Heavy Equipment Safety: Dressing Safe

It is a fact that accidents happen and no matter how conscientious you are about heavy equipment safety, nothing will change that. What people can change is the way that they approach heavy equipment safety. Heavy equipment safety is not about creating a perfectly safe environment where nothing can go wrong, it is about minimizing the number of unnecessary risks that we take in the workplace. You are never going to be able to eliminate all risk. Let’s work on eliminating the risks that we can control, starting with clothing.

Clothing: a Heavy Equipment Safety Variable that you can Control

Tight fitting clothing is an absolute must. Loose clothing gets in the way of handling equipment. More importantly, loose fitting clothing can get caught in moving parts and that can potentially be fatal. If you want to improve your heavy equipment safety levels, clothing is a great place to start.

Needless to say, scarves are a major heavy equipment safety issue. It’s winter, it’s cold, wear a neck warmer. Think of a scarf as a potential noose, because that is what it is. If a scarf gets caught in equipment the wrong way, it can be deadly. Incidentally, office workers should take care around paper shredders if they wear ties for much the same reasons.

Hardhats are essential heavy equipment safety equipment, regardless of whether or not your vehicle is covered. There will be times that you need to exit the vehicle. If you make a habit of wearing a hardhat constantly, you will not be caught without one.

Do you have some heavy equipment safety concerns that you would like to discuss? Are you interested in taking a heavy equipment course? Please feel free to contact us at Associated Training Services.