Why are Impact Protection Systems Vital in a Warehouse?

Industrial warehouses - whether used as production, storage, or logistics facilities - are often hives of activity. With multiple moving vehicles and people working alongside one another at any one time, as well as static hazards such as shelving or other equipment, the risk of collision causing damage or injury can be high. This can seriously endanger worker health and safety and result in costly downtime or damage to the building, equipment, and product. To prevent accidents like these from occurring, business owners and operators should implement clear strategies for segregating assets, people and machinery from moving traffic. This can include the installation of robust and suitable impact protection systems that meet rigorous Australian safety standards.

5 Reasons Impact Protection is Vital in a Warehouse

1. Protect buildings and their contents

Impacts to the building structure, internal external walls, internal walls or its contents can result in costly damage, downtime and even cause further risk of injury to workers. For instance, a forklift bumping into an insulated panel wall can adversely affect the product’s thermal, structural or fire performance, therefore invalidating its warranty. Damage may also occur to the panel’s coating, which may compromise the cleanliness of the facility. Meanwhile, any damage to equipment or stock stored in the building will not only cause a financial loss but may also lead to further issues down the supply chain. Impact protection systems can help vehicle drivers to safely manoeuvre around a warehouse, especially in high traffic/product areas such as unloading and loading bays and can even be installed around doors to protect against accidents. 

2. It's policy

Impact protection systems are often part of a facility’s health and safety policy, especially where the risk of moving vehicles is high. Businesses are frequently assessed for compliance, and large fines can be given if you are in breach of your policy. This also results in costly downtime and loss in productivity. 

3. Protect people

The most important reason to install impact protection systems is to protect workers from being injured or worse from colliding with a moving vehicle. Each year workers being hit with a moving vehicle is one of the most common types of work-related accidents within the storage and warehousing industry. Impact protection systems can help to clearly demarcate spaces and pathways, keeping people and vehicles separate wherever possible to minimise accidents.

4. Protect vehicles

Installing impact protection systems can also help to protect a business’s vehicular fleet— which is often a key investment for warehouse operators. This includes forklifts, pallet movers, vans etc. They not only help drivers to safely navigate their way around warehouse spaces, but flexible protection systems that absorb impacts can deflect, reducing the risk to both the vehicle and the driver. 

5. Increase staff and visitor awareness

Over time, it is common and natural for workers’ awareness of dangers to diminish as they concentrate on their activities. This lapse of awareness can cause accidents to happen. Impact protection systems — especially if brightly coloured - provide a physical reminder of the surrounding hazards, ensuring workers are continually aware of what is going on around them. This should, of course, work in tandem with regular health and safety reviews and briefings to make sure every worker knows the correct procedures to keep themselves safe.

Choosing impact protection systems for your warehouse

Technology advancements in protection systems has meant now more than ever, unnecessary accidents and injury can be avoided. SafeDefence protection systems are made from high-quality materials that have been submitted to robust testing to certify their impact resistance, they are a suitably bright colour for visibility and correctly installed by a trained and competent installer. They combine all the fundamentals for any size warehouse and workspace configuration that are certified for food contact and UV resistance, flexible, sustainable and minimise floor damage upon impact.