Safety is an ongoing concern for everybody. You fasten your seat belt every time you step behind the wheel of a car to protect from a crash. You floss your teeth every night to keep cavities at bay. We engage in safety every day of our lives and work is no different. Staying healthy while on the job requires ongoing knowledge of safety regulations as well as good, old-fashioned common sense. OSHA (short for Occupational Safety and Health Administration) provides countless industries with the regulations they need to make sure everyone gets through the day in one piece.
Common questions about safety regulations, fall protection and daily hazards will be answered below so you and your workers can always feel safe on the job.
What Does OSHA Do?
When in doubt, OSHA is there to help. OSHA is a government agency dedicated to keeping every industry as safe as possible for workers, managers and customers alike. OSHA uses a three-step process to prevent the most common occurrences, such as falls and trips, to prevent injury. These steps are planning, providing and training. All of these are incredibly important when it comes to crafting a work environment that is beneficial from top to bottom.
What Are Fall Arrests?
Construction industries regularly see workers in need of extra support when going onto high ledges. Safety nets are used to lessen what’s known as ‘fall exposure’ when working on temporary scaffolding and floors. These are required when the fall distance exceeds 25 feet and are proven to keep workers safe from slips that could see them injured. Fall arrests come in two types. You have the general fall arrests, or nets, and the personal fall arrests used for individuals.
What Kind Of Slings Are There?
Slings are a type of fall arrest to keep workers balanced as they move from one precarious position to another. These can come in endless, single, two, three or four leg types and need to be monitored to ensure every individual has a form of support that properly suits their weight and height. Slings need to be measured every year for normal service use. Severe service usage, however, requires a monthly to quarterly inspection. This is to make sure there are no tears or damages that could keep rigging equipment from working properly.
What Other Factors Should I Know About?
A lot of different elements can contribute to safety equipment not working like it should. Fall protection does best when you know about these outside elements. Uncoated metal mesh slings are designed to stand up to temperatures that exceed 500 degrees, perfect for when workers need to operate in hot weather. The sling manufacturer you seek out should provide you recommendations for using metallic core wire rope slings. Although companies did not originally require slings to have identification tags, this has changed in recent years.
How Can I Create A Safer Working Environment?
Every job, no matter how dangerous or temporary, needs to have rules in place for its workers. Fall protection is a hazard regularly analyzed by OSHA year after year to stay updated on anything that could put a worker at risk for injury. Federal OSHA limits fall arrest distance to six feet, with exceptions to this rule very rare. Manufacturer recommendations should be followed as closely as possible and yearly check-ups are essential to keep lifting slings and hook rigging working well.
Creating a safe working environment with the aid of OSHA is as simple as planning, providing and training.
