Site managers up and down the country share many of the same concerns, and safety is one of the main ones. Unfortunately, and despite everyone’s best intentions, accidents can happen. A leak can inform you there was damaged equipment, and a spill can often be attributed to human error. Both leaks and spills can spread quickly and present immediate hazards for slips and falls. 

Measures to combat this can be put into two broad categories: prevention and remedy. Prevention is always the preferred option as it ensures safety, simultaneously saving you considerable time and expense. But even the best made plans can go awry and whether through accident, mistake or bad luck, you could have a liquid on your site presenting a risk. The most appropriate response is therefore to include both prevention and remedy in your plan, and there are three areas that warrant the most attention to keep your site safe.

Training: the cornerstone of health and safety

If you want to maintain a safe site, training must be a priority. You can have the best products in the world on hand but if the team doesn’t know how to use them, they won’t be effective. Training will provide practical skills and raise awareness amongst the entire team of how to stay safe, to work with due diligence and take appropriate care. It should include how to use the products safely, proper storage of materials so they aren’t trip hazards, and stopping a spill becoming a slipping risk. Training will also inform staff what to do when something goes wrong, ensuring they know the difference between an oil absorbent and chemical absorbent, how to dispose of used equipment, and critical minutes aren’t wasted by trying to locate the clean-up materials or learning how to use them. 

Every moment counts when preventing a problem becoming a disaster, and something as simple as knowing where the spill kits are located should never be a barrier to action. 

The role of essential materials

There are countless reasons why a leak or spill can occur, so absorbents are as important on a site as a fire extinguisher. The selection is extensive, with an absorbent for every type of spill imaginable, including oil,  chemical, and acqueous liquids. There should be an absorbent or spill kit for each type of liquid kept on site. However, emergency spill kits need to be designated for emergencies only; many teams have learned the hard way that using these kits to clean up minor drips and leaks results in a depleted kit for when it’s truly needed. Instead, strategically placed absorbent stations should be used for the drips and leaks, and spill kits with visible tamper tacks reserved for an emergency.

In addition to the absorbents, necessary materials include PPE such as gloves and goggles to keep the team safe, and disposal equipment so the absorbents can be safely discarded and not become a hazard of their own. Perhaps most important is where all of this equipment is kept: it needs to be accessible at all times, with absorbents kept in close proximity to the liquids they would be applied to.

Maintaining spill containment 

With staff trained and a well-equipped site, the final piece is your storage solution. Thorough checks should be conducted regularly, ensuring that quality control standards are being met. Ultimately you’re checking that the integrity of the equipment has not been compromised, which includes removing drain water to ensure full capacity, valves are operational, no foreign objects have found their way in, and there are no leaks. This routine monitoring will ensure you’re alerted to issues before they become a problem.

Prepare for the worst

The only thing worse than a disaster occurring is not being able to handle it. There are no guarantees on a site, so the training and preventative measures won’t make you immune to leaks and spills. But appropriate preparation will put you in the best possible position. Investing in prevention and remedy will significantly reduce the likelihood of a spill or leak occurring in the first place, while also putting you in a strong position to react swiftly if something does go wrong. In so doing, site managers around the country can feel a lot more prepared and less concerned.

For more information visit:
www.thedarcygroup.co.uk