June is National Safety Month! As installers of concrete and epoxy flooring contractors for various settings, from ballfields to restaurants to warehouses, we take care to prioritize safety in everything we do here at Blue Ridge Coatings and Supply.
Safety is paramount regardless of profession, but specific protocols must be adhered to by epoxy flooring contractors and concrete contractors alike. We just happen to do both! We consistently produce excellent results, but those results don’t happen without proper safety.
When we approach a client’s job site, we carry out everything in an orchestrated manner, from the surface prep to the application all the way to the finishing touches. This extends to safety as well.
We don’t abide by safety protocols just for the sake of meeting codes and laws, but because of how deeply we value our employees, customers, and their customers.
Below, we list various procedures and methods that epoxy flooring contractors like Blue Ridge Coatings and Supply implement.
The Concrete Facts
Though many clients may know us as an epoxy flooring contractor, concrete construction is our forte just as much! Working with epoxy and concrete carries a certain level of risk, heightening the need for safe application. With concrete specifically, we account for inhalation of airborne particles as the old concrete is being broken up, chemical burns as we mix new compound, and the potential injuries resulting from mishandling equipment or improper lifting posture.
Using personal protective equipment (PPE) is imperative in such environments. If there’s one thing to remember every time, it’s eye protection. Whether safety glasses or full goggles, we all need something to protect us from dust, splatters, and other potential hazards.
It’s crucial to wear attire such as waterproof gloves, long-sleeved clothing, and rubber boots. When working with concrete, messiness, and body contact are inevitable, so we plan for what’s to come.
And if it’s a scorcher when we’re working, we do all we can to stay hydrated!
What Flooring Contractors Do and Wear
Epoxy flooring contractors predominantly use epoxy in indoor settings such as basements, commercial kitchens, hospitals, and manufacturing facilities, so different protocols must be considered.
With the exception of garage floor epoxy jobs, most jobs occur in rooms with little existing ventilation. We always wear respirators to prevent inhaling the harmful fumes flooring compounds emit. We keep some heavy-duty fans running and open nearby windows when possible to improve overall air quality.
Of course, splashes and spills are common with epoxy’s fluid nature. Our crews always use safety glasses/ goggles, gloves, and long-sleeved clothing to limit skin contact or any other harm posed by splashes. An extra precaution to consider is taping over the joint between the gloves and sleeves. It’s crucial to ensure that we protect our hands, wrists, arms, legs, and mouths throughout the application process.
Epoxy floors all have a curing phase, ranging from 24-72 hours before solidifying. While the process behind curing and hardening will be discussed in a future post, in short, if the floor hasn’t yet solidified, exposure is still possible, making PPE essential.
Once the surface has hardened and we move on to sanding, our crews generally follow the same procedures. Sanding-cured epoxy releases airborne dust, which we want to avoid direct contact with.
When it comes to footwear, safety is always better than fashion. Wearing appropriate footwear not only affects the leveling of the surface but is also another measure we can take against slips, trips, and falls.
Safety Produces Results
Blue Ridge Coatings takes great pride in installing concrete and epoxy in the Roanoke area and beyond, and while we are always eager to see the beautiful end product of our work, we know that safely applying concrete and epoxy surfaces are what makes us able to maintain productivity and deliver superior client results.