It’s no secret that construction sites across the country (and the world) are often notorious for safety issues. In fact, construction work can be a fairly dangerous job, especially if you have employees that are poorly trained in safety compliance.
Thankfully, with today’s technology, there are numerous ways to enhance the safety of your construction site. And often, these simple fixes aren’t as costly as it would be to pay for an employee when they get injured on the job.
Safety protocols are often your first defense when it comes to keeping your employees safe at work. As such, quality training programs should always be implemented before any worker ever steps foot on the job site, especially on a massive construction project.
However, some smaller construction businesses skip this process and ultimately pay the price.
In this post, we’ll explore a few simple ways that you can keep your employees safe on the job site.
Obtain and Maintain Proper Equipment
The state of the equipment that you use greatly affects the safety of your employees while on the job site. And unfortunately, many workers find themselves using poorly maintained equipment or inadequate and unsafe equipment.
For example, front-end loaders can be of great assistance to a construction project. And without them, you’ll be forced to have your employees perform a great deal of heavy lifting.
But adding certain features such as self dumping hoppers to a front-end loader or forklift can be a huge safety asset to mitigate the need for heavy lifting or using workers to transport and dump heavy materials.
Equipment should also be properly cleaned after each use. In fact, one major cause for most construction site accidents includes slipping and falling out of equipment. And this is often caused by dirt, mud, grease, and other debris not being removed from the equipment after each use.
Use Safety Monitoring Devices on site
Today, we have such advanced technology that it’s become much easier to keep an eye on employees to ensure that proper safety guidelines are being followed.
Believe it or not, but AI sensors are now being used to help monitor job site progress along with monitoring safety compliance.
Many of these tools can be worn directly on utility belts, helmets, or vests. Or they can be placed in vehicles or around the job site, or wherever you feel they’ll be best positioned.
In addition to safety monitoring devices, having a safety operator or a safety foreman trained in safe workplace protocols can also prove to be a valuable tool, especially for larger construction projects that employ several workers.
On-Site Safety Stations
Having an on-site safety station, or several of these depending on the size and scope of the project you’re working on, can be of great assistance to keep in line with safety compliance. Additionally, these stations could also be the very thing that saves a worker’s life.
Safety stations are becoming commonplace when it comes to construction site safety measures for businesses that employ large amounts of people. Even hotels and casinos are known to have safety stations placed throughout workforce areas.
At a construction site, having a safety station that contains clean water, a first-aid kit, an eye-washing station, and a handwashing station can prove to be a vital component to enhance the safety of any job site.
In addition to having safety stations, keeping these well-stocked and maintained is also essential. For example, ensure that you have plenty of gauze and bandages and plenty of antibacterial solutions for use just in case an employee cuts his or herself.
In addition, ensure that all of your first-aid products are current and do not exceed their expiration dates.
Employee safety should be a major concern for any business owner. And this concern should be heightened within the construction industry, especially due to all of the heavy equipment and powerful tools that are used while on the job.
Remember, safety is everyone’s responsibility. So taking preliminary steps to ensure the safety of all workers is going to be your first and best defense against workplace injuries.
