(Courtesy: Agnes Chang at flickr.com)
When talking about safety in the warehouse the subject is usually focused on forklifts. Since we have covered that issue in previous articles, I intend to discuss other safety issues that need consideration. These include mechanical handling on the dock.
You probably are aware that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is the U.S. government agency that has authority over safety issues in warehouse operations. It has published rules and regulations that warehouses must follow to assure that the work force is protected from injury or that if an injury occurs that the warehouse takes action to care for the injured worker.
OSHA maintains a scoring system for warehouse injury incident rates. According to this rating system, a facility with an average safety record receives a score of 10. OSHA has noted that many warehouses have a rating of less than 2. This means that the warehouses that have a rating of 10 experience 10 times the incident rate than the warehouses that have a score that is less than 2.
Still, whatever a warehouse rating is, it indicates that workers have been injured and have died as a result of an accident or incident.
As far as mechanical handling safety is concerned, the focus should be on the loading dock. Many people who know about these issues suggest that the loading dock can be one of the most hazardous sections of a warehouse. That is because a lot is physically happening there and there are a number of hazards that are present all at the same time.
For example, forklift operators have to be concerned with ramps and inclines, overhead obstructions, inconsistent surfaces that may also be wet and slippery, poor lighting in trailers that are being unloaded or loaded, other vehicle and pedestrian traffic, restricted views, steep drops, trailer creep, jammed staging areas, and a whole lot of empty containers, pallets, and debris. All of this are hazards that may be present at all times.
While many warehouses focus on forklift safety, they may be neglecting safety on the loading dock. Things that they may not be doing but should include detailed hazard assessments, reviews of operating procedures, and day-to-day enforcement of safety rules and regulations.
There are a number of things a warehouse manager can do to assure safe activity on the dock. They include:
· Equipping forklifts that load and unload trailers with spotlights and have a number of dock-mounted lights present that offer more illumination.
· Following manufacturers’ suggestions on maintaining equipment.
· Visually checking trailers before forklifts are driven in to them for damaged or rotting floorboards to assure that lifts have good traction and wheels won’t break through causing all sorts of problems as workers try to free the lift.
· Using paint or tape to define staging areas and making sure that workers know or understand the designation.
· Keeping the dock area clean.
· Segregating areas of the dock for storage and preventing pallets and containers from being stacked too high.
· Limiting the height of piled items in staging areas, especially if pedestrians work in the area among the stacks. Allow for sufficient space between the stacks to permit access to inspect or get items that might be piled there.
· Making workers aware of the hazards.
Not only are these issues important in preventing injuries and even death, they are imperative when obtaining insurance coverage for the warehouse. When insurance companies consider underwriting a warehouse business, they focus on loss experience and safety plans. They perform in-house safety inspections and if they like what they see, then the rates they charge reflect it. If they don’t like what they see, they could refuse to cover or charge an exceptionally high rate. If a company is working on tight margins, high insurance rates could actually lead to the closing of the business.
Experts also suggest that a good safety program can help with employee morale. People are more inclined to go the extra mile of they feel that their employer cares for their well being.