If your company is hoping to expand to include metal-fabrication services, your first course of action should be to ensure a safe work environment and proper training before allowing your employees to begin work. Here are three safety tips to keep in mind when it comes to metal fabrication.

Inspect the Tools at the Start of Every Shift

Metal-fabrication workers typically use grinders and shears to get the job done. It should go without saying that this type of equipment can be extremely dangerous if it malfunctions or is not handled properly. If any device or piece of equipment appears to be acquiring rust or is damaged in any way, it must be taken out of circulation immediately. When purchasing equipment for your workers, make sure you purchase more than you need so that you have backups available.

Wear the Right Gear

If you work in the industrial business, your employees likely already wear at least some safety equipment when in the workshop. But with metal fabrication, there are additional concerns that you need to be prepared for. Small metal shards can frequently fly out of the grinder during fabrication, and for this reason, safety goggles should be worn when inside the workshop at all times, even if the employee is not the person directly working on the grinder. Long clothing should also be worn to protect the skin, but make sure your employees tuck their clothing into their pants or boots. You don't want a loose shirt to get caught in the grinder.

Use Proper Lifting Technique

Transporting sheet metal can be hard work. If you are going to be doing a lot of metal fabrication, it might be worthwhile for your business to invest in a pallet jack system or another piece of equipment that can help with the heavy lifting. Asking your employees to lift all of the metal themselves can lead to back and neck injuries if they are not careful.

If you don't feel your employees or your resources are ready just yet to handle metal fabrication, there is no shame in outsourcing part of a project to a company that does fabrication services, such as Garelick Steel. Such a company will likely already have all of these safeguards in place for their own employees, freeing up your own company to focus on other aspects of the project. For more information, contact a metal-fabrication specialist today.