Tips For Winter Safety On A Jobsite

As with most other things in your life, the winter weather can force you to change routines and find alternative ways of getting things done. When it comes to our construction clients, we are constantly emphasizing the importance of altering their safety policies during the winter to protect workers and the public. Good winter safety tips also include equipment maintenance to prevent equipment from breaking down unexpectedly.

Keep A Strict Equipment Maintenance Schedule

As we mentioned, the winter weather has a way of causing equipment to break down and become unproductive. The operator’s manuals for all of your equipment should give tips for winter maintenance that will help keep your equipment in excellent working condition. You should also pay attention to any temperature warnings in the manuals and avoid operating equipment in temperatures that could cause damage.

Worker Clothing

Workers with years of experience will know how to dress in the winter to stay warm and still be able to do their jobs. But workers who are new to the construction industry may not understand how they need to dress to stay warm and safe. To help new workers out, you should offer information that will indicate how to dress for the cold winter weather and still be mobile enough to safely do the job.

Snow Glare

One of the major differences between winter and any other season of the years is the glare that comes when the sun reflects off the snow. The snow glare can cause workers to fall off of high places, and it can make it difficult for equipment operators to focus on what they are doing. As winter is rolling in, you should recommend several types of sunglasses your workers can wear to protect against the dangers of snow glare.

Footing

The winter weather can make footing very dangerous all over a jobsite. If you are working on a structure that has open walls where the snow can get in, melt, and then freeze over, then you should have your crews check for ice each morning and put down salt to prevent slipping. Your workers should exercise an extra level of caution when walking around a jobsite, and there should be a process in place where workers can report icy areas to have the ice taken care of.

Safety Equipment

It is extremely important to check the operator’s manuals for all of your safety equipment to see if they have any weather or temperature limitations. If the safety equipment you have is not rated to be used in the very cold winter weather, then you need to invest in the proper safety equipment to make sure that your workers are safe at all times.

The winter weather changes the complexion of a jobsite and creates a variety of different challenges. If you do not take the necessary steps to combat the winter weather, then you may have employees getting hurt and equipment getting damaged.

When we discuss jobsite safety with customers, we always bring up the issues that winter can cause and gives suggestions on how to combat those issues. It is important that a construction company be very proactive when it comes to devising ways to keep their jobsite safe during the winter.