Accidents at your manufacturing job can cause you injury. But injuries do not happen only from accidents. Some injuries happen over time due to the environment we work in. Personal protective gear can save you from being injured because of an accident or because of the harsh environment you are subjected to.
Many choose not to wear safety equipment because they fill it is not necessary or somehow not “manly”. Others feel that wearing safety equipment is uncomfortable or gets in their way. The truth is that this gear is saving peoples’ five senses, keeping them from developing serious illnesses, and saving them from serious injuries when an accident does happen.
Many factories have safety programs such as the OSHA 10 training course offered by 360 Training in place. It would be imperative to follow those programs and make good use of the personal protective gear that is provided. Companies such as WorkWear Hub provides a variety of personal protective equipment options to fit your needs and preferences.
Protect Your Sight, Hearing, Face, and Lungs
In a manufacturing plant, there are a variety of opportunities to damage your sight, hearing, face, and lungs. Protecting yourself from these dangers is quite simple.
Protect your sight:
Dust and flying small particles can greatly damage your eyes. If you are sanding, grinding, or working with solvents or acids, then you should be wearing eye protection. A small particle or a small amount of a corrosive liquid can cause great damage to your eyes.
Safety glasses should be impact resistant and its coverage should include the sides of your eyes. If you wear prescription glasses, you can get safety glasses with prescription lenses.
Protect your hearing:
A safe decibel level to work in on a daily basis is 85. A lot of the machinery used in factories will exceed that 85-decibel limit. Figuring out the noise reduction that a particular hearing protection device provides can be a little tricky. Here is the process:
- Check the packaging to get the noise reduction rating (NRR).
- Subtract seven from that number.
- Divide the resulting number by two. This is the actual decibel amount that the device will reduce for your ears [(NRR-7)/2].
- Subtract this number from the decibel level in your work environment to see if it is equal to or less than 85.
Protect your face and lungs:
When grinding, working with chemicals, and welding, face protection should be worn. Oftentimes, wearing a face shield in combination with safety glasses is warranted.
Breathing in solids and chemical vapors into our lungs will damage them. Some breathing protection is designed to protect us from particles. Other types are designed to protect us from harmful vapors. Check the labeling to determine what type of protection the device is designed to provide and wear it properly to be fully protected.
If you are wearing a vapor protection breathing device and you can smell the vapors, then you do not have a proper seal or it is time to change the cartridges.
Protect Your Head, Hands, and Feet
Our head provides a big target for flying debris and falling objects. Head injuries can cause brain issues as we get older. Hard hats and safety helmets should be certified to AS/NZS1801 to meet Australia’s occupational safety standards. Make sure that your hard hat is adjusted to your head correctly and monitor its condition continually.
Wearing gloves can seem to hamper our ability to do our job, but splinters, cuts, and burns to our hands and fingers could send us to the emergency room. If you are working around sharp, abrasive, or hot materials, appropriate hand protection should be worn to keep your hands from being damaged.
Proper footwear is an important component of your protective gear. Leather shoes are more protective than canvas ones. Falling objects and rolling equipment has caused major injuries to factory workers. Your footwear should also have anti-slip soles in case liquids have been spilled where you are walking. Make sure your shoes provide good support to avoid a back injury due to constantly walking on concrete.
Depending on your specific job, other types of personal protective equipment may be required to keep you safe from injury. Wearing the right clothing will also protect your arms and legs.
Safety should be a priority at work. Wearing the proper protective gear will help you get home safe and help protect you from time exposure injuries.
If you’ve been injured at work, get immediate medical attention and seek representation from an expert personal injury lawyer from Rosengard Law Group to help you file medical and insurance claims for your injury. Hiring a lawyer will ensure that you get the compensation you are entitled to as per the nature of your injury which will be identified accordingly if you are represented by a personal injury lawyer.