Farm safety and housekeeping

The term housekeeping, when applied to farming and agricultural operations does carry some sense of what it means in the hospitality industry, and in general domestic and commercial service.

Housekeeping is a word that prefers really to all areas of a operation being kept in good order, being kept clean and being kept safe.

On a farm or agricultural operation, there are a number of different areas that need to be kept continually safe and clean, both the good running of the business itself, but also for the safety of the employees and of the family who own or run a company.

Farms traditionally revolve around agricultural machinery, mainly tractors, combine harvesters, utility vehicles, as well as a number of different cars and trucks.

Depending upon the nature of the work at the farm is involved in, there may well be different chemicals, different pieces of machinery and different tools all of which could pose a potential hazard.

Housekeeping is are keeping all of these areas safe, on a continual basis, and making sure that anyone involved in any area of this work has an attitude that these areas are important and need to be kept free from any risk or danger to any individual, whether an employee, a member of the family or a member of the public who may be on the farm for different reasons.

Any area that is considered a work area, whether it includes machinery or livestock or anything else, needs to be designated as a potential risk zone, and such strict housekeeping protocols need to be in place in order to safeguard the well-being of everyone who may on any occasion be there.

Housekeeping practices include the need to recognise appropriate storage, how any materials or equipment that are kept in this area are used and also how any mistakes or spillages or damage machinery are cleaned up or dealt with for repair.

Where good housekeeping practices are protocols are not in place it creates a potential hazard. Housekeeping is a preventative measure, and is about attitude and practice.

Encouraging people to keep an area clean is a prerequisite of most good housekeeping protocols. This can include informal picking up of rubbish or debris that may be lying around, as well as a more formal cleaning protocol with certain people designated to make sure that all areas are kept clean on a regular basis.

Storage is crucially important, both at a practical level and also has an attitude of good housekeeping practice. The old expression a tidy mind applies very much to this area. If an area looks unkempt, it is likely that there are a number of practices that could be considered unsafe or sloppy, which could ultimately lead to more hazards and risks.

Housekeeping is primarily about preventing injury. Health and safety has become a term that many people either slightly ridicule, or think it's just an excuse to be risk averse. It is in fact quite the opposite. It is about understanding the nature of risk in order to evaluate the acceptability of a risk, and take whatever precautions may be necessary.

When looking at the importance of housekeeping in relation to a farm or agricultural operation, there are a number of areas of topics that need to be carefully considered.

The first one is what is often termed as the adequacy of the workplace. This really means that it is important that what ever workplace is designated as such has certain elements that make it possible to keep it safe.

The first one of these is to make sure that all the passages and walkways through the worksite are sufficiently wide and high to enable people to move safely through them, either on their own or with a colleague, or when carrying or transporting such machinery.

There needs to be appropriate and safe lighting throughout the workplace, with provision for backup if any reason lighting fails. Employees should be aware of the need for emergency lighting in the event of fire or other related incident that might disable the electricity used in this particular workplace.

Ventilation is also really important. A number of farm buildings and related agricultural premises well have different uses, and may well include storage of certain chemicals, livestock feed or other potential farm products. Having good ventilation is crucially important.

The type of flooring involved in the workplace is also really important. There need to be slip resistant floors and rants throughout the premises in order that people who are moving about or carrying goods machinery can do so safely without the fear of falling over or slippage of any materials or maybe carrying.

A number of pieces of a workplace may well have sharp edges that are either visible or slightly hidden. It is a basic premise of all workplaces that any door or frame or desk or structure in a workplace that has a sharp edge needs to have its eliminated. Just knowing that it is there is not good enough.

A sharp edge and easily turn into a highly dangerous weapon in a few seconds if someone is distracted or not paying attention, and is a risk that can be easily identified and should be dealt before for any harm can be caused by it.

A good workplace needs to have quite a high degree of signage about a number of things, one of which is clear and visible directions as well all entrances and exits of the workplace are located. This is in part in order to allow a good workflow of people throughout the premises, but is also to do with fire safety.

In the event of a fire or an explosion of any type, it is imperative that people have a clear route they follow quickly without the need to stop and think or talk or read signs.

A number of farms will use hoists in different parts of different buildings throughout the premises, and it is important is kept in good working order. It is not a good idea to suddenly discover that a hoist has not been serviced or kept properly at just the time when it needs to be used. There should be a protocol specific to hoists that shows when they have been serviced and by whom.

Finally the most important area in many ways is to make sure that all toilets and handwashing facilities are provided, are kept clean and are always in a optimum hygienic state.

One of the biggest obstacles to housekeeping in farming and agricultural operations is simply that of attitudes. This can often be a problem amongst a workforce has been there for a considerable period of time, and as such is simply resistant to change.

This resistance is not normally about the practical issues of what is involved, but is normally simply a process of habit and safety. People can become almost too comfortable in a working environment if it never changes, a process that is sometimes referred to as being institutionalised.

The sense of being institutionalised is normally thought of as referring to big corporations, such as banks and insurance companies. In fact, it can apply to any business of any size or operation, where the people have worked there for a long period of time.

One of the solutions to this is to bring in the new and younger workers in addition to the existing workforce. They can sometimes be employed as workers themselves, possibly in terms, apprentices or simply people on some type of work experience.

They will normally be more open to new ideas and looking at things regarding health and safety in a more objective and realistic light. This can have a knock-on effect on existing workers as well, both positive and negative.

The positive aspect is that they may be willing to look at things in a new light and help change the work place into a safer and less risky environment.

The downside is that it may create a sense of conflict within the workforce, between existing workers and newer people, who can sometimes be seen as being a bit abrasive or even a bit arrogant in thinking they know better than the older colleagues or peers.

This is not to say that this approach should not be used, it is simply a case of man management which is handled correctly can have immense benefits to the workplace, and as such to the health and safety of the business.

New younger workers can be encouraged to report work areas that they feel are unsafe, for any reason. This can include things that are inherently unsafe, or simply things happen on a day-to-day basis.

Some of the most common areas normally include things such as defective lighting, flaws that need sweeping or keeping clean, spillages on the floor normally from oil and grease, and the most important area in many ways mentioned above making sure that toilet facilities are kept clean and hygienic.

Sometimes a new workforce will have more time on their hands than existing employees. There may be a number of reasons for this, but one side-effect is that they can be told very simply that if they have time on their hands they can apply that time to doing housekeeping work.

It can be made very clear to them that the nature of the workplace in terms of health and safety is of crucial importance, and that there was a lot they can do to make sure it is kept safe on a daily basis simply by looking around and using their commonsense.

If any farm or agricultural operation can be thought of in environmental terms in two ways. The most common is to think of it as an environment include a physical sense in which the work of the farm is carried out. This can include the land,  the buildings, animals and livestock etc.

These to create housekeeping issues in their own right, but the time environment can also apply in a much smaller sense in the day-to-day workplace that exists, and where a buildup of the normal day-to-day work materials and practices can generate health and safety risks that can be managed and dealt with.

One of the most common issues that can easily be ignored is that of dust. Does not take much imagination to realise how much dust can exist in any type of form or agricultural business.

What is often not appreciated so much is at dust can be a major source of fire hazard. The comparison is often made with that of kindling. Anyone who starts a fire, will probably appreciate that it can often need materials that are known as kindling materials to start the fire off, before adding larger pieces of wood to it.

Dust is known to have a very low kindling temperature, and can burn in a manner that is often compared to that of petrol or gasoline in that it can act in such a way that seems like an explosion.

Back to the amount of dust that is bound to accrue on any farm or agricultural operation, and it will quickly be realised that this is a serious issue.

On one hand it is impossible not to have dust around the business, however clean it is kept, or however much the team protocols are put in place and adhere to, at the same time it is important to identify areas of risk.

The really important thing is to understand where a build up of dust could lead to a fire if the area around the dust is particularly flammable, and these are areas that need to be kept clean at all times.

Anecdotal evidence suggests that dust explosions have occurred with much severity in feed mills, and grain storage elevators. Apparently the explosion normally occurs when some type of electrical spark ignites the dust and leads to a fire with potentially awful consequences.

But can also be ignited by sparks that can fly from people using welding equipment, often in a perfectly safe manner. Sparks are a side-effect of welding which is frequently used in different types of grain and feed holdings, as well as in other types of farming and agricultural businesses.

It is important to apply the principles of housekeeping to welding equipment, and the areas around any machinery were welding takes place. This can apply to welding helmets as well as welding curtains. Making sure these are safe to use on a regular basis not only reduces the possibility of fire risk, but also reduces the possibility of an employee being damaged in any way in a physical sense due to poor or damaged equipment.

Housekeeping in relation to farm and safety issues can apply to very simple areas are also thought of immigration to hospitality and other venues housekeeping is a general term for all types of cleaning and safety protocols.

A spillage of any material can potentially be quite dangerous, either because someone could slip on it and damage themselves, or it could also have a knock-on effect in terms of damaging other equipment and potentially be a fire risk.

There is also a possibility that something is leaking a liquid for any reason, that that device or machine is inherently unsafe as well.

This is especially important when applied to farm and agricultural machinery, whether such machinery be vehicles or tractors, or other types of machinery such as generators or power tools of any description.

The essence of this is as it is really important to make sure that all types of liquid that some reason had spilled onto the floor, normally things such as water or oil are immediately cleaned up, and the source of the leak identified.

Once a leakage has been cleaned, it is important to cover the area with some type of grit or sand or other type of compound that can try the floor in order for people not to slip on it even if it is cleaned up.

Once this village has been identified some type of signage should be put in place to make people aware of the potential risk or hazard that the spillage would generate

once the spillage has been cleaned, such signage should be kept in place until the area is completely clean and dry and does not present any type of risk to anyone who might walk through.

It is also important to realise in the context of a farm or agricultural operation that people walking through areas are quite often carrying different types of machinery, or parts of machinery or sensitive items such as Power Tools.

These items are quite often bulky and difficult to handle, and if a person works of over carry one it could actually result in catastrophic injuries. That is why paying attention to any type of spillage of a liquid is really important.

This also raises the very important issue as to who has responsibility for clearing up this type of potential hazard, and goes to the heart of a lot of health and safety legislation.

Most health and safety laws acknowledge that there is a partnership between an employer and employee regarding all types of health and safety issues, and this partnership should be reflected both in the legislation applicable to the particular industry, and also within the nature of the business itself.

This partnership can vary and it is important to understand the specifics applicable to each particular business operation that exists. In general though, the employer has a duty of care that is very broad and covers both employees and public, and has responsibilities to make sure that the workplace is a safe environment.

It is highly likely that within a specific workplace one or two people may be designated the specific roles, which they will be expected to document on a regular basis throughout the day, to reflect that these areas of work had been supervised and checked.

It is also quite possible that an individual employee could be deemed to have a responsibility if they observe a spillage or other risk, simply because they are now aware of it. If an employee identifies a risk and ignores it, there is a potential argument that they could be deemed liable for any damage or loss that may occur as a result of the incident.

Whilst this is very general advice, there is a moral imperative for anyone who works in the farming industry to make sure that all their workplaces are safe, both for their benefit and that of their colleagues and families.

A quick look around any farm or agricultural business will immediately show the huge range of different types of materials and tools that are used in the day-to-day work of the farm.

What may not be so obvious immediately is the need for some type of proper storage system to everything that is either loose or does not have its own proper place in a designated zone.

The importance of storage is twofold. Firstly it creates systems are all types of material kept in a specific place that is worked out beforehand, and which people will know where appropriate materials are.

This is back to the principle of a tidy mind, and helps generate both systems and practices that people know where things are meant to be kept, and can make sure that they are always put back in a proper place, even if it is not their responsibility to do so.

The second really important issue about storage refers to the materials that are being stored. this may seem quite obvious, but it is important to make sure that any material of a particular length or wait stored in a way appropriate both to itself and to other materials alongside it.

All types of material frequently used, may be taken out of storage and replaced, or new materials or similar design and nature replaced instead. There needs to be a storage system in place to make sure that the layout of these materials is such that there is no risk or minimal risk of a heavy for long object injuring someone because has been stored improperly.

Generally speaking, the heavier the object, then the nearer to the ground it should be stored, and similarly with any really long or unruly materials. The principal consideration should be that there should be as little danger as possible of a heavy unwieldy material falling on someone when another piece of material is being removed from the same storage area.

The other really important area storage refers to all types of fuels and lubricants. Given the amount of machinery on any farm agricultural business, including tractors, UTV's, generators etc the amount of fuel that will be on a farm is likely to be considerable, and the risks posed to the farm if the fuels are not stored properly could be immense.

How fuel is stored will vary depending on the nature of the operation, but a couple of basic tips can help improve safety enormously. There are likely to be designated or professional storage containers available to all types of fuel that will be used on the farm, and it is important that these are the only storage containers that are used.

They are likely to be labelled, and also quite like to be colour specific. This should help provide a degree of communal understanding of the fuels that can lead to better safety management.

It is also hopefully fairly obvious that these fuels should be kept as far apart from any other materials that could be considered flammable, that dust around them should be kept to a minimum and that the whole area should be kept clean as possible.

Any spillages should be cleaned up immediately, and that should be protocols in place at your specific guidance as to what type of cleaning materials and cleaning practices should be in place for each specific fuel.

It is also important to add that any individual who handles any type of fuel or spillage in the course of their work they make absolutely sure that they have cleaned themselves as best as they can, both in terms of using cleansing agents for their hands and other body parts that may have been exposed,and also that they regularly change their work clothes when not in their own work environment.