The Need For Warehouse Safety Products In Your Warehouse
Why should you care about implementing warehouse safety products in your warehouse? Since 2011, the number of people employed in a warehouse or logistics setting has doubled, increasing from roughly 647,000 employees in January 2011 to over 1,415,600 employees in January 2021 (Source: bls.gov). This dramatic increase in the warehouse workforce demonstrates the rapid growth of the logistics sector but also presents another problem: increased opportunities for warehouse injuries.
Furthermore, the average number of employee injuries is estimated to be 4.8 injury cases per 100 full-time workers. Based on the current employment figures, that means every year, almost 68,000 people are injured on the job while working in a warehouse setting.
Injuries in the warehouse not only affect the health and safety of your employees and operational productivity but also have a strong effect on the bottom line. According to Liberty Mutual Insurance, serious, non-fatal injuries cost $84.04 million a week in the transportation and warehousing industry.
Creating a safe, OSHA-compliant workplace is the goal for every warehouse manager, yet, injuries are still prevalent. Currently, the leading cause of workplace accidents originates from forklift accidents.
This article will cover ways where you can make small investments into your current warehouse infrastructure to increase your employees’ safety and protect your material handling equipment from damage to reduce workplace accidents and fatalities, and keep your operations running without a hitch.
Best Warehouse Safety Products For Protecting Employees
Protecting your employees from avoidable accidents is key to creating a safe work environment. According to OSHA, at the most basic level all employees should be cognizant of the following common hazards:
- Unsafe use of forklifts
- Improper stacking of products
- Failure to use proper personal protective equipment
- Failure to follow proper lockout/tagout procedures
- Repetitive motion injuries
Many of these common hazards can be remedied by an ongoing, mandatory safety education program. However, warehouse managers can take things a step further by investing in the following warehouse safety products to be more proactive in terms of protecting employees.
Dome Mirrors
Dome Mirrors are an inexpensive way to prevent accidents from happening in a warehouse setting, especially in a high-traffic warehouse especially where forklift traffic is present. Dome safety mirrors help eliminate blind spots at intersections within your warehouse, allowing employees and forklift operators to see each other before a collision happens.
For warehouse operations, we recommend a full 360-degree dome mirror to be installed at every intersection within your warehouse. 360-degree dome mirrors, like the ones we stock here at American Storage & Logistics, offer a 360-degree view from any vantage point, allowing your warehouse employees to see 1’ for every 1” on the mirror.
Our dome mirrors are crafted of lightweight, Grade A acrylic for clear views from all sides, and come standard with hanging hardware. For an even clearer (and safer) view at every intersection, consider a larger 36” dome mirror instead of our standard 18” dome mirror.
Guard Rail
Safety guard rail provides a physical and visual barrier in your warehouse with a dual purpose of not only protecting employees but also equipment and property damage protection as well. Guard rails are designed to absorb the force of heavy impact based on their all-steel construction. The safety guard rail we stock at American Storage & Logistics can prevent a 10,000 lb. forklift going 5 miles per hour from breaking through a guard rail.
Common places to install guard rail include, but are not limited to:
- Surrounding implant offices (as in the diagram at the beginning of this article)
- Pedestrian and employee areas
- End of rack aisle
- Conveyor lines
- Mezzanines
One thing to consider when purchasing safety guard rail is mobility. All safety guard rails posts are bolted to the concrete for a secure and stable connection. There are two ways to connect the actual guard rail to the posts: bolt-on and lift-out. Each has its unique advantages and disadvantages when it comes to mobility and safety.
Bolt-on style guard rail systems require the rail to be bolted into the posts. Bolt-on style guard rail is normally less expensive and is more secure. To move your rail to a different location, the rails need to be physically unbolted from the posts, making mobility an issue. Regardless, bolt-on style guard rail is more durable than its counterpart, lift-out style guard rail.
Lift-out style guard rail, sometimes called drop-in guard rail, utilizes special lift-out guard rail posts. Lift-out style guard rail systems are designed to make the guard rail removable and therefore more easily transferable to other parts of your warehouse. These types of systems are generally more expensive and are less secure than the bolt-on style systems because there will be more play in the system as the guard rail is dropped into a lot instead of being secured by bolts.
Handrail
New 1-1/2" Square Tube Safety Railing, 42"H x 48"W, Osha Yellow
$79.00
Modular safety handrail system to keep workers out of the way of forklift traffic. Heavy wall 1-1/2" square steel tubing Safety yellow enamel provides high visibility finish 42"H with midrail to provide additional strength and support Easy installation - No… read more
Safety handrails are a cost-effective safety solution to add to any warehouse setting. Handrails should be installed at loading docks (especially if your loading dock exceeds 4-feet in length) as outlined in the diagram above. Handrails can also be installed in other key locations inside of a warehouse to prevent falls, including:
- Mezzanine platforms and catwalks
- Ramps
- Stairs
All of the handrail that we stock at American Storage and Logistics is OSHA-compliant, constructed of heavy wall 1-½” square steel tubing with a safety yellow enamel finish for high visibility. Handrail systems can be built in a straight line, or with 90-degree corners, which makes implementation planning very easy, especially if you’re installing them around your docks.
When purchasing and installing handrails, always make sure to follow OSHA’s guidelines for fall protection systems. If you’re connecting multiple handrails to form a corner, ensure that you’re also purchasing handrail connectors, and don’t forget to buy a base and concrete wedge anchors to make a complete handrail system.
New Square Tube Safety Rail, Corner Panel Connector, Osha Yellow
$18.08
Modular safety handrail system to keep workers out of the way of forklift traffic. Heavy wall 1-1/2" square steel tubing Safety yellow enamel provides high visibility finish Midrail provides additional strength and support Easy installation - No welding required Creates… read more
New Square Tube Safety Rail, End Base, Osha Yellow (Anchors Not Included), 5/8" Round Hole
$16.80
Modular safety handrail system to keep workers out of the way of forklift traffic. Heavy wall 1-1/2" square steel tubing Safety yellow enamel provides high visibility finish Midrail provides additional strength and support Easy installation - No welding required Creates… read more
Rack Back Safety Panel
The vertical storage capabilities of pallet racking greatly benefit warehouses in terms of maximizing storage space within a given footprint, but as products get stored higher on the rack, the risk of items falling off and injuring a person below goes up dramatically. Luckily, equipment like rack back safety panels can mitigate these risks and oftentimes fully prevent them.
Rack back safety panels are specifically designed to prevent products from falling off a bay. These safety panels can also be very easily installed if you choose a system that users Grippprr brackets, like the ones we sell here at American Storage & Logistics. The wire mesh construction of the safety panel provides a hard stop for stored products and provides much more safety than industrial netting, which is design to catch materials.
Rack back safety systems with wire mesh panels also keeps your warehouse safe in the case of a fire, as sprinkler systems will have unobstructed access to reach burning material.
As seen in the diagram above, we recommend that wire mesh rack back safety panels be installed on the side of your pallet rack where no product picking or retrieval is required. That way, if an unforeseen collision between a forklift and your pallet rack occurs, nothing falls out of the opposite side and onto an unsuspecting person.
Best Warehouse Safety Products For Protecting Equipment
If protecting the safety of your warehouse team is priority #1, protecting the integrity of your material handling equipment should be the next top priority. In a warehouse environment, the equipment that usually takes the most daily abuse is your pallet racks. With constant product storage and retrieval happening, usually with heavy machinery like forklift trucks, it is important to be proactive and protect your pallet rack investment. Below are two must-have safety add-ons to protect your pallet racking.
End of Aisle Guards
New Pallet Rack Aisle Guard, 12"H x 45"L x 9.68"W, Floor-Mounted, Left Side
$104.49
Low profile, protection for pallet rack 12"H corners Fits 3"W pallet rack columns Prevents forklift damage to side and front of pallet rack Heavy duty, all-welded 1/4" thick steel Bright OSHA yellow finish Anchor bolts included If you would like… read more
The end of your pallet rack aisles is vulnerable to damage as they are usually located in highly trafficked areas in your warehouse. Damage to pallet racks due to forklift collisions very commonly occurs at the end of your racks. End of aisle guards are a simple piece of safety equipment that can be easily installed to protect these areas.
End of aisle guards are equipped with a bright OSHA yellow finish to make them more visible to forklift drivers. The visual cue itself is many times enough to prevent an unwanted collision from happening. In the case that a forklift does collide with the end of aisle guard, its heavy-duty ¼” thick steel construction absorbs the impact - not your expensive pallet rack. This results in a reduced need to potentially replace an entire upright. Damaged upright frames are a big safety hazard in themselves and can turn deadly if not addressed quickly. In this case, the best route of action is prevention.
End of rack aisle guards are also very easy to install. Anchor bolts are generally included with all end of rack aisle guards, but to maximize the protection of your pallet rack we recommend installing them directly to the concrete floor rather than the upright.
Post Protectors
Although the ends of your pallet rack aisles are where you will see most collisions occur, forklift accidents can still occur within the aisle of your racking system. Post protectors are specifically designed to prevent damage to your pallet rack uprights in these areas.
Much like end of aisle guards, post protectors are installed near the bottom of your pallet rack uprights as this is the area of the system where the upright transfers all of the weight down to the floor. Post protectors are normally finished with a bright OSHA yellow to provide a visual cue to forklift operators, again, like end of aisle guards.
Post protectors are very easy to install, usually requiring only a few concrete wedge anchors to securely fasten the post protector to the floor. Based on the diagram above, it is recommended that post protectors be installed on all pallet rack uprights. Maintaining the integrity of your pallet rack uprights with a small investment like post protectors could help you avoid a potentially disastrous situation in your warehouse.
Get Your Warehouse Safety Products As Soon As Today
Warehouse safety is top of mind for any warehouse manager. Your material handling equipment, employees, and operational processes should all prioritize warehouse safety not just to comply with OSHA requirements, but to protect the wellbeing of your employees and the capital investments into your warehouse.
If you’re looking to increase the safety of your warehouse and you are in the mid-Michigan area near Grand Rapids, Lansing, Kalamazoo, or Battle Creek, you can purchase your warehouse safety products online and pick them up at our warehouse the same day or get them delivered to your business as soon as tomorrow.
Explore our warehouse safety products today or give us a call at 616-246-9800 and chat with one of our warehouse safety specialists today to help you find the right mix of products that fit your needs.
