal injuries resulted in an average of 10 days missed from work. Promoting a safe and responsible workplace should be a top priority for companies and this list of “10 Ways to Improve Facility Safety” is a great starting point. Although unique requirements, certifications, and inspections may come with specialty industries, this expansive list should cover the broad reach of companies operating in the United States.
How To Improve Facility Safety
#1 – Improve & Maintain Equipment Quality
Many businesses, especially those in an array of manufacturing industries, can benefit from making considerable investments into new equipment and following routine recommended maintenance programs for existing machines. The vast majority of new manufacturing equipment includes safety sensors and monitoring technology that can notify personnel or immediately cease operations. While older machines may not have the technology of new equipment, proper maintenance goes a long way to protect employees from injury in your facility. Even incorporating things like overhead garage door stops can help prevent significant injury or equipment damage. Inspecting even simple components like screws, bolts, belts, and power supplies can avoid catastrophe or provide insight into a larger problem.
#2 – Install Overhead Door Stops
Overhead garage door stops are an immediate solution to improving facility safety in 2024. Installing overhead garage door stops on commercial doors located throughout your facility prevents injury, equipment damage, and loss of material or product. With several different variants, ranging from manual to fully automated with LED lights, Safe-T Support Overhead Door Safety Arms are customizable, easy to install, and immediately boost facility safety. These should be installed in all high-traffic areas to prevent the unexpected drop of heavy garage doors that may result in serious injury or even death. With clear LED indicators showing the status of garage door stops, employees and outside visitors will understand when they are protected from falling doors.
#3 – Comprehensive Employee Training
Training an employee is a continuous process that requires significant investment from management and designated safety officers. Conducting annual training sessions on standard facility safety protocols, operating procedures, PPE guidelines, reporting processes, and state or federal regulations is crucial to developing a safe working environment. Additionally, emergency response training can help save lives in the event of an injury, fire, equipment failure, or other potentially dangerous situations.
#4 – De-Clutter & Organize Your Facility
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that in the year 2022, 450,540 people were injured on the job from falls, slips, or trips. Without question, the easiest way to reduce the possibility of these injuries occurring at your facility is to reduce clutter and mark potential hazards. All walkways and doors should be clear of obstructions, tools should always be put away in the correct locations, all trash should be responsibly disposed of and routinely collected, and employees should keep personal belongings in designated areas like locker or break rooms. Furthermore, marking hazardous locations like steps, slopes, curbs, or high-traffic areas with bright colors and clear instructions can create a safer facility.
#5 – Follow Local & National Guidelines (Post Safety Signage)
Posting adequate employee benefits, safety regulations, and additional protocol signage in shared spaces is a mandatory requirement for most businesses. Providing continual reminders of workers’ rights, adequate compensation, safety regulations, and reporting protocols is a straightforward method of improving facility safety. Many organizations will send free signage as it updates from year to year and it will be the first thing inspectors look for when visiting your site.
#6 – Provide Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
Providing personal protective equipment (PPE) is critical to promoting a safe work environment and one of the ten best ways to improve facility safety in 2024. In this specific example, it is important to check in with employees regularly to gauge the effectiveness, quality, and accessibility of proper PPE and continually look for ways to improve. Adding specific gloves with better resistance, providing reimbursement funds for adequate footwear, offering specific clothing for hot temperatures, or even providing prescription safety glasses are all ways companies can go above and beyond to improve facility safety and keep employees happy.
#7 – Create Emergency Procedures
Effective emergency procedures and preparedness should be well documented, routinely discussed, and practiced. Fire, smoke, and fumes can all spread quickly through a manufacturing facility and necessitate immediate action for other employees. Having exits marked with proper signage and free of obstructions will help employees evacuate to a designated area faster and with less confusion.
#8 – Install Adequate Lighting
A properly lit facility can go a long way to improving facility safety in 2024 and improving employee well-being is a significant part of that. With LED lighting becoming more readily available, companies can choose to replace existing lights with longer-lasting, brighter, and more efficient LED lights to illuminate even the furthest corners of your facility. Better lighting reduces the risk of injury from slips, trips, machines, moving equipment, and the considerable eye strain that comes with a poorly lit building.
#9 – Install Eye Wash Stations & Fire Extinguishers
Relying on emergency medical treatment or fire response should not be a company’s only solution to addressing emergency scenarios. Installing plentiful eye-wash stations and an array of appropriate fire extinguishers can be the difference between a basic accident and a catastrophic disaster. Flushing chemicals and particulate matter immediately can help prevent long-term injury. There are five different classes of fire extinguishers (A, B, C, D, K) and businesses should offer comprehensive training for employees on the appropriate use of each depending on the fire type.
#10 – Implement Lockout / Tagout (LOTO) Protocols
Proper lockout and tagout protocols are an important method to creating a safer facility in 2024 and avoiding injuries to employees. Lockout/tagout is a procedure that marks inoperable equipment, chemical storage units, or shared equipment with a secure device to limit access to trained personnel and also keep a record of access. Doing so prevents untrained employees from operating equipment or unauthorized access to specific materials and ultimately creates a safer work environment.
Safer Facilities Result in Improved Performance
Following these 10 best ways to improve facility safety in 2024 will result in noticeable upticks in employee performance and happiness while greatly reducing the risk of significant injury or equipment damage. From implementing comprehensive training programs, emergency preparedness protocols, or even overhead garage door stops, measures to improve facility safety are tremendously impactful. Safe-T-Support incorporates many of these safety procedures into our manufacturing facility and applies them when we visit customers for the installation of garage door stops. You can reach out to our team today for a quote on any of our products, more information, or to receive a quote that will immediately improve the safety of your facility.