If you know about certain hazards that exist on your site, or in your workplace you have a duty to warn people about these hazards and how they can avoid them. It doesn't matter whether you work in an office or on a building site, any risk should be made clear. This is usually communicated through the use of workplace safety signs. Workplace safety signs alert those unfamiliar with the working environment to risks and remind employees to be vigilant. 

Workplace safety signs are an effective way to communicate hazards and risks that somebody may encounter whilst working or visiting your workplace. They are crucial to helping your company enforce a safe working environment and help with the maintenance of high safety standards and they are legally adequate warnings and information so companies are better protected from liability claims, in the off chance an accident happened. 

So, what are the common workplace signs and how do you understand what they mean?

The 3 most commonly used workplace safety signs are, as follows: 

Prohibition signs

Prohibition signs aim to prevent behaviour that is likely to cause a risk to the health and safety of yourself or others in the vicinity. Prohibition signs include no smoking signs, fire risk signs, and no access signs.

Here at Label Source, we produce all of our prohibition signs to comply with UK, EU and International standards ISO EN 7010, and the Safety Signs and Signals regulations 1996.  

To see our full range of prohibition signs, click here. 

Safe conditions including first aid signs

Safe conditions signs have a white pictogram on a green background. These should be used to advise employees and visitors of the location of first aid kits, safety equipment and escape and evacuation points.

Here at Label Source, we provide our customers with a truly comprehensive range of top quality safe condition signs. These include first aid signs, drinking water signs, emergency stops and cut offs, and emergency telephone signs. Click here to browse our full range.  

Mandatory signs

Mandatory signs are required in a workplace if a health and safety risk can’t be prevented in any other way. If you know about a hazard in your workplace you have a duty to warn people of the hazard and the actions that they can take to protect themselves from the risk of harm.

Our mandatory safety signs include general workplace safety signs, such as signs to remind your employees to wash their hands, through to advising employees and visitors to the correct PPE to be worn when working on or visiting your site.

Click here to view our full range of mandatory signs.

Our workplace signs enable companies to implement a system that will effectively help to reduce risks and hazards and protect your employees, or visitors from harm. When creating safety signs. compliance with the ANSI, EN and ISO standards is important, so we ensure that every workplace safety sign that Label Source supplies comply with these standards. 

We pride ourselves on being able to supply our customers with a complete range of workplace signs, so if you can not find the exact sign you are looking for, please don’t hesitate to get in contact with us by telephoning 0800 3761 693 where a member of our customer service team will be more than happy to assist you. 

Every workplace or public space should have clear and efficient health and safety measures in place, however, there are some establishments which require an even closer level of scrutiny. When it comes to hospitals, safety concerns are heightened twofold due to the nature of the work being conducted, combined with the level of public access to these institutions.

Patients, visitors and workers all require clear visual indicators and instructions to ensure that safety measures are upheld at all times. Often, individuals in hospitals, whether they are there for medical treatment or otherwise, are subject to many risks, which need to be addressed properly when planning safety strategies and preventative measures. 

Here are just some of the essential hospital safety signs that should be used.

Signs Used In Hospitals

Cleaning and Slip Hazard Signs

Hygiene is of paramount importance in medical environments of all kinds, but it's also important to ensure that associated risks are considered. If cleaning work is being conducted on hospital wards and in public areas, this requires efficient visual instructions in order to ensure that staff, patients and members of the public, are not unknowingly putting themselves at risk.

Discover our range of Cleaning and Slip Hazard Signs today.

Radiation Hazard Signs

Hospitals are full of medical equipment which apply the process of radiation, such as X-rays, ultrasounds and CT scans. Accordingly, hospital staff and members of the public should be properly alerted to this invisible health hazard, to ensure that they are not unknowingly exposed to any possible risks.

Get your Radiation Hazard Signs now.

Biohazard and Laboratory Signs

Due to the heightened risks from biological hazards and infectious diseases, relevant safety signs should be used to notify all hospital staff and members of the public, who may come into contact with infectious materials. This not only protects the health and wellbeing of the individual, but also prevents infections from spreading, which is crucial in medical environments.

Discover our range of Biohazard and Laboratory Signs today.

Safe Conditions and First Aid Signs

While this may seem obvious, it is nevertheless, important to point out that hospitals should also clearly mark their emergency equipment, and provide clear indications of areas that are safe to the public. 

View our range of First Aid and Safe Conditions Safety Signs today.

NHS Fire and Emergency Signs

Fires present one of the greatest risks to hospitals, particularly due to the potential scale of panic and confusion that could be caused, in a building with so many members of the public present. Our fire and emergency signs are manufactured to NHS guidelines, to ensure that fire exits and assembly points are clearly marked, for an efficient response in an emergency situation.

Buy Fire Safety Signs today.

Get A Full Catalogue of Hospital Safety Signs

There are a variety of signs and symbols used in hospitals, so it can be difficult to keep on top of them. At Label Source, we stock a catalogue of signs used in hospitals to keep you updated.

Discover our full range of hospital safety signs so you can stay up to date today.

If you have any queries about which hospital safety signs and general hazard markers are needed then feel free to get in touch with our helpful team. Give us a call on 0800 3761 693.

No one expects an accident to happen at work, and yet there were 622,000 workplace accidents that caused injuries between 2014-2016. With this costing employer over one billion pounds, it’s in everyone’s best interest to take health and safety in the workplace seriously. If workplace health and safety is something that you feel needs improving, whether you are an employer or employee, it’s worth encouraging. 

Whether you’re working on a construction site or in an office, there should be health and safety measures in place to help minimise the risk of any workplace injuries, and those in place in case an accident does occur. This will be different between work environments, but it can be as simple as knowing where the first aid box is kept and where each fire exit is. 

Here are some tips for improving health and safety in the workplace:

Start at the Beginning

Make sure every new-starter is taught about what health and safety measures are in place. Whatever your work environment, knowing this information is vital. Give each employee a tour of the workplace explaining the usual fire safety protocols and paying particular attention to any hazardous areas employees should be aware of.

Offer a Refresher Course

At the same time, make sure your current employees have the opportunity to be reminded of the health and safety measures in place. This should include anything new that may have been introduced since they started, such as if anyone is a first aider, etc. 

Be Prepared

Do your employees have the right PPE? If they are expected to do any manual labour (even if it's not often), have they had the appropriate training? Are there any restricted areas to be avoided? Being prepared can really make a difference – being prepared for work means you are aware of any health and safety situations that may come up.

Install Correct Labels and Signage

Even if you think employees have a good idea about health and safety, signage can drastically improve how aware people are in the workplace. Not only do these make people who are unfamiliar with the workplace aware of any hazards, it also reminds any employees to be vigilant. To have a look at our range of safety signs, click here.

Improving health and safety in the workplace doesn't have to be complicated or expensive, but is always a necessary way of keeping everyone safe. For any advice on what you may need to improve your workplace safety, feel free to get in touch. We can help you select from a massive range of health and safety signage. Call us today on 0800 3761 693.

Here at Label Source, we offer a great range of Engraved Plastic Tags! They come in a whole range of shapes, sizes and colours; and are perfect for a range of applications such as keyfobs, lockout tags; and markers for valves, pipeworks, machinery, tools, equipment, instruments and process plants. We understand that it may be difficult to find a product that matched your requirements which is why our engraved plastic tags come in a vast number of designs for various applications. 

All our engraved plastic tags are made from 3mm thick engraving laminate, and each tag features a fixing hole allowing you to easily attach it. Not only are they useful for a range of reasons but they are also built to last because of the high-quality plastic we use.

They are supplied in a range of vibrant colours to match your colour-coded identification systems; and they can fit three lines of text, depending on the size of the tag. Our engraved plastic tags have been designed to be durable and versatile, so no matter what sort of application you need these tags for, our engraved plastic tags will fit the bill. Our engraved plastic tags are customisable, so you can make the perfect tag to fit your needs. 

These tags will be made to your specifications, ensuring that they are best suited to your task - and if our standard sizes are not sufficient for your needs, our engraved tags can be supplied in bespoke sizes - get in touch for a quotation, we are always happy to help and will do our best to accommodate your specifications. We have such a wide range of products it will be no problem helping you with your specifications so just let us know how we can help!

Our range of Engraved Plastic Tags include:

Custom Engraved Tag, 25mm x 25mm, one line of text

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Custom Engraved Tags, 33mm diameter, one line of text

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Custom Engraved Tag, 63mm x 19m, three lines of text

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To view our full selection of Engraved Plastic Tags, please click here. We also offer other tag products such as custom printed plastic valve tags; serial numbered brass tags and much more. If you have any questions about any of our products do not hesitate to get in touch. Call today on, 0800 3761 693. 

A textile company based in Devon has been fined after a workers hand was crushed. The incident occurred at the Heathcoat Fabrics Ltd factory after the worker was preparing a piece of machinery for the next shift, when his hand was drawn into rotating rollers. He suffered severe crushed hand injuries which resulted in the amputation of 4 of his fingers. 

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that Heathcoat Fabrics Ltd had failed to safeguard the machine, making it very dangerous to use. A guard was previously fitted to the machine, but when it broke down;the company had failed to repair it, and instead replaced it with an emergency stop wire. The machine was left un-guarded for over two years, and a guard wasn't fitted till after the incident occurred on the 23rd August 2014.

The company pleaded guilty to breaching regulation 11 of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998, and were fined £300,000 and ordered to pay costs of £2862.30.

To prevent a similar incident occurring at your workplace, it's important you ensure that every safety measure has been put in place to ensure your workers remain safe when using machinery that posseses a risk of entanglement. Here at Label Source we have a wide choice of entanglement warning signs that will inform your workers of the risks of using that machine, and to take extra caution, preventing any incidents or accidents from happening. To view our range of entanglement warning signs, please click here.