Emergencies are always unexpected but are a potential threat that can happen at any time. By definition, emergencies are events that can endanger one’s life and include fire, severe weather, floods, chemical spills, robberies, medical emergencies and other physical threats. These are all unforeseen events, which may occur accidentally, despite having proper prevention systems installed. A lot of them cannot be controlled directly, and may not even be caused by humans. Accidents like these are just a small example of what possible threats there are for work environments and preventing them and the bad outcome of one such unfortunate event should be top priority for any work safety system.

In order to provide best emergency response, any company must establish standards and rules that each and every employee should follow. In order to have the best outcome, it comes down to being prepared in order to avoid panic. This means that all personnel, from workers to people with proper office clearance to all areas and activities in a company must be familiar with safety and prevention procedures. Successfully responding to emergency situations requires few things:

– Establish emergency action plan. Accidents and threatening events are best handled by having an action plan. This includes and suggests exactly what all employees and employers should do in order to minimize risk for their lives, property and environment. A lot of businesses are required to have such plan established, but often times it is not a must. It is, however, a good idea to develop it, regardless of your business, to ensure that people know what to do in case a situation occurs.

– Emergency action plans should be developed by experts, but managers should be included as well. Anyone with enough clearance to access certain areas is under potential threat, and everyone in a company should be included. Employees should know what evacuation protocols to follow, what safety procedures to implement in order to avoid life threats.

– Assure that your building has proper means of detecting emergencies. This includes having the right fire detection system, security camera monitoring and other tools that will allow one to spot a potential emergency before it develops to a big threat.

– Buildings should have emergency exits. In addition to having safe routes and escape plans, any building should have sufficient equipment to help in dealing with emergencies.

– After an emergency, all workers and staff should be familiarized with follow-up procedures, such as reporting and identifying causes for the emergency, aiding the authorities and ensuring that proper waste removal and cleaning of the workplace is done, before entering the building again. Often times, professional waste removal service will be required.

– Often time emergencies will require medical assistance. Make sure that there is a trained person, who can offer assistance when it is needed. Additionally, make sure that you call the medical authorities as soon as possible. Make sure there is easy access to all areas of your building, as time is of the essence.

Developing such procedures is often times crucial for any business operation. Reducing the risk for employees and the factors that contribute to emergency situations should be a top priority for management.

The use of surveillance cameras is on the rise. There could be many reasons why an employer chooses to install cameras in the workplace such as to monitor employee misconduct, protect company property and most importantly to ensure employee and workplace safety. The presence of CCTV and other surveillance systems are known to deter violence, theft, and other types of criminal activities. In a workplace with so many employees and activities taking place, keeping an eye on everything can be time consuming and near impossible. But since workplace safety is an integral part of every business, surveillance systems can do the work of making sure that the company and everyone working there is safe.
Surveillance Benefits in the Workplace
Crime Prevention
Among the best reasons for installing a CCTV system is to deter crime. In fact, studies show that the presence of cameras alone can deter crimes from happening. These cameras are highly noted for being effective especially in car parks. The area is a common target for different crimes that range from graffiti to vehicle theft. Most businesses can not afford the luxury of hiring security guards to keep watch on all areas. The use of a surveillance system is a practical solution. Having a deterrent to potential crimes can put employee’s minds at ease, knowing that they are being looked after.
Crime Resolution
Internal theft in the workplace is very difficult to identify and handle. But a surveillance system can monitor the staff and customers and can effectively prevent internal theft in the workplace. The resolution of workplace issues like sexual harassment, employee productivity and bullying can be abetted with the help of monitoring systems. However, it’s important to point out that while surveillance systems are useful in monitoring employees, for privacy issues – the devices should only be placed in public spaces and no audio should be recorded.
Workplace Safety
Providing employees with a safe and healthy working environment is among the main duties of an employer. Given this, a CCTV system could be a great support. A staff member who has to work overtime at night or has to walk to his car at night would feel safer knowing that any potential accidents will be captured. A company can also coordinate with a CCTV system and alarm monitoring companies for better surveillance and additional safety.
Summary
Even for small and medium sized businesses buying and installing a surveillance system should be a consideration. Security systems can be set up in all entrance and exit points of the workplace, staircases, the end of long corridors, lifts, front of washrooms, and canteen. This gives a better surveillance and with a control room in place with experienced staff to control the angel and aperture of the cameras, the entire workplace will be protected and safe. With the help of a surveillance system, employees can be more productive at work knowing that they are in a safe working environment.

Fire protection takes many forms and includes a wide range of educational, preventive, mitigation and investigation aspects, all of which are meant to reduce the risk and potential threat of fires. Depending on the type of work and number of people that operate within a facility, the threat can vary greatly. Regardless of that however, one thing is for certain – the damage of destructive fires can be great. A fire can grow, engulf an entire property in seconds and destroy valuable habitats, not to mention endanger multiple lives. This is why prevention and safety should be of big importance for everyone.

Fire protection has few elements, all of which form an important system that can help prevent fires and eliminate threats which can potentially cause a fire.

Proper education and awareness is one of these elements. Residents and workers should be familiar with building and fire codes. This means that they must know of the threat of fires and must not increase the chance of fire in their activity. Basic knowledge of what to do in case of a fire accident should be taught at young age. Proper codes must be developed for facilities that have increased risk, such as those operating with chemicals, gas or other flammable materials, as they are prone to more threats. Ensuring a professional cleaning and special handling of such materials is often times required.
Passive fire protection includes the usage of proper building materials, such as fire-resistant walls, doors, floors and practically any part of a building and facility. There is a wide range of standards that must be followed, to ensure this element is in place. To accomplish the containment of a fire in its place of origin, many types of materials are used. Any cleaning company must be cautious to take these materials and their special requirements in mind.

Active fire protection includes the usage of systems and items that can be used to prevent and extinguish a fire. These include a wide range of detection and suppression systems, which are either manual or automatic. Manual systems incorporate fire extinguishers located in key places, as well as standpipe systems, which a person can use in case of fire. Automatic systems usually feature a sprinkler component, installed at ceiling level, which uses a reliable source to release water when extreme heat and smoke is detected. Some innovative models feature other forms of fire suppression that do not include water. Detection components, such as smoke and heat detectors, are used to locate a fire source, sound an alarm for evacuation and remove a threat before it develops. Such systems must be regularly maintained and cleaned to ensure they don’t fail or malfunction.
Fire protection is an important aspect of the safety codes of every business and building. There are strict regulations and standards that must be met in order to guarantee the safety of the property and all people inside.