Construction site safety signs are important because construction sites are inherently risky places, with hazards including heavy-duty machinery, chemicals, explosives, electricity, working at height, asbestos and extreme temperatures, to name a few.

In this article Alex takes a look at the myths around Lockout Tagout. Alex is the Safety Development Manager at Spectrum Industrial and has many years experience within the field of Lockout Tagout, undertaking training and educating employees working within the industrial sector to better and safer working processes.

The human and financial cost of accidents and ill health at work are clearly extremely high. Businesses found in breach of health & safety regulations may suffer significant damage to their reputation, and in some cases, bosses may even face a prison sentence. Organisations must therefore pay close attention to health & safety and regularly review their approach to identify opportunities for improvement.

Machinery accidents cost employees billions every year and on average employees who are injured usually have to take weeks off work or may never return. Lockout Tagout is an essential tool in the control of hazardous energy, in a wide range of industry sectors to prevent accidents.

New regulations have come into force from 23rd January under article 24 of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005(Fire Safety Order) to implement the recommendations made to government in the Grenfell Tower Inquiry Phase 1 Report which require a change in the law. These new regulations have been put in place to help those responsible for high rise buildings Think Safe, Act Safe and therefore enable residents to Be Safe.

Government guidelines state that anyone in control of non-domestic premises, whether as a business owner, manager or landlord, is considered a ‘responsible person’ and has duties when it comes to fire safety.

Warehouses, by their nature contain many opportunities for accidents – be they from heavy duty machinery and equipment to storage of potentially hazardous or heavy items. Identifying where the hazards may occur is the first step in the safety process and by following the appropriate legislation, as well as some general common sense guidelines, you can lessen the risk of serious injury in your workspace.