By Chad Engle, Loss Prevention Manager and Safety Specialist
NIRMA’s Best Practice for Safety Members # 8. Perform regular documented inspections of all workplace sites. To assist our members with this best practice NIRMA created the Property/Building Inspection Checklist. The Property/Building Inspection Checklist is designed to help reduce the risk of property and premises liability claims.
A common question I field is, “how often is regular?” In a perfect world I would love to see building inspections done quarterly. There are many NIRMA members that do quarterly inspections with each of their quarterly safety committee meetings. This creates an excellent history to help us defend liability claims while the frequent inspections help us identify and repair hazards and conditions that could lead to costly property claims.
I recommend not less than two property inspections per year. One in the spring, when maintenance crews are cleaning up the remaining leaves from last year, turning on sprinklers and getting outside projects going. It also makes sense to me to perform the second property inspection in the fall when you are closing things down, hoses are being drained and put away and gutters are being cleaned for the last time. With the temperature falling and winter just around the corner, I would ask all our members to print a copy of the Property/Building Inspection Checklist for each building and complete a fall property inspection.
Start with a walk around the exterior of the property and building and look for new damage that may have occurred during summer storms, check trees for dead branches, make sure trees have not grown to the point where they are rubbing against the building. Check walking surfaces to be sure no concrete has settled or heaved, creating a trip hazard.
Disconnect and drain hoses to reduce the risk of frozen pipe claims and water damage. Clean gutters and ensure all drains are clear and draining properly. I recently reviewed a significant water damage claim to a NIRMA member that was the result of plugged downspouts.
If you can safely access the building’s roof, inspect any roof mounted HVAC or other equipment to be sure it is securely fastened. Walk the entire roof and check for damage, possible leaks and areas that are holding water.
Water damage claims are common in the winter when snow melts on flat roofs and is not able to drain for whatever reason. Making sure the roof surface is in good condition and the drains are functioning properly goes a long way to prevent water from entering and causing damage.
When you are done inspecting the exterior and headed for the interior, pay special attention to the entrances. Are the stair treads in good condition? Are the handrails in good condition? Do the ADA automatic doors function properly? Are the floors kept dry during inclement weather? Are “Caution, Wet Floor” signs used when necessary? Are floor mats being used and are they lying completely flat to the floor? Any curls or wrinkles in floor mats are unacceptable, I highly recommend that they are replaced with new mats that lie flat.
For much greater detail and a copy of the checklist you can go to http://nirma.info, go to Resources and click on Inspection Forms and Checklists. If you have any questions or would like to schedule an inspection or inspection training, I can always be reached at chad@nirma.info or 1.800.642.6671.
While I have your attention, I wanted to remind you that NIRMA’s annual Self Defense for County Officials Conference will be held October 19th and 20th in Kearney at the Younes Conference Center North. I will be presenting a concurrent session on Thursday the 19th from 4:00 – 5:00 pm where I will roll out NIRMA’s new Safety Committee Resource Handbook. This would be a great session for safety committee members and any other elected official or employee that is interested in improving their loss prevention and safety program. I hope to see you there.
