Your Essential Winter Facilities Checklist
Staples has created this handy checklist of 13 items to help you keep your workplace safe and be prepared for the coldest months of the year.
Winter weather is unpredictable, and facilities managers need the right equipment to help keep your organization’s buildings accessible and safe for your teams. Staples tapped Jim Vassil, senior facilities solutions technical trainer for Staples, to share the must-haves that your facilities team will need as temperatures plummet.
1. Rock Salt and Ice Melt
Look for products with sodium chloride, which is long-lasting and effective, or calcium chloride, which works fast in extremely cold weather.
2. Shovels
Choose snow shovels with heavy-duty, wide heads. Make sure they’re labeled specifically for snow, not for other purposes. Have at least one shovel per facility entrance.
3. Snow Blowers
If you only need to clear light snow from sidewalks, a single-stage snow blower with a 20-inch clearing path is ideal. For larger areas and heavier snow, a two-stage, self-propelled model with wheel drive is more effective – if the area is flat. Use a track-drive model for areas with a slope.
4. Floor Mats
Select mats made of olefin fiber, which absorbs moisture from shoes and boots, dries quickly and is resistant to mildew and rot. If your employees leave their wet boots at the door, provide boot trays with rimmed edges to contain water.
5. Caution Signs
If a floor is wet or slippery, put up a caution sign to alert employees while the area dries.
6. Slip-Resistant Tape
Apply slip-resistant safety tape to outdoor steps with smooth surfaces to help people maintain traction and prevent falls.
7. Drain Cleaner
Keep drains clear – outdoor drains and interior floor drains can back up, creating puddles that increase slip-and-fall risks for employees. Use a high-acid drain cleaner to clear drains of mold, mildew and other organic waste. Then, periodically flush with an enzyme-based formula to maintain the flow.
8. Generator
Identify the essential systems that need to continue running if you lose power, and work with a technician to ensure your generator is capable of backing up those systems.
If you’re buying a new generator, talk to your utility company, an electrician or a building engineer to determine what fuel source and size are bet for your facility. Your local commercial building code authority is a good resource for regulation information.
9. Surge Protectors
Losing power during an ice storm might result in electricity coming back in surges that can damage electronics or wiring, so make sure devices and equipment are plugged into surge protectors to prevent this.
10. First-Aid Kit
Provide enough first-aid kits for employees. If someone falls and gets a minor cut or scrape, they’ll have access to bandages, antibiotic ointment and over-the-counter pain relievers.
11. Emergency Preparedness Kit
In case of a sudden storm or flood, stock the essentials to keep a skeleton crew at your facility fed and safe. Include a three-day supply of water and nonperishable food, along with flashlights, batteries, a radio, personal hygiene items, basic medications such as aspirin, a cellphone and charges, duct tape, work gloves, latex gloves and two-way radios.
12. Hand Sanitizer and Disinfecting Wipes
Because cold and flu can run rampant in the colder months, stock the office with easy-to-access waterless hand sanitizer and disinfecting wipes that employees can use on their desktops and armrests.
13. Extra Coats, Gloves and Hats
Keep a stash of extra winter coats, work gloves and warm hats in case a member of your team isn’t prepared for the weather and needs to work outside.
As a CrownSource customer, you have access to deep discounts on all the winterizing products you need – like deicers, shovels, safety vests, gloves – to keep your operations running smoothly whatever the cold weather brings. Login to our eProcurement Platform, CrownConnect, to see all our facility maintenance and safety products. Not a customer? Schedule a demo now.