6 Mistakes That Can Increase The Likelihood Of Accidents Involving Your Farming Equipment
You can avoid farming equipment accidents at your facility if you take the right precautions and avoid mistakes that compromise safety. The following are six mistakes that can increase the likelihood of accidents involving your farming equipment.
Be sure that staff members who operate farming equipment are adequately rested
Staff members who are operating heavy farming machinery need to be adequately rested. Overworked staff members could find it more difficult to focus while operating farming equipment. This is a dangerous scenario that puts everyone on your worksite at risk.
Keep careful track of the hours that your staff members who operate farming equipment are working. Make sure that equipment operators aren't working with machinery excessively throughout long shifts so that they're not drowsy and distracted.
Always keep a highly visible slow-moving-emblem on your equipment on public roadways
It's important to understand what the requirements are for the slow-moving-emblem signage you use on farming equipment that you need to transport using public roads. Such signage ensures that other drivers out there know to use caution around your farming equipment. This can be effective at preventing rear-end collisions.
Ensure good communication between staff members on your site
Make sure that all staff members on your site are aware of what farming equipment is currently in use. When staff members know what's going on around your site, they are aware of possible obstructions or high-traffic areas around your facilities. They can plan around obstructions and traffic on your site to prevent accidents and hazards.
Adjust equipment according to the particular task at hand
Use the right equipment for the task at hand and the environment in which you're working. Evaluate not only the work application you're using your equipment for but also environmental factors like climate and terrain type when choosing the right piece of farming equipment for your needs.
Be sure that staff members are wearing and using appropriate safety equipment
Forms of personal protective equipment like gloves, steel-toed shoes, and eye protection are important for use with some types of farming equipment including tractors and plows. Make sure that you provide your staff members with needed PPE and insist that members of your staff use such equipment while working around heavy machinery.
In addition to PPE, safety features of your farming equipment including shields, access doors, roll cages, and emergency braking features should always be used as needed according to the equipment manufacturer.
Prevent distractions for farming equipment operators
Inspect your worksite periodically to look out for any potential obstructions or distractions for your equipment operators. As much as possible, design your site with safety in mind. The more focused and able to concentrate your farming equipment operators are, the less likely accidents will be.
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