Tag Archives: job site safety

Crane Hand Signals on the Jobsite

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It is not that the operator does all to operate heavy equipment. At times, it is also the guy who gives signals to the operator and asks him to do what he wants him to do. Especially when the operator is working on a crane, he is more dependent on signals coming from the man he can see. He has to work precisely on those signals and can’t afford to do things on his own. Therefore it is necessary that there is a good understanding level between the operator and the man who gives signals to him.

They should be in sync with each other and the operator should not have any problem in comprehending the signals he is getting from the man in front of him. He needs signals because it is not possible for him to judge things properly and for which he needs a helping hand. Now the helping hand need not be in the form of somebody working along with him inside the cabin. He requires someone who is outside the cab and guides him all along to do a particular job which he can’t do sitting alone inside the cabin.

Now when an operator does requires a man to give him signals. He requires him the most when he needs to either load or unload a heavy thing and his view is obstructed by an object. This means that he can’t see his intended path and therefore needs someone who can guide him there. The most common and preferred form of signal used is the hand signal. The operator in this case does not want to rely on any gadget and want a person to guide him. He may not be as comfortable with a gadget and if he is not comfy with something he can’t complete a critical thing with accuracy. Moreover, as mentioned earlier there needs to be a good understanding between the signaler and the receiver. If by any chance the co-ordination between them goes wrong, it may have serious repercussions.

At a point in time, there should be only one signaler. There should not be multiple people giving signals to the operator. He may get confused if there are multiple signals given to him and end up in a disaster. Also not any person should be given the work to give signals to the operator. Only a person who is qualified and knows which signal means what should be assigned this job. Different gestures have different meanings and the signaler should be aware of every signs. Also the operator should have thorough knowledge about signals so that he can comprehend it well and act accordingly.

If there is a change of signaler that should be informed to the operator and the signaler should also wear the badge which indicates that he is now authorized to give signals. Ideally, it is recommended to have one signaler for one operator. The operator should take one signal from no matter who gives it and it is the STOP signal. If the signals are followed religiously, then the chances of accidents happening will be drastically reduced.

Construction workers are more prone to risk during extreme cold conditions

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Incidents of accidents have become very common in a construction site and in spite of taking corrective measures by the higher department, these incidents are simply not willing to cease. At some time, it is the workers fault as they skip to follow the safety parameters and go to do work without the safety accessories, thus putting their life at extreme risk. At other times, it is sheer negligence that needs to be blamed for such accidents. The sad part is after experiencing so many unfortunate incidents, the construction workers and the higher management has still not found a way to tackle the menace. Ideally, one can’t adopt a mechanism that will alert them about a possible danger other than being cautious about it. It has been seen that most of the times, construction workers tend to work carefree and gets themselves hurt or killed.

During winters, the situation is worse. Workers have to work on icy roads where there are high risks of slipping while working and this may lead to major accidents. They may also not be able to foresee a possible danger and may go straight into it. Overall, winter is a big pain for both the construction companies as well as for the workers with no real solution around. There are few tips that one can follow to minimize the incidences of accidents happening in a construction site during winters.

Educate the workers about safety parameters:-

In order to save the valuable lives of workers, they should be educated about the safety parameters that are followed by the company. Not many workers may know how to use the devices when there is an emergency. You can’t expect them to know everything right from the very beginning. They need to be trained and should be explained about the various safety rules that one should follow. Concurrently, they should also be trained in how to save one’s life by giving mouth to mouth resuscitation, providing first aid to a fellow worker, emergency numbers to call etc. Once all the workers are trained in this, the number of casualties may decline.

Prevention is better than cure:-

There are workers who unknowingly risk their life to complete a given task. They skip to follow the basic rules of safety and in this process hurt themselves. We all know the saying “Prevention is better than cure”. However, we hardly walk on what we know. This is something that should be stopped. When a worker is given a dangerous task, he should be equipped with all the safety amenities so that in case he falls off the machine, he has something to save his life.

Very cautious while working in the snow:-

While you are working in the snow, there are high chances that you can get deceived by seeing everything white around you. You may fail to see a danger and if you are in a hurry, you may invite trouble. Therefore, you should always work in ease on the snow and take utmost care of your as well as your colleague’s safety.

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Safety norms can’t be ignored in a construction site

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Construction industry is a multi-billion dollar industry and like every big industry it also has areas that can create trouble for the owner of the business. This industry has many such areas but it seems that people have learned how to tackle them effectively and continue running the business. However, there is one such thing that recurs in spite of several steps taken by the governing body. The area is “Safety”. When we talk about Safety, it is not only limited to the safety of the people working in the site but also relates to the heavy equipment that are working along with the men. There have been several safety norms laid by companies but still accidents are bound to happen. At times, it is beyond our control but most of the time, it is within our reach. So how can something that we try to avoid safety happen so often. It is perhaps we tend to get over confident on ourselves and somehow believe that nothing is going to happen and therefore see no use of following the safety norms. This is where we lose our focus from one of the most important aspect that this industry relies on.

Wearing helmets while inside the construction site:-

We may skip to do something as simple as wearing helmets inside the construction site. While we enter the site, we probably do not see any danger but danger does not give a call before coming. A small piece of stone falling from the 20th story building can drill your head leading to serious injuries and you never know if the accident will happen to you or not. Therefore, skipping the most generic part of safety is for sure asking for trouble.

Hire qualified and experienced operators:-

We all want to save money but certainly not at the cost of our or someone else’s lives. What happens when you hire an operator who is not qualified to operate the equipment you want him to work on or for that matter you yourself want to see how it feels to be inside the cab. A wrong push of the lever and a major accident is on its way. You are not supposed to play around with things that are of so much importance. If you want to learn things, learn it from the right person. Hire a qualified and experienced operator. Even if you have to pay more to him, please do so. At least you will be assured that your men and machines will be safe.

Don’t allow the operator to do overtime:-

You may have lot of work to finish on the site for which you need the operator to work overtime. A couple of occasions of overtime are fine but do not make it a habit. Remember, operators are humans and not machines and they need proper sleep or else if they go drowsy at work.

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What Are The Various Safety Protocol One Should Follow Inside A Construction Site

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Safety is perhaps one of the most important things that one would not like to compromise on and especially when you are associated with an industry that has high risk involved in it. Construction and mining industries are one such industries where the chances of an accident happening is much higher than compared to any other industry and which is why employees are required to follow the safety measures more stringently. They just can’t compromise on safety parameters and have to make sure that they wear all the accessories that will keep them safe and sound on the field. As a matter of fact, accidents are merely the outcome or carelessness and utter negligence and if that can be curtailed, many accidents can be avoided. It is better to be safe than sorry, this should be the only mantra for workers working in this kind of positions.

Here we would be discussing about the various safety protocols that one could implement in his company to avoid unwanted incidences.

Wearing of safety accessories:-  There are many construction companies which do not pay much heed to wearing of safety accessories and allow their workers to take unwanted risks. The workers on the other hand may not know the importance of these accessories and take the risk not knowing that if anything goes wrong, there is every possibility of them getting killed. It is therefore should be mandatory for every construction company to ask their employees to wear the required safety accessory in order to get the work done. Remember that losing an employee would cost you more than keeping a constant check and ensuring that they are on with their stuffs. Moreover, it will also keep you away from any legal hassle.

Give them the right sort of training:-  A good number of your employees many not even know how to apply first aid to a person who has just had an accident. They would rather wait for the ambulance to come in and pick the person away. That makes the job of the doctor pretty hard and leaves a strong possibility of the person getting killed. In order to avoid this, it makes more sense to train your employees on how to give first aid and also show them some demonstrations. It would be a good option to let them try few of the things they have learnt. Things you learn inside the training room may turn out to be very different when you actually need to do it in practical.

Ensure the supervisor do their job well:-  You should keep able and competent people as supervisors who understands the importance of employees safety and also makes sure that the employees follow the safety guidelines given to them.

Accidents are inevitable but can be largely contained:-  Accidents don’t call up and come and therefore one can’t make sure that they are 100% accident protected. However, by following the safety guidelines, one can definitely bring down the number of accidents and keep the employees in a minimal risk environment.

Compromising On Safety Standards Can Risk The Life Of Your Employees

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A construction site is never meant for children. The reason is that these sites are full of dangers. Dangers that we can’t foresee and they can come upon at any time from any corner of the site if things are left in a haphazard manner. Though all construction sites are meant to follow some safety parameters, accidents happen when they fail to follow those parameters and take an unwanted risk, which leads to untoward incidents. Well, it is very critical to first understand the value of a human life and once that is realized things will start falling in place. Other than that, workers should also understand the importance of safety measures in a work environment like this. The workers during many instances have to work very high above the ground and it is during such instances, if they do not take proper safety precautions, things may turn dangerous for them.

So how can one incur the practice of following the safety measures at all times in the construction premises? Firstly, the employees should be given proper training and must be made aware of the importance of the training. The employees should take the training very seriously and that can happen only when they understand how crucial the training is to them. Show them videos where employees in a construction site are wearing all the required accessories that will help them to remain safe. Also train them on first aid facilities and what they should do prima facie when an accident occurs. Overall, you would be gearing them up with all the required information that will help them to save someone’s life.

Working under an experienced person will prove to be very beneficial to the newbie. They may not have the experience to deal with situations. Given required training will let them know what to do but if they have someone experienced by their side, it always make things easier. More to this, the experienced guy may also share his experiences with them which will be a good learning to them.

New safety devices are the need of the hour. You can’t hold on to the same old stuff which was being used a decade ago. There are new things coming up in the market which can give better protection to your employees from any eventuality and incorporating those things will definitely not harm the finances your business in any manner.

Implementing stringent rules are a must in this form of an industry. Be it construction or mining industry, safety of the employees come first. Therefore, it becomes the onus of the company to ensure that all the employees are rigorously following the safety guidelines while they are at work. If required, you can ask their supervisors to check if all the workers have worn their safety stuffs before starting their work.

It’s better to be safe rather than being sorry about things that were well in your control. Compromising on safety measures can cost you big time.