Published 5 Sep 2023
What is an Industrial Safety Checklist?
An industrial safety checklist is primarily used by safety inspectors or industrial engineers to ensure the overall safety of a facility in any industrial setting such as manufacturing, chemical processing, and mining. The regular use of industrial safety checklists can help inspectors anticipate and mitigate the specific risks involved when working in their respective fields and easily demonstrate compliance with safety regulations.
In this article
- Why is Industrial Safety Important?
- Top 3 Industrial Safety Risks to Overcome in 2020
- Elements of an Industrial Safety Checklist
- Empower Workers to Take Charge of Safety with an Industrial Safety App
- Featured Industrial Safety Checklists
Why is Industrial Safety Important?
The industrial sector is one of the most dangerous places to work in. Manufacturing facilities and processing plants have powerful machines with moving parts, as well as industrial-grade chemical solutions that can cause serious injury and even death to workers in some cases. Consistent pre-use and post-operation checks are necessary to mitigate these risks and ensure industrial workplace safety.
While the term “industrial safety” often refers to “safety in the manufacturing industry”, it can also be synonymous to “occupational safety” in that the government agency for occupational safety and health in India is called the Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health (DISH).
Top 3 Industrial Safety Risks to Overcome in 2020
Unsafe work conditions in industrial settings should never be ignored or go unnoticed because it can be a matter of life or death for workers and site visitors. Safety inspectors, supervisors and industrial engineers should periodically assess the safety of industrial environments, identify areas of improvement, and reinforce preventive measures.
Here are the top 3 industrial safety-related risks you should look out for based on OSHA’s latest list of most-cited violations:
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Lockout/Tagout
Compromising lock out tag out (LOTO) procedures can cause industrial machines to unintentionally expel hazardous energy during maintenance and repair work. Due to the unsafe nature of industrial safety equipment repair and maintenance, it is crucial to adhere to LOTO procedures to guarantee all dangerous machinery is properly shut off, locked out, and tagged before performing maintenance checks.
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Powered Industrial Trucks (Forklifts)
Inadequate forklift operator training leads to poor traveling, maneuvering, and load handling techniques. Inconsistent pre-operation checks have also caused serious damages, injuries, and even deaths. In the U.S., all forklifts should be examined at least daily before being placed in service, while forklifts used on a round-the-clock basis must be examined after each shift.
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Machine Guarding
Workers are constantly exposed to risks such as being caught in between moving parts, and injury by material and chemical shrapnels when machine guarding measures are inadequate. Proper machine guarding should be a priority to ensure industrial safety.
Elements of an Industrial Safety Checklist
Using safety checklists for industrial environments are essential to minimizing incidents, improving safety outcomes, and building a safety culture from the ground up. Listed below are elements typically included in an industrial safety checklist:
- Training and Work Process (Consider a safety program)
- Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
- Employee Facilities and Housekeeping
- Work Environment, including Lighting, Floor and Wall Openings, and Stairs, Ladders, and Platforms
- Elevating Devices, Confined Spaces, and Temporary Work Structures
- Tools, Machinery, and Machine Guards
- Electrical, including LOTO
- Materials Handling and Storage, including workplace Hazardous Product or Chemical Storage
- Fire Emergency Procedures, Means of Exit, and Medical and First Aid
Empower Workers to Take Charge of Safety with an Industrial Safety App
Why use SafetyCulture (formerly iAuditor)?
Improving industrial safety can be challenging, and failure to comply with industrial safety standards often lead to hefty fines, suspensions, or worse, closure. Be proactive when ensuring the overall safety of facilities in any industrial setting with an inspection and corrective action solution you can learn in minutes.
Empower your workers to easily assess industrial work environments, act on safety issues or potential risks at the onset, and have confidence in your preventive measures from the get-go. With the SafetyCulture Industrial Safety App, you can take advantage of the following benefits when you sign up for free today:
- Easily convert paper documents into digital forms with smartscan or customize pre-built, industry templates with drag-and-drop editor
- Use industrial safety checklists anytime, anywhere, and on any mobile device—even when offline
- Take or attach photo evidence of the industrial safety assessments or compliance checks and annotate images for improved visual reference
- Assign actions with a priority level and due date to mitigate potential industrial safety risks immediately
- Auto-generate and secure industrial safety reports in the cloud and share them to key shareholders with a tap of a finger
Featured Industrial Safety Checklists
Industrial Safety Checklist Template
An industrial safety checklist template is used for a monthly comprehensive workplace and safety inspection of manufacturing facilities. Easily customize this checklist using SafetyCulture's drag-and-drop template editor to create an industry safety checklist for your specific needs. Complete this checklist with your signature and a time stamp, or exactly when this checklist was completed, will automatically be added below.
Basic Industrial Safety Checklist
This industrial safety checklist covers the basic inspection items when evaluating the safety of industrial sites. Use this checklist for a weekly inspection of general safety, housekeeping, sanitation, personal protective equipment, ladder safety, electrical safety, mobile equipment safety, welding, cutting, fall protection, scaffolding, and confined spaces.
Industrial Safety Walk Checklist
An industrial safety walk checklist is used in manufacturing facilities to maintain high safety standards such as housekeeping, safety signages, and good work practices. Use this short checklist for a weekly manufacturing workplace safety walk, determine any safety concerns that require immediate attention, and adequately record the overall condition of the facility.
Industrial Radiation Safety Checklist
An industrial radiation safety checklist is used for adhering to radiation safety measures in the industrial workplace. Start by inspecting the availability and visibility of radiation warnings. Next, conduct a contamination survey on the area and check if proper protective equipment is worn by the workers. Inspect if electrical devices are in good working condition and are marked with proper caution. Then, evaluate if operating and emergency procedures are posted for radiation-producing devices to ensure that these equipment has undergone device tests. Finally, complete the inspection by providing recommendations and safety reminders.
Safety Checklist for Industrial Environments
This safety checklist for industrial environments is used for keeping all materials, equipment, and facilities clean and in good working condition can help determine hazards present in the working area. Use this checklist to identify health and safety risks including the presence of mold, unsanitary working areas, improper use of PPE, and unlabeled chemicals. Use SafetyCulture to generate reports and assign actions to authorized personnel when hazards are detected.
Safety Checklist for Industrial Machines
This safety checklist for industrial machines encompasses pre-operation and post-operation checks. Pre-operation checks are conducted to evaluate the condition of machine guards and the protection and training of the workers. Post-operation checks are for determining if all machine guards are in good condition and that all incidents have been reported to the supervisor. Other observations, comments, and overall assessment can also be noted.
