Keeping people safe on a small worksite or busy construction site is paramount. With so many people, heavy equipment moving around, and materials in one place, it’s easy for something to go wrong. This is why construction site managers must ensure that safety is the number one priority above anything else.
Here are 4 tips to improving construction site safety.
1: Maintain the Scaffolding
Scaffolding is something that’s often taken for granted. That is until something goes wrong with it.
There are no shortcuts or workarounds for this type of equipment. It’s either up to the task or it should be replaced. There’s plenty of scaffolding for sale of decent quality, so there’s no need to run the risk of using inferior or damaged scaffolding and just hoping for the best.
Given that falls on a construction site account for almost half of all accidents, don’t let the support structures go unchecked. If there are sections that need replacing for safety reasons, find scaffolding for sale and replace it quickly. Global Scaffold is a sales specialist. They can find exactly the pieces that you’re needing to replace or can organise a complete structure for your site.
2: Track Workers when On-site
While not every worker will immediately like the idea of being tracked, it’s purely for when they’re on-site.
It’s fair to say that an object can fall on a construction worker, they get buried, and it’s difficult to locate them. One solution is using the StaySafe app on a smartphone. It can provide a check-in facility, a panic button, and a way to locate them. It also has an alarm that will alert if the worker hasn’t moved location for some time and could have a problem.
This type of tool can locate someone in trouble and save precious minutes in getting them out of danger.
3: Pay Attention to Anything Above Head Height
One of the other great risks in construction is anything falling from a height.
Whilst the primary concern is about people falling off scaffolding or raised floor levels that don’t yet have walls installed, falling items are also tricky as well.
For example, if a hammer is dropped and it falls a few meters, landing on someone’s head, this is enough to knock them out, if not worse. Similarly, if it were to land on their foot, it could break their toes unless they’re wearing steel toe cap protection. Also, someone diving out of the path of a falling object could lead to an accident too.
Secure all equipment and small objects away from the edge and clear the areas directly below where workers are busy at work overhead to reduce the risks.
4: Keep Lines of Communication Open
An uncommunicative workforce is putting itself in danger. Staff must keep a friendly enough tone to leave lines of communication open at all times. Workers that create strife block necessary communication that helps to keep everyone safer.
Whether a near miss or a genuine accident, it all needs to be reported. Not only are companies required to keep a log of all accidents but investigating both actual accidents and potential ones that nearly happened allows everyone to learn from them. New safety procedures to avoid a possible repeat accident are just one of the many benefits.
Accidents are bad for everyone. Keeping the site safer creates a happier work environment. It also has the added advantage of allowing project managers to stay on-schedule too.