Marking the floor with hazard tape is essential in the workplace for various reasons, contributing towards both safety and efficiency. To maximize the ongoing running of a warehouse, organized floor markings can manage the flow of vehicles, workers, and pedestrians within the same space, ensuring traffic is fast flowing and doesn’t clash. Within a fast-paced environment such as a warehouse, not only is fast-paced working a priority but the safety of everyone within should never be compromised.
Floor marking tape is used to create directly on the floor space, instructing traffic in which direction to move in and drawing attention to the location of any potential hazards that may be around. Different colors are available to signify different meanings and with guidance from websites such as Floor Marking Pro, business owners can implement their systems at a low cost, being able to enhance their site with as little as marking tape and tape applicators.
If used effectively, the addition of floor marking tape can bring a variety of benefits to various business types:
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5S standards
5S is a lean methodology supported by the ASQ (American Society for Quality), organizing workspaces in a way that allows employees to carry out their duties efficiently, effectively, and safely. The 5S methodology centers around keeping everything in order, managing the use of the equipment and the productivity of the business, and helping to enhance existing procedures. Having hazard markings not only helps to improve efficiency and the safety of workers, but it creates a more professional organization around the warehouse, being easy to follow for everyone on site.
Warehouse organization
Throughout a warehouse, every area should follow the same system of floor markings and signage, creating consistency that is easy for all employees to follow. Good use of hazard tape markings means that as well as knowing which direction to take, operatives can easily identify where all machinery, equipment, and stock should be kept as standard. These color-coded indicators can be noticed from afar and do not require space to implement, being an effective solution for both the business and the employees.
Personal safety
Especially where heavy-duty machinery is involved, the safety of all persons on site needs to be considered at all times. Floor marking tape can help draw attention to hazards and provide visual cues that action is needed. For example, the black and yellow tape can create an exclusion zone, being used to indicate that a hazard is present and that protective clothing should be worn before entering the area. With bold colors being used, the risk of people forgetting the precautions or not realizing they are walking towards a hazard is minimized, in turn reducing the likelihood of injury.
Flow of traffic
In busy sites which consist of forklift trucks moving equipment around, trucks unloading goods, heavy machinery operating, and various employees carrying out their duties, creating a natural flow can be tricky. Creating one-way systems, speed limits, and exclusion zones for pedestrians and/or vehicles, can help everyone maintain a sense of direction and avoid the likelihood of clashes. The effective use of floor markings will make it clear to both existing employees and first-time site visitors how they should proceed, maximizing productivity while keeping nasty collisions at minimal risk.
Additional Resources
- Floor Marking for Forklift Traffic– creativesafetysupply.com
- The Impact of Floor Tape on Efficiency in the Workplace– floor-marking-tape.com
- Floor Marking Tape – Your Guide to Safety– blog.creativesafetysupply.com
- How to Design a Floor Marking System for the Workplace– floortape101.com
- Warehouse Floor Marking Tape– blog.5stoday.com
- Industrial Floor Marking Color Standards– floor-tape.com
- Improving Workplace Efficiency with Floor Marking– 5snews.com
- Top Tips for Maintaining the Durability of Floor Tape– blog.safetytac.com
- Using Floor Tape for Facility Safety– facilityfloormarking.com