Factory work involves heavy machinery and moving parts. In this environment, small mistakes can result in serious injuries. Follow these tips and stay safe on the factory floor.
Review the Training Videos
Accidents can happen to both new and experienced factory workers. In fact, getting comfortable with your work routine might cause you to eventually slip up.
Make a point of reviewing your workplace’s routines and safety regulations on a quarterly to yearly basis. If a new staff member is being trained, use that chance to re-hash the information. Most regulations are in place for a reason, so make sure you’re not forgetting something important.
Your workplace should have provided safety information, but if they didn’t, look for training videos online. Safety information is fairly universal, and it could save your life.
Wear All of Your Safety Gear
The safety gear you need to wear depends on your profession. Whatever gear you’ve been assigned, wear it. Keep the hard hat on, buy non-slip shoes, and wear that metal glove every time you touch the meat slicer. Be careful if you are transporting any kind of hazardous material, even if you are just taking a few slabs of aluminum to metal merchants.
Safety regulations aren’t for the day when nothing goes wrong; they’re for that one moment when everything goes awry. No matter how uncomfortable a piece of safety gear might be, keep it on. You’ll be glad you did.
Maintain Your Machines
Just like cars, factory machines require oil and coolants. If you run out of milling machine coolant, you might accidentally cause a dangerous malfunction.
Check fluid levels as part of your normal maintenance routine. Don’t trust digital sensors; alert lights will sometimes inform you when a machine is out of fluid, but they can’t always be relied upon. Perform the occasional manual check to be sure that your levels are correct.
Make sure that your factory floor is adhering to a consistent maintenance routine. Most machines meet safety standards, but those standards only apply if the machine is in good condition. Alert a supervisor if anything seems out of place.
Don’t Eat or Drink on the Job
There are several reasons not to bring snacks out onto the factory floor. The first is food safety; you might be in an environment that could be contaminated by a stray crumb.
Food and drink can be extremely distracting. When you’re working in a factory position, a misstep could mean an injury. If you turn to take a sip of coffee, you might not notice something important. Leave the food and drink for the lunchroom, and remember to take consistent breaks.
Stay alert while you’re on the factory floor. Follow guidelines so that your coworkers know where you will be and what you will be doing. When everyone operates according to safety standards, the entire team can rely on each other to minimize the number of accidents.