Why Ignoring Mezzanine Floor Safety Could Put Your Business at Risk

Every business person knows space is important for productivity and should be utilised optimally. For this reason, the mezzanine floors have become popular in warehouses (why more warehouses are installing mezzanine floors – the benefits you can’t ignore), factories, and even stores. However, people often forget that there is a safety risk. Therefore, it is crucial to understand that mezzanine floor safety is important and can impact business operations.

Understanding the real risk

The mezzanine floor is just, in fact, a raised platform in the building that your employees work around (the secret to more space: mezzanine floors explained). That’s why compromising on the quality of the mezzanine will not be a minor issue but a big disaster. These risks of mezzanine floors in businesses include an overload of structures, weakening of the structure over time, and lack of safety. Current rates of work-related accidents show that falls from height are one of the principal types of injuries occurring in the work environment. The mishaps on your mezzanine floor can lead to serious injury, legal claims, and harm to your company’s image.

Therefore, sema inspection is essential for the safety of mezzanine floors. They protect your workers and your business. Scheduling SEMA inspections means they will detect issues earlier that could create significant problems or accidents and cost you high repair bills.

Safety risks that people overlook

Several safety issues can go unnoticed within the day-to-day operation of the business. Knowledge of these potential problems is crucial to making the working environment safe.

Here are common mezzanine floor safety issues:

1. Overloading

• Overloading beyond normal limits and failing to store heavy or large items properly leads to an imbalance of loads and creates safety risks.
• Secondly, equipment was incorrectly handled on the mezzanine floors.
• Some of the common challenges include- leaving fewer gaps between stored materials.
• Blocked emergency exits because of the temporary storage solutions.

2. Lack of knowledge of employees

There could be many safety risks when there are insufficient gaps between the employees and management. It happens when:

• Employees do not know about particular weight restrictions.
• Improper handling of materials exerts lots of pressure on the structures.
• When working in a team, the members don’t know anything regarding emergencies.
• Insufficient information about mezzanine floor safety regulations
• Not proper supervision during high-risk operations.

3. Slips, wear, and tear

Mezzanine floors are also affected by weather, temperature, and humidity and can pose a danger. Certain metal structures, like bolts and fasteners, can expand and contract, making the joints loose over time. Therefore, regular inspections become important.

Mezzanine floor accident prevention tips

There are several mezzanine floor accident prevention tips to make it safe. These include:

• Keep the floor well-lit: A dark mezzanine will lead to higher risk. It will make those using it easily slip and fall on objects they could not have seen.
• There should be enough mezzanine handrails installed: Provide handrails across the outside edges of the mezzanine and stairs so that people using the space are safe and prevent objects from falling.
• All edges should have kickboards: As with handrails, kickboards on all outside edges reduce the chance of objects falling off and provide security to those using the mezzanine area.
• Keep the mezzanine space organised: Everyone who uses the space should be expected to clean and declutter the space as necessary to reduce the risk of falls.
• Items on a mezzanine must be safe: Not only should items be stored neatly, but boxes, equipment, and machinery should be kept properly.
• Training for safety policy: Employees should be trained on safety issues, including trips, slips, and spillages.
• Stick to the weight regulation on the mezzanine: Post installation, display information about the mezzanine floor load capacity guidelines. It must be considered before installing heavy machinery or equipment.
• Install pallet gates: If there is an opening on the mezzanine floor to transfer pallets, install them by gates.

Conclusion

After analysing all the factors of the industrial sector, companies are using best practices to ensure the safety of the mezzanine floor. This includes load distribution monitoring systems that alert when the floor is overloaded before it becomes dangerous. Therefore, a safe mezzanine floor is more than just regulation compliance; it is the safety of your people, assets, and business.

QA NET is a reliable mezzanine floor company and a certified mezzanine floor safety inspection specialist. You get safety solutions to protect the mezzanine floors and ensure safe business operations.

Categorised in: Mezzanine Floors

This post was written by QA