Practical Facilities Tips, News & Advice.
How many employers have a presence in your facility? Do you have two or three contractors renovating a tenant’s office space, another contractor running your on-site cafeteria, some consultants evaluating your production unit, a medical group doing on-site wellness screening, and a crew of temporary employees in the warehouse? All of those workers represent different […]
Saving money and preventing workplace injuries right from the drawing board are the simple principles behind “Prevention Through Design” (PtD). One common example of PtD is lockout/tagout practices for machinery, but the practice has many applications in the facilities management space. Basically, PtD is the control of workplace hazards by addressing them during the design […]
There are many considerations—and legal compliance implications—when evaluating the safety of your facility’s electrical infrastructure. Read on for some of the basics, key analyses, and maintenance requirements.
At most facilities, janitorial crews are often neither seen nor heard, starting their work shifts after most employees have gone home. This level of freedom has the potential to cause security problems related to more than just incidents of theft. Workers in these jobs may be poorly screened or not background-checked by the firms who […]
Two federal agencies have issued warnings about the hazards of working in cold weather. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) reminded employers and workers that frostbite and hypothermia can occur when working in cold, wet, icy, or snowy conditions. While exposure can be a concern for facility managers who handle their own […]
Winter is here, and many parts of the country are seeing snow. With the seasonal changes come the hazards of outdoor work in cold conditions, snow and ice removal, and other dangers. At its Winter Weather resource site, OSHA lists 10 common winter weather hazards that employers should train employees to recognize.
Energy efficiency is one of the top concerns of facilities management professionals, and a recent proposal from the Department of Energy (DOE) may influence how lighting products are defined under certain regulations. The DOE is proposing to withdraw a rule issued in the final days of the Obama administration that expanded the definition of general […]
At last year’s annual conference of the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP), ASSP’s outgoing President Jim Smith presented a session titled “The A1264.1 Standard: Wall and Roof Openings; Stairs and Guardrails/Handrails.” The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Standards 1264.1 and 1264.2 could be helpful for facilities management professionals looking to design their workplaces with […]
If your facility has been cited by OSHA, EPA, the EEOC, or another regulatory agency, it’s important to take steps immediately to address violations and bring your workplace into compliance. While some corrections may fall solely upon your environment, health, and safety (EHS) department, others may require the involvement of facilities management (FM) pros in […]
The modern facility manager is at a bit of a cultural crossroads where new ideas and expectations about how a building should function bump up against older designs, and of course, budgetary concerns. Concerns about money and wanting to get the most out of existing furniture and fixtures are legitimate but attracting younger workers to […]