Water is one of the most used substances in many facilities. It is used for things like drinking, cleaning, cooling, fire suppression, and much more. It is also one of the most common ingredients used in making different foods. All this means that most facilities will have one or more different water pipes that travel…
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) A13.1 1996 standard for pipe identification specifies that steam pipes should be identified with a yellow background color with bold black text. This color code is widely recognized and used in many industrial and commercial settings to identify the contents of a pipe as steam. The ANSI A13.1 standard…
What would you imagine someone saying if they were told to perform a job hazard analysis? What about a risk assessment? Heaven forbid the company has to have someone come in for a safety audit! Hopefully there aren’t too many disagreeable groans when this news is relayed to employees. In fact, those three safety procedures…
Personal protection equipment, or PPE, is critical for keeping people safe in the workplace. There are many different types of PPE available, each of which is designed to provide a specific type of protection to the person wearing it. While some PPE items is designed to be used once and then disposed of, most of…
Process Safety Management (PSM) is an analytical tool used to prevent the release of highly hazardous chemicals (HHCs) and improve safety in the workplace. As defined by OSHA and the EPA, HHCs are chemicals that can pose physical or health hazards to workers or the surrounding community. These chemicals are usually toxic, reactive, flammable, and/or…
Yesterday, we took a look at flame-resistant (FR) clothing for the workplace. This clothing can protect workers against fires because it is either made from naturally flame-resistant materials or materials treated with flame-retardant chemicals. This discussion touched on the importance of finding FR clothing that isn’t too stiff or too thick, as this clothing can…
All workplaces have to do periodic inspections of things like safety procedures, equipment, personal protective equipment (PPE) and exit routes. These inspections help businesses make sure their operations are up to code and functioning well, and they can be useful in office environments, manufacturing floors, warehouses, laboratories and many other work sites. Workplaces can perform…
A visual workplace uses tools like safety signs, labels, floor markings and other visual cues to communicate information quickly. This information may alert people to hazards, serve as a reminder or provide instructions. You may think your workplace doesn’t need added visuals. Maybe you have a good safety record and production is up, and making your…
The rainy season is once again upon us and there’s no time like the present to re-evaluate your safety measures as we come into winter. Wet conditions tend to always bring an increase in slip and fall injuries around the workplace. To reduce the risk factors associated with wet conditions, many have turned to anti-slip…
Forward Thinking Contemplating the future can be a slippery slope clashed with controversy and hope. We can combine all the statistics with all the collective information available, and still be completely wrong in our predictions. The answer to today’s problem may not necessarily be the answer for tomorrow’s problem. However when it comes to occupational…