No matter how logically laid out your car parking area is, accidents can still happen. This is why parking posts make such a good investment.

The most obvious advantage of buying parking posts is that they offer an important traffic management advantage. The different types of bollards, delineators and accessories can help you control both vehicle movement and placement. Including giving you the option of using posts as a clear indication of perimeters, hazards and no-go areas.

They can also be a way of optimising your parking area, making it easier for drivers to find and manoeuvre with minimal effort.

Let’s look more closely at these and other reasons to invest in parking posts.

Safety reasons to invest in parking posts

Strategically placed parking posts can help to prevent staff or visitors from parking in a way that causes inconvenience or hazard. Just one of the ways parking posts improves site safety.

To meet your Health & Safety obligations, you should seriously consider how you can use bollards to create better access for emergency vehicles. Is there a way to  ‘ring fence’ an area close to the building, using a removable post system for emergency vehicle access?

On the topic of site safety, the very presence of parking posts can help slow traffic down on your premises. As well as giving pedestrians unmissable indicators of where traffic is likely to be, and how to avoid walking into the path of vehicles.

As well as using bollards to clearly segregate foot and road traffic, they can be used to create clear demarcation of entrances and exits, where vehicles tend to cluster and create even greater risk.

Managing accident costs, repairs and disruption

The best parking posts can also act as an impact-resistant barrier, to shield key areas and site features. This is a great way to minimise damage to vehicles, charging stations for electric vehicles, and entry barriers in car parks.

It’s also a great way to avoid having to replace expensive charging equipment and security systems.

Improving site optics with parking structures

Finding a supplier of aesthetically pleasing parking posts can make your site’s exterior or car park look smart, well organised and logical. The fact you have invested in parking posts – as visual markers for individual spaces and to help drivers manoeuvre safely – shows you are a caring and conscientious organisation.

You can place parking posts to funnel vehicles along a set route too, ensuring drivers visit your gatehouse when entering or exiting your premises. This can help manage parking in terms of the number of vehicles on your site, and your security team can point out visitor only parking spots, which are then further marked out using high-vis parking posts.

Site security and investing in parking posts

That last point links with site security issues. Strategically placed posts in your car park can also limit the ability of vehicles to intrude in your car park or building exterior in evenings and weekends, for antisocial or even illegal activities.

They can be installed to maintain privacy too, shielding areas of your exterior that you would prefer not to be used for parking or shortcuts.

Types of commercial site bollards

There are various types of vertical posts designed to be high-vis indicators and barriers.

If you’re looking for a flexible post option that will create a great visual aid and minimal damage if hit the flexible bollard is the one for you.

This minimises vehicle damage on impact. The perfect example is the Flexible Bollards and Delineator Systems that bend and crush on impact, but spring back to shape afterwards.

If you want something with less ‘give’, the steel-core Drop Core Bollards will work well. Their colour variations can help to indicate different parking issues such as fire hazards or serious collision risks. They can also be quickly installed but also re-sited as needed.

Another option is Heavy Duty Bollards. These are ideal if HGV and LGV are operating on-site as a robust barrier.

Not sure which parking posts to invest in? Contact BrandSafe for no-obligation advice, evaluation and traffic management product quotes.

INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNISED SUSTAINABILITY AWARD FOR BRANDSAFE

We are delighted to have achieved a prestigious international award for our ongoing commitment to sustainability.

The EcoVadis rating agency has awarded Bronze status to Brandsafe in a move that sees us continue to strengthen our position as a leader when it comes to developing and supplying sustainable industrial workplace safety solutions.

US-based EcoVadis is a provider of universal sustainability ratings, with more than 75,000 companies from over 200 industries taking part and committing to ensuring responsible sourcing throughout the supply chain. The assessment covers a range of CSR topics including environmental impact, labour and human rights and ethics.

Across all categories, Brandsafe has demonstrated a strong sustainability management system and performs in advance of others in the same industry sector. This is the first time that we have been assessed by EcoVadis and we are already focused on further improving our sustainability rating going forward.

Susy Keating, Managing Director of Brandsafe, had this to say on the award: “This is fantastic news and we are extremely proud to achieve such a prestigious award. This is a strong endorsement of our ongoing environmental commitments and focus on the sustainability we bring to our products and solutions.”

When you’re busy being productive, it is easy to overlook your H&S priorities. To help, here’s an essential 10 item workplace safety checklist.

Regularly making sure that your workplace has all the tools and techniques needed to keep your staff and visitors safe is vital.

Firstly, you have a legal and moral duty to keep your team safe at work. And going through your H&S checklist regularly will also add structure to your assessments making them more time-efficient.

Written lists of safety priorities, tasks and equipment also makes it easier to assign responsibility. For example, who’s in charge of keeping traffic management structures up to date?

Keeping checklists will remind you of what you need to install or replace, to maintain levels of site safety – internally and externally.

You can also use your workplace safety checklist as part of your induction process, to highlight risks to new employees and demonstrate their role in keeping themselves and colleagues safe.

The HSE issues specific workplace safety checklists for different types of buildings, such as schools and hospitality venues.

Ours is a more universal workplace safety checklist, featuring 10 key workplaces areas to focus on, for ultimate safety.

1. Obstructions – are walkways clear?

Trips, slips and falls are the biggest cause of accidents in the workplace.

It’s vital to check walkways and doorways daily. Introduce strict policies on keeping floors free of hazards will help you to avoid any unnecessary incidents. Keeping fire exits clear of obstructions is taken very seriously.

2. Inspect hygiene and cleanliness

This is another task to do daily, especially as we are emerging from a global Pandemic. Note down areas of particular concern, and make sure all relevant staff understand their ongoing tasks to keep surfaces deep down clean.

3. Check ventilation/filter systems are working properly

Frequent evaluation of air quality in your workplace is especially vital in sites prone to contaminants such as dust and fibres. Keeping on top of this can prevent insidious health issues, but also keeps ventilation and air filtration systems well maintained.

4. Safety signs to warn of hazards/dangers

One of the most fundamental site safety priorities is good communication, yet signs can fall off, become damaged or be obscured without you noticing.

Creating a map of safety signage can help, as you can then regularly check all items are securely in place and easy to see.

5. Stairs – are safety railings in place?

Stairways are generally a workplace danger, but become additionally dangerous if moisture is dragged in from outside, or your site creates contaminates carried on the bottom of footwear.

Stairs should feature in various elements of this workplace safety checklist, but also deserve special attention with the installation of the best safety guardrails.

6. Loading-bay area appraisal

Warehouse operations are especially prone to H&S risks and should be checked frequently to make sure every measure is in place to protect drivers and pedestrians – as well as your loading bay structures.

Find a supplier of inexpensive loading bay protection products that are 100% efficient and effective.

Also, regularly check vehicle safety barrier integrity.

7. Personal protection equipment

PPE requirements vary from site to site. Having it all catalogued clearly is common sense. Including mapping out locations where PPE is stored and dispensed. Then, you can regularly check everything is available, every working day.

8. Inventory storage inspections

Accidents are more likely in storage areas, including things falling from height. A crucial part of H&S is to study your inventory storage. Is the most logical and safe system being used to keep items in place, and is anyone taking ‘shortcuts’ that create a risk factor?

9. Regular tool and equipment inspection

Another thing to timetable for workplace safety is the testing of tools and equipment. Have you got all the safety items you need for your site, and are they where they should be? Make sure electrical items are still ‘up to code’?

10. Electrical shutoff switch

Talking of electrical hazards, this is one workplace safety priority that sometimes gets overlooked. Do you and all decision-makers know how to cut site power – partially or entirely? Is access to the switch assured?

Help with Workplace Safety Checklists

If your checklist throws up urgent purchasing needs, having a supplier ready and waiting can be a huge relief and an important safety advantage.

Chat to the team at BrandSafe, to discuss your likely requirements to have important safety products on standby.