Industrial Safety & Hygiene News calls construction one of the top 25 most dangerous jobs in the United States. That’s understandable, given the ever-present possibility of falls, slips, and equipment accidents, that’s understandable.
Of course, that doesn’t mean that construction can stop. Someone still needs to build offices and homes. The key is to find ways to protect our construction workers and keep sites safer. To do that, we’ve collected our top tips for preventing construction site accidents.
Emphasize Personal Protective Equipment
Personal protective equipment is a given at any construction site. However, there are times in the hustle and bustle of everyday operations when one piece of PPE can go by the wayside, leading to accidents. To keep workers safe, you must ensure everyone has access to:
- Hard hats
- Reflective vests
- Protective gloves
- Safety goggles
- Steel-toed shoes
It’s also important that workers’ footwear has non-slick functionality to prevent falls, especially from high places.
Label All Areas Properly
Some areas of a construction site are more prone to accidents than others. For instance, there may be places with sudden drop-offs or limited pedestrian visibility. Safety meetings to address these areas are helpful. But to keep workers safe, you must ensure these areas have clear labeling as well.
Put up signs for areas where the fall risk is higher or in places where the ground is likely to be slicker than usual. Additionally, at sites close to pedestrian roadways, it’s a good idea to put extra signs out to redirect the flow of traffic as far from your site as possible.
Monitor Equipment Maintenance
There’s a lot that can go wrong when operating heavy equipment. Proper employee training is one of the best ways to help prevent construction site accidents of this type. But even a well-trained operator can get into accidents if the machinery malfunctions.
To keep equipment from going down, you should make sure you practice preventative instead of reactive maintenance. Preventative maintenance focuses on taking care of smaller issues before they become major, more costly issues. This will save your site time and money while making it significantly safer.
