No doubt we’ve all had our fair share of fire drills over the years, some running like clockwork and others, well, close but no cigar springs to mind (excuse the pun). Either way, all result in a mass re-entry of staff through a dedicated set of doors, or at least that’s the plan.
The odd rogue employee wanting to make a shortcut isn’t that big a deal in an office or call centre, but when it comes to food production and in particular bio-security that’s a whole different ballgame. So, how do world-class food manufacturers manage the movement of people in the event of evacuation and re-entry?
The basics.
- There must be no external doors in exposed product handling areas, except required fire exits, which must be tamper evident.
- Procedures for the re-entry to production areas after an evacuation exit must be developed, documented and implemented. These must include a fire drill and emergency evacuation procedure.
- Design of the facility is such that shortcuts cannot be made with people flows e.g. use of coded entry systems, oneway
doors, turnstiles, break bolts on (alarmed) fire doors to reduce risk. - Any potential risks due to people moving around the site must be identified with a procedure implemented for control of staff movement. And in terms of fire exits, the permitted people movement traffic routes must be defined on a drawing of the site. The plan must also show emergency routes e.g. fire exits.
The advanced.
Even if you have implemented all of the above, this does not remove contamination from the soles of your employee’s shoes. I would imagine many, if not all, will not have had the chance to change out of their protective clothing or food safety footwear.
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For those businesses who do not have a system that (a) cleans and sanitises footwear mechanically as pedestrians walk over it and (b) is designed to eliminate human avoidance, the production downtime costs could be significant. For those that do, production is back in business much quicker and as (or more) importantly risk of contamination is reduced. Major globally recognised brands already place their trust in a system called ProfilGate. By strategically placing ProfilGate throughout your building, you can capture up to 90% of dirt, dust and moisture. The system is proven to;
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If you would like a food production entrance mat system that does all that, please call 0845 0700 624 or download the ProfilGate brochure.
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