Every workplace facility has a unique layout and will have different priorities - but one thing that doesn’t differ is the importance of managing the flow of workplace vehicles and protecting personnel.

Here are 10 cross-industry tips that will go some way towards making your workplace safer, streamlined and more efficient…

1. INDEPENDENCE DAY
Wherever possible vehicles and pedestrians should be segregated, with each moving in defined zones.

2. VANISHING POINT
Areas where vehicles and pedestrians crossover are critical and they should be properly managed - use floor markings, overhead walkways, control lights, gates and make sure these areas are clearly marked.

3. THE FAST & THE FURIOUS
Understand the potential forces of the vehicles operating in your workplace - only then can safety barriers that are fit-for-purpose be installed. Barrier specialists should have an up-to-date tick sheet of vehicles with their potential kinetic energies.

4. WINGS OF DESIRE
Try to create pedestrian routes that follow ‘desire lines’ - the natural route a pedestrian would take around a facility. This way, it’s less likely a pedestrian will stray from the designated path.

5. REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE
Even the best traffic management procedures can’t prevent the wreckage caused by a rogue FLT driver. Make sure every driver is trained, certified and kept up-to-date with best practice.

6. THE GREEN MILE
Pedestrian routes should be clearly defined and coloured differently from areas where traffic is permitted.

7. THE PHANTOM MENACE
Ensure a ‘deflection zone’ or ‘pedestrian buffer zone’ is implemented as part of the pedestrian route. This considers the amount of deflection in a barrier if it happens to be impacted by a vehicle. A white floor line 1m away from the barrier should inform pedestrians not to enter this zone.

8. THE SIXTH SENSE
Blind corners are potential hazards for vehicles. Strategically placed barriers can help ‘soften’ hard angles and improve drivers’ line of sight.

9. GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY
Wherever vehicles move near pedestrians, structures or equipment protect them with the correct, fit-for-purpose barrier system.

10. IT’S A MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD
Facilities are ever-changing and can easily become over-run and unsafe. Continually examine and revise your traffic management procedures.