This World Environment Day, we want to highlight some key ways that you can make your workplace more sustainable, and lower the risk of workplace fires at the same time! Read on for some tips and tricks that can help you take care of your staff, and the environment.
Recycle Excess Paper
Stacks of paper stored around the office can be a fire hazard– they can ignite with a single spark, and fires spread quickly by leaping from pile to pile. If you need to keep large quantities of paper around, make sure they are stored safely (for example, properly filed in fire-resistant cabinets). If it is possible to digitise your records and dispose of the paper, recycling your excess material is a great way to protect the environment whilst minimising the likelihood of a fire.
Upgrade Old Equipment
Old electrical equipment is more likely to develop faults, spark, or overheat. This can lead to the start of a fire, even if the equipment has passed the legally required testing. If possible, upgrading to newer equipment is always a good way to keep your workplace safe – newer devices typically conform to more stringent standards, have improved failsafe options, and are better able to deal with overheating. Modern technology is also more energy-efficient, so you can lessen your impact on the environment by choosing new solutions.
Regular Risk Assessments
Risk assessments can help you to identify and mitigate fire hazards like the ones described above, but they also ensure that your staff know how to safely respond in a worst case scenario. It is incredibly important to store flammable materials safely and securely (particularly as they are often environmentally hazardous too), and to provide training on workplace fire safety.
For more information on fire safety in the workplace, you can contact the Firesolve team here.