Making your warehouse comfortable for your workers has many benefits: productivity improves, employee engagement and satisfaction are increased and staff turnover is reduced. Here’s our guide to making your warehouse a more enjoyable place to work by improving comfort.
Temperature
Coming to work on a blazing hot day when you know you will be in a stifling warehouse for eight-plus hours can be demotivating. You can improve the temperature of your warehouse by boosting airflow – a couple of heavy-duty fans strategically located around your site can make a huge difference. Similarly, on a cold day, you can use industrial space heaters to make the environment more comfortable and keep your staff focused on work and not on how cold they are.
Flooring
Standing up for lengthy periods can cause all sorts of discomfort and even long-term injuries and ailments. There is a tendency for people to adopt a static posture, which can lead to poor circulation as well as musculoskeletal issues. You can install anti-fatigue matting to combat this – these are specially designed mats that have a slight flex to them so that a person standing on one has to make micro-adjustments to their posture, and these improve blood flow and reduce muscle fatigue. They are available in heavy-duty, oil-resistant and super-grip finishes, perfect for use in a range of warehouse environments.
Work stations
If your staff have to process paperwork or log inventory figures, for example, then you can make them more comfortable with an ergonomically designed workstation. Premium models have easy hydraulic height adjusters so it’s easy for users to adapt the workstation to suit their own needs. If any of your employees are seated throughout their day, try to source chairs that offer back support and encourage good posture.
The staff room
Warehouse workers have a physically demanding job, often for long shifts over many consecutive days. You can make their days a little easier by providing an area where they can relax. There’s no need for your break room to be an austere, windowless concrete cell – throw in some colour (and ideally some sunlight if possible), and some creature comforts like a TV/radio, food and drinks vending machines as well as a source of free drinking water, a kettle and a microwave. A well-rested employee is a more productive one, so any money you spend here will be repaid before you know it.
Focus on health and safety
When staff feel that their health and safety are taken seriously, they are more comfortable in the workplace. Make safety training a priority, as well as any personal protective equipment (PPE) comfortable, clean and readily available. If your warehouse uses pallet trucks and/or forklifts, you can make designated walkways easily and quickly with barriers and gates.
In addition, make sure you have plenty of first aid trained staff available across your shift patterns, and that all your staff know who they are and where they are based. Make sure your first aid kit is fully stocked and accessible, and that any additional equipment (defibrillators, eyewash stations, etc) is ready for use.
Author Bio: First Mats started life as a safety matting specialist, but have since expanded to become a complete industrial and commercial supplies company. The focus of First Mats is to provide safety-focused products that improve the wellbeing of staff through quality-approved products, backed up by extensive knowledge. www.firstmats.co.uk
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