4 Ways to Improve Electrical Safety in the Office

Electrical safety is of paramount importance in the office for protecting the health and safety of your employees, for preventing accidents and for complying with business regulations.

A business owner does not need to be an electrician or expert in electrical safety to know the basic parameters in which their office electricals should be operating, but they should be consulting these professionals to best protect their staff and their workplace.

Office safety

Through health and safety briefings, the advice of electricians, the use of appropriate tools and parts and proper risk assessment, businesses can immediately begin to improve electrical safety in the office.

1.   Health and safety briefings

Communication is key in every aspect of business, but it is especially central to guaranteeing staff safety by setting guidelines and rules about matters such as electrical safety. These briefings should focus on four main aspects of safety: awareness, improvement, identification and compliance.

Being aware of issues, knowing how to act in a safer way, being able to identify errors and complying with your business and your state or country’s guidelines are essential actions employees should be taking on a daily basis to keep their own office or workplace safer.

2.   Contractors and electricians

With staff being more aware about their surroundings and the place in which they are working, a business owner should consult contractors and electricians. There is never a bad time to get an electrical safety review, as experts can properly assess improper grounding, damaged insulation and the state of an office’s power lines, which aren’t dangers that would be noticed by an employee simply looking out for over-used multiplugs.

3.   Correct electronic parts and protectors

When improving electrical safety – particularly when renovating or building a new workspace – the correct parts and protective equipment are essential to ensuring a safe electrical future. The benefits of searching for tools and parts on Octopart.com are that you can compare prices and find the objects you need extremely quickly. For instance, top-quality cables and wires along with certified circuit protection can be searched for efficiently, ensuring any electrical improvements you make to your office are done with the correct equipment.

4.   Proper risk assessment

Never underestimate the importance and value of a proper risk assessment.

In terms of electrical safety, a risk assessment should begin by identifying what types of risk your workplace is exposed to; if the place of work is simply an office, then this will be shock hazards or faults, for example. After this, define what the potential failures are that could result in these risks being a danger, such as an employee error or a system malfunction.

Risks should always be assessed as per their likelihood of happening and the severity of their consequences. If these factors are too high, action should be identified and then taken in order to rectify the issue. Correct protective equipment should be worn, and professionals contacted, especially if the risk is a live one.

Staying safe from electricity in the workplace is a joint effort and is eminently achievable by following these simple steps.