Workplace accidents are common and whenever they happen, it negatively affects the operational efficiency of a company. Warehouses are places where goods are stored, arranged and packed, so it is very important that you keep the building as safe as possible from potential hazards. When you read about warehouse safety you will find that a lot of incidents are caused simply by negligence. The building owner should make sure that a warehouse is kept in an organized fashion because only then will he be able to make it function efficiently. Any breach in the safety of the warehouse environment and it is generally the workers who will suffer first. Slips, falls and accidents happen when safety measures are not followed the way they are meant to be followed.

Industrial shelves in warehouses are usually placed at great heights and to get at the goods in them, workers will have to go up and down ladders on a constant basis. A warehouse is probably one of the busiest places in a business enterprise and therefore its’ safety should be given top priority.

Why do you need warehouse steps?

You must make sure that workers have access to all the necessary materials needed for the smooth functioning of a warehouse. The main equipment needed for warehouse functioning are forklifts, dollies, ladders, warehouse steps, protective clothing for workers, cutting tools, packing, strapping and shipping materials and first aid kit. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) have passed certain regulations when it comes to working inside a warehouse. It includes handling the materials, the machines used inside the building, the personal protection equipment and so on. There are no specific regulations regarding warehouse steps, but the safety of the workers and the way in which the materials are handled and stored will be drastically affected if the rules regarding worker safety are not followed. And to ensure the safety of everything, make sure you have good quality warehouse steps.

You have a number of interesting and versatile options when it comes to warehouse steps. It is important that you place goods and products in an organized fashion on the shelves, rather than placing them randomly on the floor. It must also be done in the proper way because any mistake and everything could topple and fall. This kind of stacking will not only save space, but will also make it easy to sort and find goods. Usually, goods are palletized and these pallets are lifted and placed within pallet racking by forklift trucks. This removes most of the manual handling dangers associated with incoming stock and finding it a home within the warehouse. However, picking items for order dispatch may well involve small items being picked from pallets stored at height and it is for this task that warehouse steps are designed.

Don’t let the name fool you though! Warehouse steps are not just used in warehouses. They are also found in:

• Factories
• Retail stores
• Stock rooms
• Archival vaults
• Libraries
• Shop floors

Things to consider when buying Warehouse Steps

Warehouse ladders made of top quality materials and robust construction last a long time. Potentially, they have to go through long hours of heavy use, so you have to make sure you get yours from a good vendor. You may have to move your steps over wet tiles, unsteady ground and hard un-yielding floors.  These are the worst conditions you have to encounter when you are working on the warehouse floor.

Mobile safety steps are in great demand these days as they are the hardest wearing and strongest type of stepladder designed for warehouse use.Usually made of steel,they are effectively a heavy duty, wide step ladder with built in hand rails either side, a large square platform at the top and auto locking wheels or castors at the base so you can just imagine how useful it will be for using in a workplace where you have to pick products from many differing places safely.  With wheels on the bottom, you can easily move them around. Your workers will just love the ease with which they move. They can be held by their handrails and pushed or pulled into position, and a handbrake retracts the castors before the step is climbed, ensuring the step is static and cannot move while anyone is on it. Just be sure to have a tidy warehouse with no obstructions on the floor when maneuvering the ladder.

Have very tall shelves?  Not a problem as they come in all different sizes!  with platform heights from around 20 inches (508mm) to over 13 feet (4.0m), giving you a possible reach of up to 20 feet (6.0m)..you should consider carefully how high you need to reach before buying yourself a warehouse ladder, they are generally of a non-folding construction so consideration must be given to doorways they may need to pass through or suspended lighting in the warehouse

You know how high – So now which material?

Once you have determined that warehouse steps will be a useful and safe way to access your shelving, the next thing to consider is what material your steps should be made from. Steel and aluminum are the most popularly used materials in warehouse step production.

The structural strength of steel lures many safety steps buyers. Made from high quality functional steel, you can be assured of owning very sturdy, reliable equipment, when you buy steel safety steps and with reasonable care, they will give many, many years of service.

They are available in varying widths, with a choice of tread surfaces and handrail configurations… as these steps are usually built to order, a much greater choice of options can be specified when ordering such as exit gates from the rear or side of the top platform allowing the operator to walk off the steps onto a mezzanine floor if needed. they can also be finished in a variety of colors to match your corporate image.

Aluminum warehouse steps are usually used for lighter industrial purposes as they are light-weight, sturdy and easily manageable. Fitted with rear rolling wheels… these steps are moved by raising the front of the ladder until the rear wheels contact the ground, you can then roll the ladder along like a wheelbarrow, placing it down so that the wheels lift off the ground and the ladder is ready and safe to use.

The ergonomic designs and tough construction make them highly durable and extremely reliable. Warehouse steps are now easy to manouvre and even easier to handle.

Mobile safety steps are fitted with anti-slip treads so your employers can go up and down with confidence and safety even if they are carrying something heavy. A single person can easily wheel the safety steps, so you get your work done faster (the rest of the workers can concentrate on other jobs, rather than walking around handling the steps).

Type of Warehouse Steps

There are numerous varieties of warehouse steps depending on what kind of use you are putting them to. You could go for heavy-duty warehouse steps, narrow aisle steps, medium duty or even small kick steps or round steps which feature small sprung retracting castors mounted under a small round plastic or steel plinth. The kick or round step can literally be ‘kicked along and becomes static as soon as weight is applied, these are great for use in shops and offices where speedy access to low shelves is required.

Mobile Safety steps come in medium and heavy duty ranges – from 3 steps to 16 steps and are ideal for use in factories, industrial workplaces and warehouses. Heavy-duty warehouse steps can contain up to 16 steps and you can use them in places where you need the workers to reach up to 6 meters. The safety and security provided by heavy-duty mobile steps ensure the protection of your workers. Mobile steps are ideally used in places where you cannot use the forklift. It is true that forklifts are used to stack, transfer and load palletized goods, but you still need the help of safety steps to transfer smaller items and boxes from their pallets down to the ground. Sorting is very important in a warehouse because some of the goods will be stored for months before they are transported and so they need to be kept away from goods that are transported more often. Depending upon the weight and significance, goods placed on high shelves need trustworthy safety steps to easily get at them when required.

This is much safer than placing leaning ladders against shelves as warehouse steps are fitted with safety barriers and handrails to support and protect workers when they are ascending or descending.

Some Precautions to take when using Warehouse Steps

Never forget that your workers’ safety comes first. Hence, you must ensure that they have the proper safety accessories to prevent injuries and fatalities. Goggles, hard hats and work gloves are some of the accessories you must have in large quantities in your warehouse. Only workers trained in the usage of safety steps should operate them.

It is a requirement under the Work at Height regulations that access equipment is regularly inspected by a competent person and a record kept of such inspections. Midland Ladder Co. supply a simple inspection tag system for attaching to your equipment, this tag records the last inspection and identifies whether the equipment passed or failed the inspection. Items failing an inspection must be removed from the warehouse for repair or replacement and clearly marked DO NOT USE. Keep in close contact with your workers on a daily basis so you know how the warehouse is being operated.

The platform width is very important because your workers need to have proper balance when they are placing and removing heavy goods tread width can be specified when ordering steel mobile safety steps and can vary between 500mm and 2000mm

The tread type of different mobile safety steps also varies. There are basically three tread types – anti-slip tread, ribbed rubber and expanded metal. All the three types of tread are resistant to water, oil and chemicals and so can be used in food and drink industries too.

For warehouse and industrial use, you can go for top quality aluminum warehouse steps. They have back support legs, handles and rear wheels, so you can easily position them in any nook and cranny.

So just to recap, if you are looking for steps for your warehouse, you should bear the following in mind before making your decision:

• Safety
• Strength
• Handrails and exit gates if required
• Tread type
• Platform width
• Choice of material
• Choice of colour

Midland Ladders are a Leading UK Distributor of Ladders, Aluminium ladders, Combination ladders, Step ladders, Scaffolding towers, Loft ladders and all access equipment. Main Distributors for: Youngman, Titan, Lyte Ladders, Zarges, With Free Next Day Deliveries UK wide.