Regardless of what type of business you run, these are tumultuous times. There are many threads to tie together as you work to rebuild or start anew in the aftermath of 2020. One matter that naturally gets pushed to the bottom of the list but keeps finding a way to rise to the top is workplace safety. While the pandemic may have ebbed, there are still lots of threats to the safety and health of the people you count on to conduct your commercial enterprise. Recessions and global health crises are certainly beyond the control of any entrepreneur. Safety on the work floor, however, is a matter that a business executive can address. Doing so will not only help to ensure the continued progress of the company but also provide for the well-being of those who depend upon your firm for income and stability. Here are four simple safety principles. 
Sustainable Energy Supply 
One of the first things that happens in a crisis—and one of the major sources of a crisis—is the loss of power. Whether it is the result of an electrical storm, a careless worker with a backhoe or a major machine failure, the sudden loss of power is an immediate threat to any sensitive equipment you may employ in the workplace. Data may be lost, communication is disrupted and the workers lose the electrical power they need to deal with the emergency. It is essential to keep the power on, meaning your workplace needs the protection of an automatic transfer switch. You can determine what type best suits your needs: 

• If equipment will be damaged by any loss or surge of power, you need a closed transition switch. 
• If equipment will be unharmed by a power loss of less than one second, you can use an open transition switch. 
• If you need to be able to adjust the power load automatically, a soft-loading switch is called for. 

• If you need to keep your system running even during inspections, you need a bypass isolation switch. 

Proper Training, Gear and Equipment 
One of the most important lessons imparted by the pandemic was the need of having the right equipment—and knowing how to use it—to handle specific conditions. Day-to-day safety in the workplace follows the same principle. Employees must be trained in what PPE and other items are required in order to conduct certain specific tasks. They must demonstrate proficiency in any assigned task that might lead to dangerous consequences. It is also invariably the case that certain equipment is necessary to perform certain operations, as the old workman’s proverb goes, “Use the right tool for the right job.” 
Establishing Safety Protocols 
An easier way to say this might be, “Make a plan.” Every employee needs to know what to do in case of an emergency: evacuation routes, fire protocols, emergency contact information, first responder interaction and community notification (someone has to be responsible for telling the world what is happening). Another aspect of this is developing proper methods for off-work tasks. For instance, there should be a list of rules about what can and cannot take place on the work floor, such as, “Never perform maintenance on equipment while it is running.” Employee training should include awareness of this full list of procedures. 
Regular Inspections 
The easiest mistake to make in a workplace is setting down an item while performing an important task and forgetting to remove the item when the task is completed. Scheduling regular inspections of the facility, boring as they may seem, creates an awareness of things that are out of place and situations that need to be addressed. In virtually every major workplace accident or disaster, warning signs were ignored. Inspections never take up as much time as rebuilding a workplace after a catastrophe. It is also a good idea to make a record of the date and time of every safety inspection as well as a list of any safety hazard that was discovered and corrected.