Important safety for IT (for humans and their respective systems)
In this blog post we will talk about one of the most important things in an IT environment, Now not all of these WILL apply for every IT environment but in most they will apply.
Ergonomics is the process of designing/changing a working environment to make sure it is perfect for the people that use them. In this case, in IT, correct ergonomics would be having the correct chairs that match up with the correct desks in a working environment. This can also apply to how high a monitor is compared to the eye-line of a user in that environment.
Why is it important in an IT environment?
It is important in an IT environment because injury can still happen for IT workers. You may be wondering how this can occur. Well most, if not all of these injuries happen due to long term misuse of bad ergonomics. For instance, RSI, more formally known as, repetitive strain injury can happen due to bad ergonomics and bad usage by workers. Bad ergonomics can affect the back permanently, it can vary how bad it is depending on the misuse of sitting.
RSI can affect the following
A PSU also known as, “Power supply unit” is essentially a box that powers a whole system via watts. They direct power across a whole system in the most efficient way possible.
Simple safety for your PSU!
No matter how new or old the PSU is do not open it. If there’s no power going to it still don’t open it, it will have power in it still therefore making it dangerous. If for whatever reason you think you need to open up a PSU just don’t! The best fix for these situations is to buy a new one.
Keep water away from the PSU
I think it goes without saying, don’t get water near any kind of tech! This applies for a PSU too. More so than other types of tech due to the fact it’s the component that supplies power. A PSU is made for supplying power to a system and it shouldn’t be supplied to you. So, avoid that!
Well for starters this is safety for IT equipment. The past few subjects have been more human based but keeping your IT equipment is one of the most important things for IT. Moving on, ESD stands for electrostatic discharge, what a lovely sounding name... I know. ESD in laymen’s terms is when the static electricity travels from you to a certain item of technology when a bridge is made between you and the component.
How does ESD relate to hardware?
Well lets put this into perspective, your system isn’t working, you’re stressed, the BIOS cannot detect the problem. This could all lead down to a component that isn't working anymore due to the ESD passed on by you. Or another example could be you’re trying to do a project that requires a certain amount of RAM and your system hasn't picked up on RAM being damaged/faulty and the amount of RAM space you need isn’t available and it messes up a project.
Now this may sound really simple when you read this but it isn’t some massive haz-mat type suit or special gloves. It’s as simple as wearing an anti-static wrist band!
A proper working environment
Why your work-space needs one!
Imagine working in a teenagers room. The work-space just looks like a bomb-site and its a crash course to get around. This would produce so many problems for a working environment. Respecting the work-space and keeping it clean and tidy is the best way to go about it.
What to do to ensure a safe and secure work environment
Keep food/drink away from the working area
Keep wires/cables void of any entanglement
Keep wires/cables away from the floor to avoid trips
Have clear work-spaces (tables/desks)
Have your wires/cables zip tied together if able
Follow basic health and safety protocol
It is important to make a plan for any build project. Without doing this many things could go wrong, and without a report it would be near impossible to figure out what could’ve gone wrong! Make sure that when following the plan all the steps are taken in chronological order. Make sure that when following the plan you are also taking safety protocol seriously!
Make sure you know the hardware
If you are in a warehouse or have a storage medium for your building process you will need to know your parts. If you have many parts in storage you will need to know what is what and what is compatible with what. If the plan doesn’t specify the parts you will have to have this initiative and knowledge.
It is important to have a clear working space when building a PC and it is imperative to have a magnetic tray or any other safe space for your screws. If a clear space is absent, it would be very easy to lose components or misplace them. A lack of clear space can lead to quicker work speeds.
I think it goes without saying, don’t have food/drink in a working environment! Especially in IT. Spilling drinks on hardware can lead to short circuiting and food spills are just a mess to clean up.
