Health and safety standards in modern US factories and mines have made exceptional progress, especially compared to how reckless, dangerous, and even deadly working conditions once were inside manufacturing units and mines.
This much-needed change was, however, a gradual process, fueled by scientific discoveries, mass awareness, and strict legal requirements put into place by the government to protect factory workers, miners, construction workers, or any other kind of workers who have to do their job in potentially hazardous health conditions.
Irrespective of how small or big your operation might be, employee safety should be one of your first concerns and to make it happen, these are the essential personal protective equipment (PPE) which every worker should have easy access to.
Headgear
The classic hard hat is the default safety helmet that is used by miners, factory workers, and construction workers alike to protect themselves against projectiles overhead. However, that’s not the only head/face protection that your workers may need within a factory setting.
Depending on what kind of processes and health hazards the workers in the factory have to encounter, more specialized head and facial gear might be necessary. Face masks, full-face masks, dust masks, welding goggles, crash helmets, bump caps, ear defenders, and hairnets can all be useful headgear, depending on the particular job concerned. It is essential that you train your employees so that they can know when to switch over and change gear.
Safety Shields
There are so many different types of safety shields in PPE and general protection these days that irrespective of what your manufacturing unit might be producing, there is likely a product that is designed exclusively for that.
Check out the drill press telescopic shields, eye shields, lathe guards, mill machine cutter guards, arm shields, guard shields for surface grinders, and all other types of safety shield variants available first, and then decide which ones will be useful in your own factory.
Protecting Ears
Ear protection is pretty much a necessity in almost every factory because machines make a lot of noise, which over time can permanently damage people’s hearing. The same goes for construction sites as well. Make sure that your employees have easy access to earmuffs or disposable earplugs at all times.
Not All Factory Gloves are Created Equal
Once again, just like the rest of the safety gear we are discussing here, the properties of the glove in question will differ, depending on whether the pair is supposed to provide protection against extreme heat/cold, trauma/piercing/cutting damage, vibration damage, chemical damage, or microbial infections.
Neglecting to ensure the safety of your workers is not just wrong from a moral point of view, but it’s also illegal and a bad business decision in every possible way. A single accident can close a site for days, and if the management is found to be at fault, the entire project could be suspended while the company pays through the nose for the ensuing lawsuits.
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