The Top Eight Things You can Do for a Safer Construction Site

Job safety is important whatever type of industry you are in. But it is even more important if you are in the construction industry, as there are a lot more risks associated with the sector in which you are involved. Keeping your construction site safe and secure will not only benefit your employees – it will also benefit your enterprise in the long term.

So how do you go about making your construction site as safe as possible? Here are the top eight things you can do for a much safer construction site.

1. Always follow the speed limit. This applies to whatever construction equipment you are using, be it an excavator, etc. Your operators should follow the prescribed speed limit and never deviate from it for any reason. This applies not only to your construction site, but also when the equipment is travelling from one location to another outside your site.

2. Be mindful of personal protective equipment, or PPE. Personal protective equipment is there to ensure the safety of your workers. If you are a business owner, you are responsible for providing your workers with the proper PPE, including hard hats, gloves, safety goggles, and so on. Your site manager(s) is responsible for checking that the workers are using the PPE they are provided with.

3. Use the right tools for the specific task. Your workers should use only the right tools and equipment for a specific task. Don’t encourage them to get ‘creative’ or ‘resourceful’ by using tools and equipment for a purpose they weren’t intended to do. If the tools or equipment are not at hand, your workers should wait until they are available.

4. Before doing heavy excavation, be it with your own equipment or equipment from plant hire Chesterfield professionals like Ruttle, make sure that all hazards are identified, especially when it comes to underground ones. Check the site for underground gas lines, wires and cables, and water pipes.

5. When working from a height, it goes without saying that your workers should be equipped with the proper tools and equipment. But sadly, many construction sites are not entirely mindful of this, so it has to be mentioned. Your workers should be supplied with the proper safety ropes and harnesses at all times.

6. Prioritise break periods. This is especially true if the weather is hot. Your workers will become more tired if it’s hot, so you should prioritise break periods. This ensures that they are well-rested and are less likely to make mistakes or miscalculations.

7. If you have any substances which are deemed hazardous, these should all be properly labelled. If you can, keep them in a location away from the workers and post warning signs.

8. Give your workers the proper training. If they are operating heavy equipment or machinery, they should have specific training for this.

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