Data centers could also become a potentially dangerous place for employees. As an example, the battery room may contain a large quantity of chemical. For this reason, special equipments, such as exhaust fans and hydrogen detection could be necessary for adequate air exchange. A battery room should be equipped with wash/shower station to allow workers decontaminate themselves, especially after they are exposed to some amount of battery acid. The shower station should have steady water flow that us monitored from master control room.
If workers are exposed to acid, they need to be use the shower station and remain there until all traces of acid are removed from their clothes and skins. The temperature of the shower room should be ideal to make it possible for workers to comfortably remain during the decontamination process. In some cases, workers need to stay in the room for prolonged period of time. It could be necessary to have complete first full aid kit anywhere inside the data center, including in the control room and staging room. We may also need to consider the standard staff and personal protection equipment.
Full protective gears should be worn when we are dealing with electrical equipments and panels. Without proper license, it is not permitted to install or remove equipments, especially those connected main power supply, which could potentially endanger workers. All protective gear should be inspected before use, especially when workers need to deal with electrified equipments. When working with battery components, face shields could be essential. Gloves must be examined regularly for possible chemical and electrical leaks. If gloves have been damaged by wear and tear, it is important to replace them.
Insulated toolkits should help workers protected against accidental electrical shocks. There’s no excuse to not use the right equipments and violation in safety procedure should come with its own consequence, such as disciplinary action and perhaps even termination. Standardized and documented safety program should be provided for personel during training and they need to be well informed about issues regarding to data center issues. Only certified and experienced workers are allowed to work alone and this is actually not an acceptable procedure, because workers may require assistance during unexpected situations. If the data center is located in different building, it could be necessary to have dedicated employees tasked to deal with first aid actions.
Having safety rules, procedures and policies is essential, but they won’t be useful if not implemented properly. There are step by step checklist and process to perform tasks safely to the end. It is important to make our employees fully accountable, especially during the safety-related situations. This will make it possible to prevent accidents in our data center. Extension cords should be compatible with one another and it is a bad idea to choose those that undersized to support the overall load. Extension cords shouldn’t be overloaded with too much current or they could serious fire hazard, due to accidental short circuits.