Ensuring that your workplace is safe for your employees and clients should be one of your top priorities. And one of the most important things you can do to improve safety is to follow approved color coding. Having the right colors marking pipes, cautionary signs, and other things will help individuals recognize and safely react to any present hazards in the workplace.
Workplace Safety Signs
Depending on your specific type of workplace, there are a variety of instances when you will need to have cautionary signs. As you decide on which cautionary signs you need, there are a variety of ways to go about it. You can choose from online stores where you can buy premade signs or you can customize them yourself.
Regardless of how you go about purchasing your signs, ensure that you use bright colors and reflective surfaces for them—this ensures they are always visible during the day and night. Typically, red is used for signs that warn of hazards and yellow or orange is used for cautionary signs.
Pipe Marking
Pipe marking is the process of marking pipes to both indicate what liquids are flowing through a particular pipe and to warn individuals of any hazard that may be present when tampering with the pipes.
Pipe ANSI/ASME recommends specific colors for pipe markings. For example, they recommend that flammable or oxidized liquids or gases be marked with yellow, gases or fluids that can put out fires be marked with red, and pipes that transport air be marked blue.
Uniforms and Protective Apparel
Having the proper gear for your employees is especially important if they are working with heavy equipment in a somewhat dangerous environment. As you think about the right colors for reflective and protective gear, make sure first and foremost that you establish consistency across the different uniforms. Having this consistency will help everyone learn the different precautions quicker.
OSHA recommends that high visibility clothing be either bright orange, yellow, or yellow-green with reflective strips. Having reflective strips is essential so that workers are visible during times of low visibility.
As you think more about how to improve safety by using color correctly, you may consider thinking about other areas where bright colors could be useful. For example, take a look at your parking lot—having clearer bright lines can help prevent accidents. Finding the best ways to use color effectively will make a difference in workplace safety in a variety of settings.
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