Britain’s biggest sports chain Sports Direct is investigating an incident after a customer twitted a picture of their blocked fire exits at their flagship store in the bullring, Birmingham. 

In the picture you can clearly see that the boxes are stacked higher than the push bars, on the emergency exits. A display of ski goggles can also be seen propped up next to the door even though on the fire door it clearly states “keep clear”. The fire escape route was completely inaccessible, making it a hazard to anyone who was working or shopping in the store. 

A customer, who was horrified at the complete disregard of fire safety regulations, took a photo and posted it on social media, tagging the fire service, sports direct and the shopping centre.  

If you are working in retail, an office, or a factory it is everyone’s responsibility to help with the prevention of fires, and keeping your fellow colleagues and customers safe. If you notice a problem within your workplace it is your responsibility to report it so the hazard can be rectified. 

Below are some reminders of fire prevention best practices. 

• Practice good housekeeping.  If you have boxes or clutter around your work place, this can lead to fuelling the fire, and preventing people from using the escape route, or emergency equipment.
   
• Dispose of flammable items correctly. Place flammable materials in a covered non-flammable box by doing so you are preventing adding more fuel to the fire.
   
• Do not leave naked flames unattended. If you are using naked flames such as blowtorches, make sure you have completely extinguished the flame before leaving the equipment unattended. 
   
• Perform regular maintenance checks of machinery to prevent overheating and friction sparks.
   
• Report any electrical hazards. Electrical faults are one of the main causes of fires in the workplace. Equipment needs to be fully maintained to ensure that it is not malfunctioning. Do not attempt to fix faulty wiring if you are not qualified to do so. 
   
• Store all chemicals safely.  Make sure you are not storing dangerous chemicals in places where they might explode, or mix with other dangerous chemicals. Make sure you are keeping them out of direct sunlight, and in a well-ventilated room. 
   
• Use all precautions to prevent ignition in any potentially dangerous environments. Prevent exposing naked flames, creating sparks, and use non sparking tools. 
   
• Make sure you and your staff only smoke in designated areas. 
   
• Never block fire exists, or emergency equipment.  Ensure your employees are observing the emergency exits, and taking into account the emergency exit routes when stacking and storing goods.
   
• Teach your staff how to use fire extinguishers correctly. 

A workplace fire is devastating and many companies that experience a fire, never rebuild. In addition to potential injury and loss of life it can lead to job losses and closure to a business that has taken years to establish. It is everybody’s responsibility to work in a safe manner and prevent fire hazards. 

As an employer it is your responsibility to ensure that your employees are appropriately trained, and are knowledgeable as to what actions to take, and where to go in the event of the fire. It is also your responsibility to clearly label the emergency routes and ensure that none of the fire exits are blocked. 

Like you, we take fire safety extremely seriously here at Label Source, and stock a comprehensive range of products designed to improve fire safety and to protect you and your employees in the unfortunate event of a fire. So if your workplace is missing any fire safety signs, head over to our Emergency Access & Fire Safety Signs department. 

We are proud to be able to offer a truly comprehensive range of fire safety signs, however, if you cannot find the exact sign you are looking for don’t hesitate to contact out customer service team by telephoning 0800 3761 693 or emailing info@labelsource.co.uk and a member of our customer service team will be more than happy to assist you.

When printing onto thermal transfer labels it is important to understand the different components and printing combinations to ensure that you get your desired results. There are 3 different types of ribbons used in thermal printers, each have their own unique benefits:

Resin ribbons allow you to print directly onto polyester, vinyl and plastic labels. This produces an extremely durable label which can be used for a variety of applications within logistics and distribution industry.

The wax/resin ribbons, unlike wax ribbons, can be exposed to small amounts of liquid without losing their quality. Wax/resin ribbons produce a more intricate image, ideal for printing your own barcode labels. We recommend use the wax/resin ribbon combined with our top coated thermal transfer labels to enhance the print clarity.

Wax ribbons produce a long lasting image. This is ideal for labels that will you are intending to use for a long periods of time. Our thermal transfer labels feature permanent acrylic adhesive, to ensure that your labels stand the test of time.  To ensure that the quality of the image is not lost you must keep these labels way from liquids. Label source recommends that labels created using this ribbon are used to label shelves in your dry stock room, and other dry places in your workplace.

We supply a wide range of thermal transfer labels, all of which have an operating temperature range of -15C to +90C, our labels also retain colour, so they don’t blacken when they are exposed to hot temperatures., making them the perfect choice for companies who are working within the food and medical industries.  

We understand that it can be a bit overwhelming trying to find the thermal transfer label that will provide you with the best results. But don’t worry, a member of our friendly customer service team is always at hand to help you. If you have any questions, contact us by calling 0800 3761 693 or email us at info@labelsource.co.uk.

A couple in Kingsbury, Warwickshire, lost everything when their house went up in flames due to an electrical fault in their tumble dryer. The back of their house was so badly damaged it had to be rebuilt, and their bedrooms and living rooms were scarred by smoke damage. Life for this couple and their young family, understandably, became incredibly difficult as they struggled through financial and emotional stress whilst they rebuilt their home.

 At the time, the couple were unaware that their particular tumble dryer had been recalled, and carried on using the tumble dryer because they thought it functioned fine. After the devastation they experienced they are now currently backing Electrical Safety Firsts campaign to raise awareness of the danger of electrical items and why it is so important to register your electrical products and keep an eye out for product recalls.

Faulty appliances cause £41.6 million of damage every and roughly 46 deaths per year in the UK alone.

Whilst it is important to look after your family and pets at home by registering your electrical products, it is equally as important to look after your employee’s in the work place.

The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 requires you to ensure that any electrical equipment that you have in workplace that have the potential to cause an injury is maintained in a safe condition. There frequency of the inspections and test of your electrical equipment is simply down to the type of equipment that you are using in your workplace. So for example, a computer in an office will need to be checked more often than a desk lamp.

It is recommended that all electrical products within commercial properties and rented accommodation is PAT tested at least once a year. Because the UK is now importing more and more of our electrical goods from overseas, it is quite possible that they have not been subject to a strict examination and testing procedure, like UK manufactured appliances. So the testing of these appliances and products is of paramount importance.   

PAT Testing is a complex procedure that should only be carried out by trained electricians.

Once the electrician has completed the PAT test a label should be placed on the equipment highlighting the status of the equipment. “Passed for use” means that the equipment is safety and ready to use. “failed Do not Use” means that the appliance has failed the test and should not be used under any circumstances with until it is has been fixed or replaced. Most PAT Testing Labels will also have the date of when the nest test is due. Acting as a reminder to keep your appliances tested and maintained so you are safe from risk of injury or fire.

Be sure to keep your home and work place safe by registering all your electrical appliances, looking out for product recalls and PAT testing appliances in the workplace to ensure the safety of your work place.  

Click here to view our range of PAT Testing labels and record cards. 

Health and safety executive have released a new strategy for the health and safety systems that will take us through to 2020, this strategy have been broken down into 6 key themes. In order for this to be successful it requires us all to work together, communicate about health and safety changes in the workplace, everyone taking responsibility for health and safety, employees as well as employers, share new ideas about how to combat challenging health and safety risks, helping businesses grow by simplifying risk management and tackling the costs of work related illnesses head on.

2004/05 Health statistics 

• 545,000 cases of ill health 
• 223 people were killed at work 
• £17.4 billion estimated cost of injuries and ill health from working conditions 
• 35.2 million working days lost

 2014/2015 health statistics 

• 1.2million working people are suffering from a work-related illness
• 2,538 people died from mesothelioma due to asbestos exposure (2013)
• 142 people were killed at work 
• 76,000 people reported injuries under RIDDOR
• 611,000 injuries occurred at work
• 27.3 million Working days were lost due to work related illness and work place injury
• £14.3 billion estimated cost of injuries and ill health from current working conditions.  (2013/14)

Stats from HSE  

Over the last 10 years we have all been working hard to create a safe working environment for our workers and our efforts are paying off! Here in GB we take health and safety extremely seriously and our Health and Safety Record reflects our efforts. Currently GB’s Health and Safety record is one of the best in the world. However, this doesn’t mean that there isn’t room for improvement. 

Here, at label Source we have put our heads together and come up with 5 tips on how you can improve your workplace safety in 2016:

Plan to control workplace hazards

Identify all the hazards in your workplace and make sure you take the relevant steps to completely eliminate the hazard, or at least minimize them. To do this you will need to develop a comprehensive safety plan. 

Make sure that if you cannot completely eliminate a workplace hazard, that you are alerting people of the hazard through the use of safety signs. 

Train your staff

Comprehensive training must be given to all members of staff, especially if they are expected to work in an environment where there is a risk of injury. Make sure that you provide all of your employees with a written document outlining all the companies’ safety procedures so they have a point of reference. If you are not training your staff to a high level, you are endangering your employees. If your company is found to be guilty of health and safety breaches, your company will be held liable if there is an incident and could lead to your company having to go to court. 

Inspect your workplace, frequently 

Make sure that any machinery, tools, equipment that your employees are using are well looked after and maintained on a regular basis. Across the UK thousands of accidents happen whilst people are operating machinery. This could be because they are not wearing the correct PPE, the machine is malfunctioning and no one has reported it or the workers are simply not trained to operate the equipment. 

You can help prevent injuries to your staff while they are operating dangerous machines, using hazardous tools & equipment or whilst they are working in a hazardous area by using mandatory safety signs. These signs serve to remind your workers of what is expected of them, for example, wearing the correct PPE, using the correct equipment through to washing their hands – to prevent the spread of disease.  

Investigate all incidents

Not all incidents are fatal, not all incidents cause injury or illness, however it is important that if there is an incident that it is investigated to determine why the incident happened and what can be done to prevent the hazard getting worse and happening again.  

Keep up to date records

Ensure that you are keeping a record of all the incidents that occur, all the accidents that happen, first aid treatment, inspections, and training. By keeping up to date records you will be able to identify any tends in incidents. Maybe there is a gap in their training – keeping records will help you identify this. 

Join in the conversation at #HelpGBWorkWell

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