The Impact of Safety Signs for Machine Operations
June 19, 2024
The Impact of Safety Signs for Machine Operations
Maximizing employee safety should be a leading priority for every industrial or manufacturing company. And while physical safeguarding gear and other equipment play an essential role in creating a safer, more efficient workplace, they’re only part of the full equation. Your employees also need proper safety signs and symbols to identify and avoid potential hazards.
Safety signs work to prevent injury and harm to employees—or the public who might be around a certain hazard. Without providing the right signs for recognizing hazards, you are putting employees and your company at risk. But the question remains: how exactly can organizations use and stay in compliance with OSHA standards on safety signs and symbols?
Why & How to Use Safety Signs
Whenever there are hazards in the workplace, there should always be signs to identify it and keep people from harm. This is true in all cases, whether it’s a slippery floor or a warning for dangerous machines being operated. Safety signs should be placed in a spot that is clearly visible and near the hazard it’s identifying.
The specifications for safety sign standards are clearly spelled out in OSHA standard 1910.145 as follows:
“These specifications apply to the design, application, and use of signs or symbols that indicate and, insofar as possible, define specific hazards that could harm workers or the public, or both, or to property damage. These specifications are intended to cover all safety signs except those designed for streets, highways, and railroads. These specifications do not apply to plant bulletin boards or to safety posters.”
There are three different types of signs, including danger signs, caution signs, and safety instruction signs. Each has its own design rules—and pertains to various hazards in the workplace.
Danger - Danger signs indicate immediate danger and that special precautions are necessary. For danger signs, the predominant color is red, with a black outline and white space for any wordage.
Caution - Caution signs are only used to warn against potential hazards or to caution against unsafe practices. This type of sign indicates a possible hazard against which proper precaution should be taken. For caution signs, yellow is the predominant color, with a black outline around it.
Safety Instruction - Safety instruction signs are used where there is a need for general instructions and suggestions relative to safety measures.
Should Safety Sign Training Be Provided?
It’s no question that safety training is a crucial aspect of creating a safer workplace. Safety sign training should be no exception—and is also required to be OSHA compliant. Without accurate knowledge of what color each sign indicates or what the symbols mean, it can be difficult for employees to take the appropriate safety measures. OSHA requires you to train employees to recognize the different kinds of signs and tags in order to take action based on the messages expressed.
Safety signs and tags play a critical role in an organization’s hazard communication program. Employees should be trained on what the signs and symbols mean, proper use of them, and removing, blocking, or defacing them.
Examples of what employees should be trained on:
Color coding of each sign, as well as how to recognize the meaning of any pictures or symbols on a sign.
Knowing where to properly place signs according to their respective hazard.
Understanding what type of sign should be used in certain situations.
Knowing when to remove a sign—and ensuring that it is never blocked or defaced in any way.
Staying up to date on safety training and best practices is key for creating a safer workplace. Through training sessions on safety signage, you can ensure that all employees are getting the right information—and know how to apply it when various safety hazards present themselves.
Machine Safety Solutions from Stronghold Safety
There’s nothing more important than protecting employees throughout your facilities. Placing high-quality safety signs that clearly mark where there is danger is critical in any environment where your company operates machines. These safety signs are essential, but having employees educated on how to properly read them is equally important.
At Stronghold Safety, we’re passionate about helping your team create a safer workplace. With an in-depth machine guarding assessment, we can help you identify risks (including improper or insufficient use of safety signs), design a custom safety plan, and implement solutions that will help deliver maximum ROI. If you're serious about safety, contact Stronghold Safety Engineering for complete professional safety solutions that will help you protect what's most important.