How to Maintain a Healthy Indoor Environment in a Warehouse
Warehouse work may look pretty straightforward, but in reality, there are more than enough hazards present in that sort of facility. As such, entrepreneurs should take a step back and reassess the current condition of their warehouses to make sure that the company is doing its best to achieve a healthy indoor environment. Doing so will benefit employees and the organization as a whole.
If you’ve already built the warehouse and it’s been operational for some time now, the next best thing you can do is to implement the necessary protocols for health and safety purposes. That way, you can mitigate risks and reduce potential accidents, injuries, and other unforeseen incidents that could’ve been easily prevented if the right precautions had been established in the first place.
It All Starts With Healthy Indoor Air Quality
It’s impossible not to think of air quality whenever indoor environments are being evaluated or discussed. With the ‘new normal’ still unfolding up to this day, it’s only logical to expect that there’ll be more emphasis on how indoor spaces are designed and maintained. Although warehouses have been operated in close confines even before the pandemic hit, there should still be proper considerations if you want to keep your employees healthy, productive, and efficient while working.
No effort is too small or irrelevant when it comes to making sure that your warehouse has an optimal indoor environment. For example, installing the best commercial air purifier may seem like a simple thing, but in reality, you’re doing more than what’s expected of you as the company owner. Although you may not know it, workers are aware of what you’re providing for them, and such safety measures could potentially boost their loyalty and efficiency in the long run.
In that regard, improving and maintaining indoor air quality in your facility is nonnegotiable. The presence of invisible hazards such as chemical pollution in the air inside warehouses can affect workers’ health over time. They may experience everything from nausea and headaches to sneezing and coughing. Such conditions can, in turn, negatively impact their productivity. Add to that the alarming potential of your employees contracting the COVID-19 virus, which can affect your entire establishment.
The Role Of Good Housekeeping Practices
A healthy indoor environment is clean and tidy. This means there should be efficient housekeeping practices guaranteeing that the excellent quality of air circulating inside the warehouse will be sustained. Assuming that your warehouse is huge, cleaning tasks should be assigned accordingly so all areas will be covered as necessary.
Scheduled cleaning won’t only keep air quality in check but also ensure that your stocks are stored in the right conditions and their integrity won’t be affected. Shelves and racks would need regular dusting apart from the extensive cleaning for the whole facility. These practices would ultimately help you steer clear of damage issues concerning your products or stocks. And, of course, it’s already common knowledge that you need to provide ample warehouse lighting to enhance accuracy and productivity among workers.
Also, don’t forget to inspect your heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system. Doing so will allow fresh air from outside to replace possibly polluted air inside the warehouse. With a smooth-running HVAC system, you’ll be able to change the temperature when needed, boost air quality via filters, and keep the place well ventilated all day.
Involving Your Workers Can Go A Long Way
As you plan on different techniques and strategies to maintain a healthy indoor environment at your warehouse, one thing you might want to remember is to involve your workers every step of the way. It pays to inform them of your objectives as you put in every effort to provide a healthy and safe workplace for them. Having their full cooperation can go a long way in making the endeavor a successful one.
Aside from requiring the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) as they do their jobs, you can provide training and seminars to your workers regarding warehouse health and safety. You can reevaluate and review your structure and protocols in place to assess the efficiency of your current measures. Additionally, you may open the floor for feedback and suggestions from everyone in the organization to promote a culture of safety and collaboration.
Final Words
Maintaining a healthy indoor environment at any warehouse may not be a walk in the park. However, you must take all the measures to ensure that your facility is safe enough for everyone on your team. Doing so would make efficient warehousing operations possible and allow your employees to stay consistently productive. Furthermore, it’ll help you prevent accidents and damage to property that can otherwise be costly and time-consuming to address.