Manufacturing Technology Insights

Safety inspections, training workers on hazard awareness, and implementing warehouse safety measures can contribute to a safer, healthier working environment.

A warehouse can be a dangerous environment. Understanding warehouse dangers and hazards is important because they can result in injury or even death in extreme cases. According to reports, there are 16 fatalities in the US warehousing and storage industry annually, with five workers reporting injuries or illnesses.

It depends on the type of business whether there are safety rules that must be followed due to hazards that are also specific to the type of work people perform. In addition to warehouse safety rules, workers in any warehouse should follow a few general guidelines to keep their warehouse safe, no matter their industry.

Ergonomics: Warehouse employees must be trained on proper lifting procedures to avoid hurting themselves and others. You should discuss ergonomics at work as part of your warehouse safety program. Besides proper lifting and how to operate lifting tables, remember to remind employees to maintain a healthy posture. Train them on proper lifting techniques that protect their backs and knees if they have to do manual lifting.

Minimizing fire hazards: The fire alarms, extinguishers, and sprinklers in your warehouse will likely function as required by local safety regulations if you have an operation. It won't matter if the warehouse workers aren't trained to use them properly. Schedule regular training and inspections to ensure that all employees are aware of fire safety processes and that all fire safety measures are in place and working as they should.

Minimize cutting dangers: It is common for warehouse workers to handle many packing and unpacking tasks; corrugated, metal, and plastic straps, as well as plastic pallet wrappings, are constantly used. Therefore, they must use proper protective equipment and safety knives to avoid serious injury or death. Safety knives should retract automatically, limit the exposed cutting surface, and not need to be sharpened excessively. A warehouse worker should also be trained in the proper cutting techniques to ensure safety. Using proper protective equipment and safety knives will help lessen the chance of an accident. Safety knives are designed to minimize the risk of injury by having a retractable blade and a limited cutting surface. Additionally, training in proper cutting techniques will help ensure the worker knows how to use the equipment correctly and safely.