Are You Prepared For These 4 Common Tank Truck Safety Risks?

  According to OSHA, loading and unloading liquids, especially those are combustible, is one the most dangerous tasks in any manufacturing or storage facility. Incorporating the proper safety equipment and procedures is key to helping your tank truck workers stay safe.

    Damaged suspension-type highway trailers that can’t support the weight of tank trucks may cause injuries during loading and unloading. But even if your trucks are in perfect working condition, other safety risks exist.

Consider these four tank truck safety risks and how your organization can mitigate them.

1. Falls

     Your workers may be hospitalized for fractures, head injuries and other serious problems if they fall from a tank truck. Even worse, their injuries may be fatal. In 2014, a tank truck driver backed his truck into the garage bay, exited the vehicle and climbed on top to vent the oil tanker compartments. He fell 10 feet to the concrete 䜫oor below and died the next day.

     Standard cages and gangways often are insufficient for protecting against falls. That’s why it’s important to speak with a workplace safety expert about a more effective fall prevention system. Installing equipment such as truck loading racks helps to reduce the risk of falls, but the best-fit safety solution depends on your site and specifications.

2. Trips

     Ensure you keep work areas tidy to prevent workers from tripping over equipment. While you may be under time pressure to load and unload your tank trucks, avoid sacrificing safety for speed. Leaving hoses out in the open could lead to employee injuries. Be sure to train your employees on proper safety procedures so they understand the risks of tripping over equipment and how to mitigate them.

3. Slips

     Slips often occur when there is not enough friction between a worker’s shoe and the floor surface. the following types of wet and dry floor contamination may lead to slips and injuries.

• Water
• Oil
• Grease
• Soap From Cleaning Solutions
• Dust
• Powders
• Granules

     Slips are especially common when a spill isn’t cleaned up immediately. In addition to cleaning up contaminants and ensuring no soap residue is left after cleaning, you can reduce the risk of slips by installing structural canopies to keep your loading equipment dry from rain water. As an added benefit, employees are able to work under more comfortable conditions when it rains.

4. Asphyxiation

     Confined spaces are dangerous for workers handling chemicals, so you must check air quality to protect lives. You should consult an air monitoring equipment provider to purchase a product that detects fumes. Your safety equipment provider also can advise you on fall prevention solutions that minimize the risk of employees falling into a tank (and drowning) when fumes are inhaled.
The best way to keep employees safe when working with tank trucks is to partner with a safety expert that understands the problems you face. After evaluating your risks, you and your safety equipment provider should work together to develop a custom safety system that suits your facility and processes.
Whether that means purchasing a combination of elevating truck platforms, truck cage safety and full truck enclosures, or designing an alternative solution, your system should be tailored to your risks and requirements.

How to Narrow Your Search for Flatbed Trailer Safety Solutions

If you’ve ever shopped online for flatbed trailer safety systems, you know there’s no shortage of solutions. It may seem daunting to narrow your options and find the ideal equipment for your site.
Unfortunately, it’s impossible to simply pick your safety solutions from a website. Consider the following types of equipment and ask yourself honestly whether you would be able to choose the precise models suited to your facility:

• Drive-off protection
• Warning lights
• Swing gates
• Flatbed tarping platforms
• Overhead tarping systems
• Canopy systems
• Complete terminals

Perhaps you read an article about swing gates or know that a competitor uses certain flatbed tarping platforms. But how do you know if the equipment meets your specific requirements? Learn how to assess your site’s needs and choose the correct equipment with the help of a safety expert.

Factors That Determine Your Ideal Safety Solution

Your flatbed trailer safety equipment must suit your site layout, processes and trucks. When you consult a safety expert, you should discuss the following factors to help narrow down your search for the right equipment.

Your Operators’ Work Procedures

An expert must understand your processes to identify equipment that won’t interfere with driving, spotting or loading/unloading procedures. The solution should enhance these processes.

Varying Truck Sizes and Configurations

Information about variances helps your expert identify solutions that don’t cause gaps, which a worker may fall through, and know whether your solution needs to be moveable.

Your Specific Product and Its Risks

Whatever you are loading onto your flatbed has its own unique hazards. For example, products that have round surfaces may roll around and must be safely secured.

Points of Access on Your Truck

Depending on what and where you are loading, you may face limitations on how you gain access to the flatbed. Your solution must provide access at feasible locations.

How You Will Spot Trucks To the Proper Location

Your safety solution is designed to a specific set of parameters. If the truck isn’t spotted properly, gaps between your truck and equipment may cause serious falls.

Your Internal Safety Standards

Some companies have standards that are far more stringent than OSHA standards. Your expert must be aware of your requirements so the solution matches them.

Industry Safety Standards and Best Practices

If your industry generally follows certain safety guidelines, and they are stricter than OSHA-mandated rules, the expert designing your solution should be aware of them.

Your Site Layout and Traffic Flow

Limitations at your facility, such as lack of space, may prevent certain safety solutions from functioning as intended. In this case, you would need a highly customized solution.

Power Limitations for Electric, Pneumatic and Hydraulic Equipment

Many safety systems move, and movement requires power. Your solution’s power requirements may impact your budget.

Your Unique Climate and Weather Conditions

An expert must consider how cold, heat, snow, ice, rain and other conditions affect your product and operation.

Load Height

Load height impacts your equipment decision. A drywall facility with tall loads requires different flatbed fall prevention equipment than a cement plant with low loads.
No safety solutions provider can accurately recommend equipment without understanding these parameters. An expert may have further questions after the topics here are covered, depending on what you discuss.
While safety risks at your facility may be pressing, avoid purchasing equipment without first confirming that it’s suited to your site. Instead, remove workers from hazardous areas until you find the correct equipment. If you’re searching for a way to revitalize your safety culture, look beyond product listings and delve deeper into your needs to identify impactful solutions.

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