Page 5 - Workplace Blog

The Need for Cable Protectors at Events

Posted on May 27, 2014

No matter what the event; indoors or outdoors, big or small, village fete or music festival, regardless of the nature and purpose of the event all loose leads and cables pose their own risk to property and life. Carrying out advanced planning and risk assessing, ensuring cable protection is thoroughly thought threw is vital. If you are thinking about setting up your own event, you need to make sure that you understand that you as the organiser are legally accountable for any accidents that may occur during the event, so having cable protectors in place is essential. Events can be so hazardous that the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has dedicated a section of their website to cover the topic, click here to read more. Cable protectors are mostly rubber or plastic material cases, enabling you to keep your cables safe and secure, preventing trip hazards to users and damage to the property using the cable. Also used outside, these protectors can cover leads and allow users to drive...

Office First Aid - What First-Aiders and Employers Ought to Know

Posted on May 22, 2014

Lisa Driver, the 47-year-old mother of two has no recollections of the fall that made her an epileptic. Her friend Elaine Bristow remembers they were not drunk, although Mrs. Driver had consumed five Vodka and Cokes. When they were waiting for a taxi, Lisa went into the private car park of the Roman Painted House in Dover, looking for "somewhere to wee". She tripped and fell over a 2-feet high wall and fractured her skull. She later sued the Roman Painted House for £1 million, claiming that the site was dangerous. It was only last week, after almost 6 years of the accident that her claim was rejected and the Roman Painted House was absolved of the liability. The incident underlines the importance of maintaining safety in and around the workplace, regardless of how benign your line of work may be. Making first-aid arrangements is an essential part of health and safety around the workplace. First Aid at Work - Everyone's Responsibility, but the Axe Usually Falls on the Employer All employers...

Hosepipe Protectors and Ramps – Your Problems Solved

Posted on May 21, 2014

I passed by a construction site the other day and they had a hosepipe running across the road. In an effort to make the hose secure, somebody (probably by the orders of the site manager or safety officer) had passed it through a steel pipe. The improvisation would have been inspiring, but the pipe was creating a rude bump for the vehicles driving on the road, apart from being a tripping hazard for pedestrians, especially during the dark hours. Whoever put it there probably didn’t know that hosepipe protector ramps had long been invented. What Are Hosepipe Protector Ramps? Hosepipe protectors and ramps are simple and inexpensive pieces of equipment that make it possible for you to get a hosepipe from point A to point B without risking damage to the pipe, causing bumps on the road, or creating a tripping hazard on the walkway that lies between points A and B. The double sided ramp makes vehicular and wheeled movement smooth and protects against accidental trips and falls. These protectors...

Setting Up a Car Park - A Lucrative Business Proposal

Posted on May 19, 2014

Monday Morning Inspiration In October last year, Epping residents made a peaceful demonstration to protest the parking problem in their neighbourhood. Commuters travelling via the nearby underground station would leave their cars parked along the streets from 8am through to the evening every day, creating problems for the residents. Parking woes are not new to London or other British cities, and finding a place to park your car can be a big problem, especially in the commercial areas. Public car parks are always jammed and private ones either cost a lot or have exclusive admission rights. If you are in an area where there's a need for parking and an open plot of land is available close by, establishing a paid car parking can be a good source of income. Selecting a Location If you set up, say, a small 50-car paid parking and charge £3 to £5 per day, depending upon the location, you can make £150 to £250 per day. Of course, this income will not come without a cost. Buying or renting a vacant...

Workplace Trends - Lockers are In, Clutter is Out

Posted on May 13, 2014

When was the last time that you walked in to your workplace feeling like you’re in college again? While lockers are generally considered to be the hallmarks of schools and gyms, more recently, they are increasingly being used for drafting office plans. Whenever we picture an office, images of congested cubicles and over-crowded private desks flash before us. For a long period of time, the typical illustration of a workplace had been chaotic, but this has changed. There are several reasons for the shift away from a cluttered office to an organised one. Over the years, our working style and interactions have gone through significant changes. Laptops have replaced paper and keyboards have substituted pens. With these technological advancements, personal offices and sprawling desks are being considered as a waste of space and finance. Large office tables are now solely being used as status symbols, reminding employees of their importance in their particular workplaces; the clutter now belongs...

Hazard Storage Cupboards

Posted on May 12, 2014

Several people were treated at a hospital in Danville, Virginia after inhaling acidic vapours created by accidental mixing of chemicals at a local water treatment plant. Such incidents are reminders of the importance to be cautious when dealing with chemicals at the workplace. Hazardous substances are not limited to TNT or Uranium. Things as harmless as motor oil or even soap can cause serious accidents when not handled properly. Imagine someone accidentally ingesting a cleaning fluid or slipping on spilled oil. Any decent workplace should have dedicated colour-coded cabinets for storing different things that can be deadly mixers. Salt and detergent look similar, as do beer and…well, so many other chemicals. Legal Requirements and Colour Coding for Hazardous Cabinets Hospitals, manufacturing, printing and metalwork industries, catering kitchens, hotels, schools, workshops, and almost every other workplace can use a hazard storage cupboard or two, if not more. All such industries that...

Motor Vehicle First Aid Kits - New British Standards

Posted on May 06, 2014

Until last month, no official standard or specifications existed for motor vehicle first aid kits in Britain. People would buy any good looking, portable first aid kit for vehicular use, or store some basic first aid items in a container that could be anything from a lunchbox to a toolbox or even shaving pouch. The British Standards Institution (BSI) has filled this gap in vehicular safety by introducing BS 85599-2, the new standard for motor vehicle first aid kits. Car and vehicle first aid kit plays a vital role in case of accidents or medical emergencies. Items such as pressure bandages and splints can prevent injuries from worsening or even leading to mortalities. Yet, it is not always possible for an average person to envisage the kind of emergency he/she can potentially encounter when in a motor vehicle. Before BS 85599-2, the new standard for motor vehicle first aid kits in Britain, the selection of items for the car first aid kit depended upon some vague recommendations from the...

Ramp Up Convenience and Safety with Workplace Utility Ramps

Posted on April 29, 2014

Workplace utility ramps are designed to provide convenience and prevent tripping accidents at your office, warehouse, workshop, departmental store, or anywhere else where you're dealing with uneven floor levels or kerbs. If you have ever tried to push a pallet truck, trolley, or wheel chair over a kerb or step, you know how hard it can be to negotiate just a few inches of height difference. Utility ramps solve the problem and make wheeled movement between uneven levels very easy. Types of Utility Ramps Apart from the broad variety of ramps available at The Workplace Depot, there may be other variants of this simple contraption that you could buy at your local hardware store. However, the utility ramps that we offer are tested and guaranteed for quality. Each utility ramp comes with specified load limits and a recommended utility height and use. From ramps for cars to those for bicycles, wheelchairs, pallet trucks, sack trucks, reel trucks, trolleys, and pedestrians, you'll find them all...

Ahoy – Mobile Safety Steps Come Under Pressure!

Posted on April 23, 2014

The Workplace Depot manufactures safety steps and access platforms at a factory in Leicester. We offer an extensive range of mobile safety steps and access platforms and also welcome bespoke orders - additional features may include a larger platform, a safety gate and different types of wheels. We can also make them as tall as you like and in any RAL colour – The RAL colours also applies to our Fetra trucks and trolleys. Safety Steps Load Testing In February 2014 we had our safety steps and access platforms load tested by Pegasus Mechanical Lifting, a UK specialist lifting equipment testing & design company who are members of the Lifting Equipment Engineers Association (LEEA). They were tested to a maximum load of 150 KG which was evenly distributed on the platform applied using calibrated test weights. The safety step models that were tested were 58 Series Mobile Safety Steps (BC5801), 35 Series Mobile Safety Steps (BC35) and the Easy action steps (BC5931 & BC5941). High Standards The...

Security Mirrors - Simple Surveillance Solutions for Warehouses, Shops and Offices

Posted on April 17, 2014

Security convex mirrors have universal applications when you're trying to create a safe and secure movement area or monitored space. Security mirrors work like security cameras, but they are much cheaper and need no maintenance or power supply. Moreover, they provide utility where cameras may be too complicated to use, such as blind curves and corners. Security mirrors come in all shapes and sizes for shops, warehouses, driveways, security checkpoints, and other places where you need an inexpensive "eye-in-the-sky". Security Mirrors for Warehouses The warehousing and road haulage industries reported more than 8,500 accidents in 2009–10, out of which some 1,600 caused serious injuries such as fractures or even amputations. Blind spots and corners can cause collisions between loaded trolleys or hoists, with disastrous consequences. A blind spot mirror doesn't just cover potentially hazardous spots but will also provide you a view where you most need it. Thanks to the variety of designs including...

Manual Handling Training - What Every Manager Should Know

Posted on April 09, 2014

Over one-third of some 439,000 work-related musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) cases reported in 2012 were caused by manual handling, which makes manual handling the most hazardous activity around the workplace. The Manual Handling Occupation Regulations (MHORs) of 1992 define manual handling as, "any transporting or supporting of a load (including the lifting, putting down, pushing, pulling, carrying or moving thereof) by hand or bodily force.” The menacing numbers of MSD cases have forced employers to take a closer look at their manual handling operations, especially since injured employees started suing their companies for damages. Thanks to the best practices and manual handling guidelines issued and recommended by HSE and RoSPA, there has been a decrease in the incidence of MSD in the last couple of years. Employers are increasingly opting to get their handling procedures reassessed and get their employees trained for manual handling. Manual Handling Training Manual handling training encompasses...

The Biggest Personal Protective Equipment Myths Exposed

Posted on March 24, 2014

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is just one aspect of the health and safety regulations that the government has been attempting to push over the last few years and unsurprisingly, it’s separated into two groups. Some people will kit themselves out in every piece of equipment imaginable, while others will cut corners and subsequently be under protected. This means that countless myths have emerged over the years, with some just basic misconceptions while others are bordering on the ridiculous. In a bid to showcase the sector in its true light, here are the favourite five that we have found. Myth #1: Once I've bought PPE, my obligations are over Whether you are an employer or employee, the obligations are far from over once you fork out for your initial PPE gear. It doesn’t matter whether you’ve bought out the entire shop, this is just the tip of the iceberg and as well as obviously wearing it, you’ll also have to store and keep it appropriately. The HSE suggest storing it in any area...