Industrial Safety
Industrial Safety is the most important aspect of Industrial Production. An industry should not compromise on safety for anything else. It is very important in this sense; Even a small negligence can cause a big accident. That’s why an industry should be very much concerned about the safety and should ensure maximum safety for its workers.
Industrial Safety is very important for all employees or workers and working in an area without Safety Awareness can lead to serious physical damage or even death. Industrial safety is an important factor in running a company and there are many aspects to consider when providing overall safety for your employees.
While working or doing work in Industrial Safety, you should ensure that the employees have Special Equipment’s, PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) to ensure the safety of Eye Safety, Ear Safety, Head Safety, Foot Safety, Fire Prevention and Respiratory Protection etc. ) and other procedures.
To make your workplace safe, you must know what hazards you can expect to face and what you can do to control and eliminate them. The information contained herein explains the importance of working safely and the ways in which you can control safety in your work area.
Here we have briefly described several hazards that frequently occur in plants. Below are the hazards that are often found in industry.
Types of Hazards in Industry
To make your industry workplace safe, you must know what hazards you can expect to encounter and what to do to control and eliminate them. If you know about the Hazards, it will be easy to control the Risks associated with it.
1. Existing Hazards
Some features of the layout and design of the plant such as the location of the equipment, stairs, entrance and exits, floor layout, platform, illumination, heating and ventilation systems are already present ie Existing and built in which you cannot change. These can lead to accidents and the best you can do is to identify and avoid them.
2. Chemical Hazards
This is one of the most dangerous hazards, where chemicals are concerned, one must know the properties and hazards of the particular chemicals involved. Before handling read the material MSDS provided with it. Wear Chemical Suit, Gloves, Fresh Respiratory Mask and Google or Face Shield. Make sure that there is no splash or spillage of chemicals.
3. Electrical Hazards
Almost everything you do will involve the risk of electricity and its hazards. Because electricity is present everywhere and there are more dangers in any industry because the voltage found there is very high. Avoid touching the energized or hot wire. Always use equipment and tools that are grounded and insulated. Do not use frayed, damaged or frayed cord. Avoid touching electrical equipment with wet clothes, shoes, tools and wet hands. Metallic objects and water are good conductors of electricity. Insulate nearby metal objects. Avoid wet surfaces and install insulating mats while working on the panel.
4. Mechanical Hazards
Various cases of accidents involve the possibility of moving parts of machinery or equipment. A worker has to take special care to keep his clothes, body and tools away from the moving machinery. When a machine has to be shut down for repair, the electrical control of the machine should be locked and the procedure of LOTO should be applied by posting warning signs on the panel.
While working on pipelines, the tubing system will pose a risk to heat and pressure, accidents can be avoided by isolating the system and keeping it cool and depressurized.
Many plants have hand trucks, forklifts etc. for moving material within limited corridors, if any work is to be done nearby or traffic routes protect yourself and others by putting up signs and barricades to warn traffic otherwise result in serious injury. Can happen if someone is hit by a passing vehicle. Do not place tools and materials in such a way that they are a hazard to traffic by falling into the aisle.
Temporary scaffolding, platforms are erected while working at height on the walls, ceiling and roof of the building. These items must have railings and guards to prevent workers, tools, and materials from slipping and falling over the edge. Place signboards below the scaffold to warn pedestrians of falling objects.
Make sure that workers are attentive and alert while working at height, as a slip can be fatal to their lives. Ladders used for working at height must be secured both at the top and bottom and at a safe angle, ladder steps must be free of tools, grease, etc.
Hanging Scaffold is secured with rope rigging from above and platform should be level, Safety Belt and Harness should be used to keep yourself safe while working on height and roofs.
5. Environmental Hazards
Sometimes workers are required to work in hot conditions near a boiler or heater, although these are normally insulated, there is usually some heat in the area. Install Air Blower to give cool air and take out hot air.
Prolonged exposure to high temperature work areas can lead to heat cramps and heat exhaustion. Severe and sharp abdominal or muscle cramps are caused by excessive loss of body moisture and salt. Dizziness, weak pulse, lower than normal body temperature, heavy sweating are symptoms of heat exhaustion. Taking salt tablets and drinking moderate amounts of water are regular preventive measures for both heat cramps and exhaustion.
Radiation from X-rays and radioactive materials can cause serious harm to the human body. To reduce the risk of radiation, wear special protective clothing and apply Film Badge Meter. Radiation area should be clearly notified with radiation sign.
PPE Required for Industrial Safety
For the prevention and control of all the above hazards, some such Mandatory and Required PPE should be worn which are very important for the industrial safety of the workers, apart from keeping these PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) workers safe on the site, they can avoid any untoward i.e. Accident. That is why it is necessary to protect by PPE.
Head protection
Protecting your head is easy and can save you a lot of pain if such a situation occurs. Wearing a safety helmet can be as simple as wearing a helmet or hard hat before entering an area where falling objects may occur. Head injuries can result in brain damage, but you can greatly reduce the chance of serious injury by wearing a safety helmet.
Eye protection
Any injury to the eyes can be very serious and can potentially damage the victim permanently. It is important to make sure that your eyes are covered at all times by wearing safety goggles or other type of eyewear. Make sure the glasses you wear also provide protection around the edges of your eyes, otherwise flying debris can get in from the side and damage your eye.
Ear protection
It is important for us to have ear protection because without it, our eardrums get badly damaged by the constant exposure to loud noises in the workplace. Ear plugs and ear muffs are the most common forms of ear protection, although there are other options, such as disposable hearing bands. By wearing these pieces of equipment, you will not only be able to protect yourself from loud noises, but also your ears from flying debris that can enter the ear and possibly cause an infection.
Foot Protection
It is also very important to avoid your feet and their fingers, any object, tool or material falling on our feet can harm them. That’s why it should be mandatory for everyone to wear Safety Shoes at the workplace. There is a strong protection of steel in the front of these Safety Shoes which protects our feet from the material falling on our feet.
Hand protection
It is necessary to wear Safety Gloves to protect our hands from any chemical or other substances and from any sharp objects. Gloves also come in many types, we should make sure before wearing them that what type of Safety Gloves they need for that work.
Respiratory protection
Working in an area where the air is constantly filled with pollutants can be dangerous and may eventually result in severe respiratory problems for the individuals working in these areas. An easy way to protect yourself from poor air quality is to wear a respiratory mask when working in these areas. Wearing a Respiratory Face Mask can greatly reduce your chances of suffering from respiratory problems in the future. These masks are also of many types, they should also be selected according to the work and area.
To ensure industrial safety, it is important to research and follow all the safety rules while working in the industrial area. Everything can change in a second. That’s why it becomes everyone’s responsibility to use all the Safety Rules and Safety Equipment’s (PPE’s) considering the safety of yourself and those who work with you.
