The nerve-wrecking statistics and accounts of serious accidents in the manufacturing industry call for employees and employers in the sector to put their safety while undertaking their daily tasks before anything else. While it is evident that workstation hazard spectrum is extreme, regulatory measures must be observed keenly because the environs are full of hazardous substances, edifices, objects and machinery. In fact, the common health and safety risks in the manufacturing industry include:
- transmissible diseases,
- workstation accidents,
- including sliding and falling,
- transportation accidents,
- exposure to toxic substances,
- particularly gas and chemicals,
- electrocution,
- explosions,
- repetitive motions
- ergonomic injuries.
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While it is apparent that every job in the manufacturing industry adds up with its potential hazards, employees’ lifestyles and actions remain the major reason of the mayhem witnessed. From sleep deprivation to ignorance, adequate training and adherence to the precautionary measures relevant to specific industries is necessary. The employers are also responsible for the occurrences of disasters, and should strive to ensure that the working environments and products pose no dangers to workers and consumers by complying with the legal requirements set by the state of the particular industry. To mitigate the happenings of serious accidents that are costly, here are handy health & safety tips for the manufacturing industry.
Employee training and risk awareness
While manufacturing industry employs both skilled and unskilled labor, those who are employed should be trained well and be made aware of the necessary precautionary measures related to the specific industry. Training and creating awareness isn’t all that matters; close supervision should be carried out to ensure that they adhere to the rules and regulations. There are set health and safety tips that available for employees on how they can manage health and safety in the workplace, but employees must comprehend and adhere to only those that apply to their departments or industry.
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Safety is a team effort
Safety in the manufacturing industry is a team effort that requires participation of the employers and employees. As earlier noted, safety training and employee awareness can help greatly in reducing and even eliminating workplace illness and injuries. The employers should as well open communication networks, including creating a workplace e-mails, for employees to report potential hazards and ways to improve and maintain workplace safety. Employees should be free to notify each other on old and new hazards, stay alert, be conscious and report a possible precarious condition immediately to supervisors and managers. Furthermore, employers should make sure that they involve their employees in safety planning by obtaining their insight through taking their suggestions and ensuring that everyone reads on the same safety page.
Designing and installing access platforms in the workplace
In the manufacturing industry, it is necessary to design and install access platforms specific to the industry and what it manufactures. This implies that the services of a reputable firm in surveying, engineering and installing access solutions is inevitable. The access platforms help the workforce in undertaking their daily tasks and when moving with speed in case of an emergency. They add to the employees’ safety and productivity in the sense that they assist in performing tasks without the fear of sliding and falling and provide a quick way out in the event of a problem while undertaking the task.
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Availing safety items for employees and employers
In dealing with ergonomic hazards, work overexertion and hearing loss, the employers should avail the necessary safety materials to be used by employees while undertaking their daily tasks. Employee work performance and productivity are psychological and the work environment should be conducive at all times. The employees should work within the normal working hours and get adequate sleep to increase their productivity and reduce injuries and accidents that occur due to overexertion and fatigue. Additionally, the equipment used should be up to date and guarantee employee safety. Good handling techniques should be exploited in lifting, lowering, pushing and carrying heavy objects. Everyone working in the manufacturing industry should wear protective gears and earplugs to protect them from physical injuries, including hearing loss. [http://www.inc.com/guides/2010/05/9-avoidable-workplace-health-safety-hazards.html]
Workplace analysis and assessments
There are certain standards that every workplace should exhibit and the department responsible for occupational health and safety inspection and execution should ensure that the required standards are achieved in the manufacturing industry. Any industry that violates the regulations should be made to face the consequences, since it implies that they have no regard to human life. Therefore, there should be observance of regulations on general safety , equipment handling and environmental conservancy. In addition, periodical assessment in the industry to identify and evaluate possible hazards in an attempt to formulate ways to manage them should be undertaken.
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The employees and employers in the manufacturing industry are prone to numerous hazards, but it is possible to manage the risks and address them for the benefit of everyone while at the same time ensuring products are manufactured for use. Health and safety is in the hands of the employees, employers and the department that oversees the industry.