Safety & Information: Occupational Safety & Health

Hazards & emergencies	Legislation	Occupational safety and health is the discipline concerned with preserving and protecting human and facility resources in the workplace.
	Basic safety introduction	Just because it so commonplace, it is sometimes easy to overlook the many potential risks involved in vehicle servicing and repair.
	Identifying hazards	Follow workplace procedures for hazard identification and avoidance.
	Evacuating in an emergency	Carry out emergency evacuation procedures.
	Fuel fires	Liquid fuel vaporizes rapidly, especially when spilt, and the vapor is extremely easy to ignite.
	Using fire extinguishers	Each workshop will have a firefighting procedure. There should be a workshop fire warden and fire officers. Understand clearly the firefighting policy for your workshop.
	Using an MSDS	Material Safety Data Sheets provide information about handling, use and storage of chemicals that may be hazardous.
	Removing toxic dust	Never cause dust from vehicle components to be blown into the air. It can stay floating for many hours, meaning that other people can breathe the dust unknowingly.
	Lifting equipment	It is good practice anyway to carry out regular periodic checks on the serviceability of all of the lifting equipment in your workplace.
	Moving & road testing vehicles	Only authorized, fully trained, and licensed drivers should be given responsibility to move vehicles.
	Running engines	Exhaust fumes are toxic.
	Used engine oil	Coming into frequent or prolonged personal contact with used engine oil can cause dermatitis and other skin disorders, including some forms of cancer.
	Vehicle valeting hazards	Using toxic substances in enclosed areas is especially hazardous.
	Electrical safety	Poor electrical safety practices can cause shocks and burns, as well as fires and explosions.

Personal & property safety	Personal protection	Protective clothing (used in the automotive industry) is clothing designed to protect either the wearer's body or other items of clothing from hazards such as heat, chemicals and toxic dust.
	Basic injury prevention	There are a number of issues you may not be aware of that will affect your safety.
	Basic first aid & CPR	When assisting an injured person, be aware of any dangers that may still be present.
	Property security	Check your customer’s vehicle before you start to work on it. If there are any valuables in it, or any damage to the paintwork, note them on your job sheet; refer them to the customer or to your supervisor.