While most drivers are eager to get in their vehicles and get from point A to B as quickly as possible, a good roofing contractor who’s responsible for one or more trucks knows a trip always begins with a thorough and documented vehicle inspection. That covers everything from checking fluid levels to brakes, electronics, tires, signaling devices and an overall visual walk-around of the vehicle. There’s no specific time limit, but depending on the vehicle and load, it should take about 30 minutes for a proper pre-trip inspection before hitting the road. This procedure is as simple as following a checklist that regardless of time, can be critical to having a safe, uneventful trip. After all, experiencing either an equipment failure or an on-the-road accident due to such failure could cause delays and lost expenditures well in excess of that time needed for a pre-trip inspection.
Every workday on a construction site should include a pre-work inspection period as well. It should be conducted either by the employer or his/her competent person (CP) on-site. The U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics has determined that the root cause of most workplace accidents can be attributed to 60 percent acts and 40 percent conditions. While conditions and needs on every jobsite can vary, I’d suggest the following five dependable checkpoints to be considered in everyone’s daily pre-job inspection: