Your chemical plant is filled with potential threats to the safety of your employees and to your company’s bottom line.
You need to keep materials coming in and products going out, while also protecting your workers. Do you have the equipment and solutions you need to accomplish these mandates?
Learn three key benefits of installing an expertly designed and constructed truck loading rack.
Key Benefit #1: Protecting Your Workers From Unnecessary Risk
It’s likely that most of the chemicals you move in or out of your facility are transported in tank trucks. While these trucks are the most efficient way to transport chemicals, they also pose some critical risks when it comes to loading and unloading.
Getting your chemicals in and out of the trucks means accessing the hatches on the tops of the tank. Without proper fall protection solutions, drivers could easily fall off the tank. Even with a side access ladder, drivers are at risk of slipping and falling.
Additionally, workers in your facility may need to retrieve samples of the chemicals in the tanks. Imagine having to climb down a ladder holding a sample of potentially hazardous chemicals in your hand, each step more precarious than the last, hoping not to slip and expose yourself to the chemical.
Truck loading racks make accessing the tops of tank trucks and getting down from them safer and easier, especially when they’ve been designed to meet your facility’s unique needs.
Key Benefit #2: Protecting Your Chemicals From Contamination
Truck loading racks don’t just protect your workers – they protect your products as well.
Imagine you have a tank filled with a valuable mix of chemicals. These chemicals need to be shielded from contamination. Depending on the mix inside, even something as simple as rainwater could contaminate your supply.
However, this isn’t a problem when you work with a safety solutions provider with a reputation for creating installations tailored to your specifications. Your provider could simply add a rain canopy to keep both your workers and your materials protected from the elements.
Key Benefit #3: Faster Throughput
Serious workplace injuries devastate throughput. If you lack strategically designed solutions for accessing the tops of your tank trucks, your workers may put their safety at risk and take matters into their own hands.
A Dow Chemical facility in Sweden recently faced this problem. Without a properly designed tank truck access system, its drivers were cutting corners and risking their well-being to get on top of the trucks faster. This not only indicated the company’s existing system was inadequate for speed, but it also put the facility’s efficiency at risk by increasing the likelihood of a production-halting injury.
The facility was able to solve this problem by partnering with a safety solutions provider to have a Track Mounted Gangway System designed and installed that drivers actually wanted to use.
Investing In Safety Yields Long-Term Benefits
Of course, installing a safer truck loading rack does represent an upfront monetary expense for your company. But, the long-term benefits aren’t just about maintaining regulatory compliance or even protecting your workers. Over time, your company should experience fewer accidents, which means lower associated costs.
You also gain better protection for your products and more streamlined ways of accessing them for unloading and loading. The benefits to your bottom line are significant and make the investment more than worthwhile.
