Material handling comes with a lot of risks, especially when it is done manually. Lifting, hauling, and pushing tasks can make the working environment risky and unsafe for workers. Material handling errors lead to injuries which can also be highly costly in terms of medical bills, low productivity, and lost employee morale. It’s also worth noting that there are over 340 million work-related injuries annually. It is crucial that every organization takes preventive actions to reduce these situations and the expenses associated with them. This article highlights some safety measures to implement in industrial material handling.
Reduce ergonomic risk factors
Ergonomic risk factors are issues that cause workers to get too tired. These risk hazards are frequently encountered in manual material handling environments. Stressful postures while handling materials, such as bending or twisting, highly repetitive actions like frequent grabbing and lifting, and powerful exertions, such as hauling or lifting huge and heavy items, are three major contributors. It’s also important to identify and minimize these ergonomic risk factors by implementing control mechanisms to restrict employees’ exposure to all conceivable dangers.
Make use of the right equipment
Manual material handling is labour-intensive, time-consuming, and dangerous. However, selecting the correct equipment for every task makes this process safer, quicker, and more efficient. Conveyor belt systems have multiple advantages when carrying weight loads of various shapes and sizes. Storage equipment such as stillages, racks, and pallets and bulk material equipment such as drums, silos grain elevators are also available as material handling equipment. Designate and train the relevant personnel on the proper processes, and ensure they always follow the guidelines. You should also note that only authorized and qualified personnel should operate the equipment regardless of the size or ease of use.
Minimize vibration and noise
Because noise and vibration are common in many factories, it is critical to safeguard your employees’ hearing. Vibration produces but can also induce musculoskeletal issues and overall employee tiredness. You can considerably reduce factory noise and vibration using proper equipment, such as wheel materials. Matching the materials of the wheels to the floor surface can also be beneficial. To lessen the noise and g-forces on a wheeled cart, utilize shock-absorbing casters and softer wheels.
Addressing staff stress reports
Physical exhaustion and tiredness are typical in manual material handling duties. Even if you have a good ergonomic strategy that responds to your employee’s skills, regular physical labour might harm their health. Cumulative weariness will eventually lead to musculoskeletal problems. As a result, you must urge employees to report any indicators of discomfort or weariness so that you can respond immediately and implement control measures to avoid fatigue from leading to significant accidents or injuries.
Make personal protective equipment available
Offering employees protection equipment will considerably reduce injuries when moving items manually. Eye protection goggles, hard helmets, hand gloves, steel-toed safety boots, and metal fibre or plastic metatarsal guards protect the in-step area from impact or compression, so feel free to consider this.
