Unattended processes: top tips for your manufacturing clients

Manufacturing businesses can sometimes need to make use of unattended processes to work efficiently, for example leaving machinery running overnight to meet a deadline. However, unattended processes such as these can pose a heightened level of risk for your manufacturing clients. After all, if there is no-one there to monitor the machinery, any issues could escalate quickly without human intervention.

At Geo, our experts are keen to support our brokers and your clients and help you to understand how these risks can be managed as effectively as possible. We asked our team to set out their top tips for managing unattended processes, which you can read below. Please feel free to share these with your clients if they would find this helpful.

Top tips for managing the risk of unattended processes

Machinery should feature automatic shut off

Aside from the risk management aspect of helping to prevent fire hazards and accidental injuries, automatic shut off can also help to prevent unnecessary energy consumption and ensure you are working efficiently.

Connect your fire alarms to the fire station

Ensuring that your factory’s fire alarms are connected to the nearest fire station means that the fire brigade can respond as quickly as possible, and hopefully prevent any fires from spreading.

Identify and remove potential hazards and combustible materials 

Things like falling objects, electrical faults and combustible items could all cause serious issues if left unattended while your machinery is running. It’s important therefore to ensure that you conduct a thorough check of the machinery itself, as well as the environment surrounding it so that you can deal with these before leaving your machinery to run.

Sprinklers should be used

By installing sprinklers, you can help to mitigate the risk of any fires breaking out when machinery is left unattended, as the system can help to control and even put out fires. Without a sprinkler system in place, a fire could spread rapidly.

Ensure adequate ventilation 

Some machinery can generate harmful fumes or substances, so adequate ventilation is important to ensure that these do not build up to dangerous levels in your workspace. This can also help to ensure machinery does not overheat and pose a fire risk.

Check that all connections in your machinery are secure

This can help to prevent machinery from malfunctioning or overheating, minimising fire hazards and preventing any damage to your equipment should any loose connections cause an issue.

Keep your premises clean and tidy

Clutter or debris could potentially fuel fires; and accumulated dust on machinery can possibly cause corrosion or damage. Ensuring that machinery and the working environment is regularly cleaned can therefore help to minimise risk, and extend the lifespan of your machinery.

How can Geo help?

Offering peace of mind for specialist commercial trades, our specialist commercial insurance supports sectors such as engineering, manufacturing and wholesaling across many industries.

Policy cover includes money, goods in transit, legal expenses and GeoFlex (a flexible element of cover that the policyholder can choose at point of claim). 

Policyholders can also benefit from Geo Extra, which includes Health and Safety and risk management, e-learning and training, business continuity planning and business law.

Find out more about Geo’s Commercial Risks products here.