Keeping Mining Employees from Danger by Maintaining Company Safety
You must have heard all the horror stories of miners getting buried because of a sudden collapse. Some of those might have been avoidable if proper safety regulations were implemented and observed. Seeing as you’re the operations manager or head of your mining company, how would you raise the levels of safety for you and your employees?
Use Quality Safety Tools and Equipment
Over the years, manufacturers have developed tools and equipment that can help raise levels of safety in the mining environment. You must use the best tools for the kind of mining that you’ll be doing. For example, for areas that are prone to flooding or quarry pits, reliable dewatering pump equipment is a must. You don’t want your workers to be overwhelmed with water when you least expect it.
Don’t Neglect Preparation
When you dig out a mine, you don’t just start from anywhere or in any way that you can. You do your research on the site, plan the whole thing out and then proceed in a specific way. This preparation stage greatly contributes to your future safety and efficiency, so you should make sure not to skimp on it. This includes safety training as well as preparing equipment that you will use.
Always be Alert
Just like with the construction business, accidents can happen anytime in mining and quarry pits. For example, a weak spot left undetected, or worse, unreported, can become the cause of a mine collapse in the future. Imagine the lives as well as the money you’ll lose when that happens. You wouldn’t want that, so it would be best for everyone to develop a habit of looking out for hazards in the mining environment and report them as soon as possible.
Encourage People to be Safe
Making sure that your people are safe doesn’t only mean you should invest in equipment, training and rule enforcement. Since you’re the head of the company, you should inspire your workers, as well. If you see them practising and following safety rules, make sure to recognise and show appreciation for their behaviour. This will help them see these regulations as something that works for their good rather than a restriction.
Learn Together from Past Mistakes
Even with all the preparation you can muster, there’s no denying that there’s always a possibility that you will still experience an incident that will threaten the safety of your people. In case that does happen, the best thing to do after recovery is to learn something from it. Ask yourselves what went wrong and what you can do to prevent it in the future. This way, you can refine your safety regulations and minimise the impact of similar incidents that may occur.
Mining may be a dangerous business, but it only stresses the fact that you have to be more careful with what you do and use. Invest in the safety of your company and its workers. The better you can prevent accidents, the more productive you can become.
