4 Ways Weather Impacts your facility and Creates Workplace Safety Hazards

When you’re working on vehicles that frequently transport goods — such as rail cars, trucks, marine vessels and aircraft — throughput efficiency is a top priority. The amount of product that’s transported through your facility every day directly impacts your profitability.

However, when extreme weather conditions hit your facility, you’re faced with numerous safety hazards. Understanding how these hazards impact workplace safety and the challenges they present helps you better prepare for the future.

1- Ways Weather Impacts Your Facility And Workplace Safety

• Dangerous Work Conditions

Rain, snow, sleet, fog and even wind all create safety hazards when your employees are working on top of vehicles.
Snow, ice and rain are extremely dangerous for workers because it makes surfaces slippery. Even when your employees are being careful, they’re still at risk of a deadly slip or fall.
Extreme hot or cold weather also has an impact on your workers. Heat from the sun may lead to heat exhaustion, dehydration, heat stroke and more. Workers exposed to extreme cold are at risk of cold stress, frostbite, hypothermia and even death.
Here are a few tips for working in adverse weather conditions:

• When it’s raining, move slowly and carefully.

Workers have a tendency to speed up so they can get inside as quickly as possible. However, because surfaces are slippery, it’s more important to do the opposite. Slow down and take your time when performing tasks.

• Use the correct equipment.

Avoid using electrical tools that are not specially rated for outdoor use when working in the rain. Also, install safety equipment and facilities designed to shelter vehicles during the rain, and make sure that all surfaces are slip-resistant.

• Wear appropriate clothing.

Invest in personal protective clothing designed to work in conditions such as rain, snow and cold weather. Also, make sure you’re wearing clothing that allows you to be seen in the event of heavy fog, rain or snow. Bright colors and reflective clothing often work well in these situations.

2- Unsafe Driving Conditions

Extreme weather isn’t just dangerous for your workers during loading and unloading. It’s also a hazard for your operators driving the vehicles. Rain or snow creates slippery surfaces and increases the chances of an accident.
Although staying on schedule and increasing throughput efficiency are important, the safety of your workers always comes first. Take extra precautions, promote safe driving practices and provide training on how to operate a vehicle in various weather conditions.

3- Throughput Efficiency

When you’re forced to put production on hold, everything in your facility comes to a halt, leading to a significant decrease in throughput efficiency. This also impacts future loading and unloading schedules as well as your business’s profitability.
At times, however, this is unavoidable. While speeding up your production schedule may help with throughput efficiency, it puts your workers in a position where they may cut corners to speed up the process, which could lead to accidents and injuries.

4-Product Contamination

Adverse weather conditions such as rain, snow, dust and ice all have the potential to contaminate your product during loading and unloading. This leads to a quality control issue for businesses.
When hatches are open, it’s possible for rain, snow or dust to get into your vehicle. Product contamination is costly for your business, which is why it’s important to invest in safety equipment and facilities designed to protect vehicles from the elements.
Weather has a direct impact on workplace safety. When unexpected conditions hit, it’s important that you have procedures, policies and safety equipment in place to help keep your workers safe.

Link:

http://www.carbisaustralia.com.au/2391