[Fot] Shop Safety Question

[Paul Ricco]

FOT,

I have been lucky to work in some very well run industrial environments with world class safety equipment.  As we know, the stuff costs money and a lot of people work without most of it in their own environments.

We have been updating a lot of items in the areas that we work on car and car parts.  It is fun to spend money on tools and equipment.  However, safety equipment is not always as fun.  Near where we live, two pretty smart people have had fires damage their garages and parts of their houses before the fire department could arrive.  While I was running large car dealerships and body shops, I can tell you that fire extinguishers did need to be used from time to time.  Fortunately we had them and never needed to make a call to the fire department, because the right things were in the right places.

Therefore, we just upgraded all of our safety equipment.  Including:

1.  Splatter/spark screens for areas that we weld or grind
2.  High quality US made fire extinguishers with plenty of capacity, including mounting them in the the trailer for at the track.  Some fires can be spread really quickly by hitting the with H20.  Generally speaking water will not put out burning oil fire.  However, it will spread the burning oil all over really quickly.
3.  Spark resistant blankets for use when we are welding in areas that things should be covered
4.  Making sure all flammables are stored safely and away from areas that could have sparks
5.  New and updated smoke detectors, heat sensors and Carbon Monoxide monitors where they can be used (not where we tune engines)

Obviously common sense can prevent a lot of accidents.  Therefore, I though it would be interesting to see what the group has done in their work areas.

Does anyone have anything else that keep around that they feel is helpful for shop area/garage safety?

Paul Ricco