How Ecorobotics Is Taking Tank Cleaning Precautions During COVID-19

With COVID-19 shutting down businesses, maintenance and regular tank cleaning at your facility may have gone to the wayside. It’s important to remember, though, that reactive or improper maintenance of your industrial tanks could become both costly and dangerous. 

Make sure you’re still taking your industrial tank cleaning seriously. During these abnormal times, you want to do everything you can to safeguard your business.

 

The Biggest Repercussions of Avoiding Tank Cleaning

Here are some things to keep in mind if you’re running a facility that hasn’t been functioning at full capacity.

Sludge Buildup and Work Site Shutdowns

When sludge builds up in your tanks, whether hazardous or non-hazardous, it can have detrimental effects. While sludge is a normal occurrence and proper maintenance is always necessary, it’s even more critical now that so much business has been put on hold. If your tanks have been collecting sludge and solids for months at this point, it’s something to keep on your radar.

If ignored, sludge in your tanks can slow production and be costly to clean. Emergency cleaning can be expensive and may result in longer downtimes for your plant—beyond what you’re already experiencing with the pandemic. Large amounts of sludge can also affect the quality of your tank contents, and you don’t want the product to suffer, either.

Time and money are primary concerns here; maintaining your equipment is crucial to your bottom line.

Not Abiding by Regulations

The U.S. Department of Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) heavily regulates confined space entry when it comes to manual tank cleaning since it can be a risky job. Proper safety adherence is required—and it’s better to be safe than sorry. Robotics are a safe alternative.

Let’s not forget any additional state or local regulations that address the subject of safety—the consequences for non-compliance can be substantial. 

COVID Precautions Ecorobotics Is Taking to Keep Your Facility Running Efficiently

The following are ways we have updated our operations to help protect against COVID-19.

Stringent Site Assessment

We survey the work environment before any projects commence so we can get a good sense of what needs to be done before the crew and equipment mobilize—this way, only essential tasks require on-site help. Supervisors conduct pre-task hazard assessments, develop site-specific work scopes.

Some factors of note are facility characteristics and layout, safety hazards (especially for confined spaces), location of tanks as well as locations of exclusion and entry zones, security measures to limit entry to each site, and more.

Dedicating one person to carry out your site survey and assessment will limit unnecessary human exposure to dangers. It’s best to do this ahead of time, before the rest of the crew arrives for the work day.

Dedicated Decontamination Procedures

At Ecorobotics, the supervisor owns the responsibility for the enforcement of proper operational protocols. This individual sees to it that all appropriate protective measures are taken, while also meeting the client’s requirements if they have their own processes and procedures. 

Our employees are responsible for performing decontamination of themselves and any equipment they used once tasks are complete. This can include tools, machines, and vehicles. 

 

The Bottom Line: Don’t Risk It

As we all work to find our new sense of “normal,” businesses have to find their way, too, in order to protect their equipment and staff. With the proper precautions in place, Ecorobotics can help you with all your industrial tank cleaning needs. You don’t need to experience lengthy site shutdowns, damaging sludge buildup, or costly emergency maintenance. 

Get in touch and let us help you protect your business, products, workers, and clients.