Having the right equipment is crucial to improving workplace safety, especially when handling dangerous chemicals. Working with reliable chemical pump suppliers can ensure that you don’t incur legal trouble when handling hazardous substances. After the Pike River Mine disaster, the government enacted a new rule to mitigate the risk of harm and injury.
The move aims to reform health and safety laws and safeguard lives. The new measures ensure that the workers are aware of the dangers of handling such chemicals and how to mitigate such risks. Improving chemical handling has far-reaching health implications, including death.
Take inventory of your stock
The new law requires that you take stock of all the hazardous substances that you have in your facility. The logic here is that it’s impossible to defend yourself against the unknown. You need to know the type of risk your workers might be exposed to in the workplace to institute proper risk management.
Therefore, you need to build an inventory of all the dangerous chemicals that are used or stored at your premises. Next, you need to ensure that it’s up-to-date and readily available to emergency services workers. Such a list is crucial to working out your level of compliance and planning your emergency procedures.
The inventory is crucial in helping health and safety officers or compliance certifiers asses your level of compliance. It also informs the emergency workers about the threats they are likely to be facing. Your inventory should detail the name of the substance, the UN number, the amount, the location, and any storage requirement. It should be available as a hard or soft copy for ease of access.
Improve risk management
Part of the risk management entails considering whether it’s possible to eliminate them from your processes or substituting them with a safer variety. If it’s possible to do away with the substance, then consider safe ways of removing it from the premises.
If the above option is not viable, consider substituting with a chemical that poses less of a risk. Alternatively, you can opt to isolate the hazard to minimise the number of people that come into contact with it. You can also apply physical controls such as improving the ventilation system to mitigate the risk. If the threat persists, then you must supply the worker with personal protective equipment such as respirators.
Improve worker training
In addition to the regular training, you have to follow the Hazardous Substance Regulations. These rules spell out what the business needs to do to ensure that workers handling hazardous substances are knowledgeable and have practical experience. Workers must be aware of the dangers of these substances.
Training should centre on the health risks as well as the safety issues when working with the substances. You should instruct workers on safe handling and usage. Finally, workers should know the use of the associated equipment and protective gear.
Sometimes, working with hazardous substances is an inevitable part of the business process. Toeing the line keeps workers safe and prevents a boatload of trouble.
