Plan for winter
Although we have recently seen a heatwave, the unpredictable and increasingly extreme weather conditions the UK has experienced over the last few years should inspire sensible businesses to take steps now to mitigate against a harsh winter risks, says Mark Griffiths of asset resilience provider Adler & Allan.
He suggests the warehouse and logistics sector uses this warm dry spell to review general maintenance procedures and plan for whatever winter 2018/19 has to throw at UK plc.
Protect your fuel
Oil is crucial to logistics and its storage and disposal is a challenge for businesses across the sector. As oil is harmful to the environment, fuel storage tanks must be carefully maintained and fuels should be kept in good condition to prevent pollution and cut down waste.
Fuel tanks should be inspected annually in accordance with OFTEC and PPG2 Pollution Prevention guidelines, but we recommend additional monthly inspections to pick up on potential problems early. Water is the most common fuel contaminant, so it’s essential to keep storage tanks and pipelines clean and intact. Adler & Allan offers a variety of protective coatings and linings to stop corrosion and extend the life of fuel storage assets.
On sites that store fuel, some sort of oil spillage is usually unavoidable during delivery or transfer. Separators are a key tool for removing oil waste and preventing environmental pollution. They should be checked for blockages and cleaned and serviced regularly. As standard separators are unable to trap all harmful substances, we have developed the Ethanol Coalescing Filter, an award-winning product that removes over 95% of potentially cancerous BTEX compounds.
Prevent future flooding
While it’s easy to forget about flooding in a heat wave, it won’t be long until the rains return. Since 1988 there’s been at least one major flood a year in the UK and the risk, severity and frequency seem to be increasing year on year. The sad truth is that many businesses do not recover after a major flood event, particularly if they haven’t taken measures to reduce the threat.
Carrying out a Flood Risk Assessment (FRA) will help you evaluate the threat and start preparing. You can sign up to the Environment Agency’s flood alert service, but for a more predictive approach, we’ve developed a Flood Risk Management Platform, FloodMarshall that draws on live and historic data to provide an accurate assessment of risk.
