In much of Britain, there has been somewhat less need for snow and ice removal this winter than in the previous two... so far. However, there have been hard frosts and snow in some areas. It should also be remembered that heavy rainfall combined with a rapid shift to colder temperatures still carries a significant risk of ice formation and snowfall well into February and March in many places.
This means that businesses need to be vigilant well into the spring to ensure they are not caught out by a sudden cold snap. In arranging for car park gritting and ice clearance, organisations tend to take one of 3 approaches.
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Strategy 1: Do It Yourself
Many businesses, especially smaller companies, take a DIY approach to cold weather. This means arranging for the existing workforce to deal with ice and snow clearing as and when required, rather than using specialist staff.
However, there are a number of potential problems with this approach. One is that you can't be confident that staff whose skills lie in other areas will know how to deal with icy conditions. Will your employees know how to do a risk assessment, monitor site conditions and attend with snow gritters at 3am if necessary to ensure your business is safe to open at the start of the working day?
Even if your workers do have the requisite expertise, they might not be able to get to your site at the right time, especially if they live some distance away. Also, while DIY snow and ice removal tends to be chosen as a cheaper option, it may prove more costly than you imagine. If staff have to spend a lot of time gritting car parks or on snow clearance, this will mean that they are not available to carry out the normal duties they are being paid for, and the business will lose out as a result. Another risk is that, if they don't carry out the work adequately, your whole company may have to close during a spell of cold weather, losing money and potentially also driving away customers who decide you can't be relied on.
Strategy 2: Use a Professional Snow and Ice Removal Service
Using this strategy will give you peace of mind, because you can be sure that your business is fully equipped in advance of any icy weather. Using a specialist gritting contractor such as Ice Watch means your site will constantly be monitored, using our highly-localised weather reports. It will be gritted in advance whenever icy conditions are forecast for your specific location, which helps to prevent ice from forming.
We use locally-based contractors with the right equipment, who will find it easier to make it to your premises than your own staff during cold weather, and will be able to undertake snow and ice removal much more quickly and efficiently. Our teams are able to carry out full risk assessments, and will also take the record-keeping and paperwork involved out of your hands.
Using expert gritting services also means you will have liability insurance and financial protection in event of any claim against you from a member of staff, visitor or customer, since you will be able to prove that you have done everything possible to guard against risks posed by icy conditions. Another financial advantage is that your workforce can get on with their usual job of keeping business running.
Strategy 3: Hope it Doesn't Happen and Muddle Through
This approach doesn't really deserve to be described as a strategy at all. Too often, instead of making preparations for the worst, companies prefer not to think about ice and snow until they happen. Such weather is treated like an unpredictable “Act of God" that people cannot do anything about.
However, shutting your eyes to the risk makes no more sense than failing to fit fire extinguishers, or forgetting to check that your roof and guttering are in good repair. Freezing weather is a real risk, as recent winters have shown only too clearly, and a responsible business needs to guard against the dangers it poses.
Making no preparations in advance means you risk disruption to business for an unpredictable length of time during icy weather. There is also a risk to the safety of employees, customers and other visitors to your site, who may skid on untreated black ice, with potential damage to vehicles and injury to themselves. Another danger in this approach is that you could be making yourself financially vulnerable, since a single claim after an accident could potentially threaten the viability of your business, as well as meaning that a great deal of time will be spent dealing with legal matters.
The best solution is to ensure that you have gritting contractors in place before cold weather strikes, so that you can be sure of an expert service. Ice Watch offers gritting services and snow and ice removal in all areas of the UK including Ipswich and Suffolk, Luton, London, Milton Keynes and Cambridge. Our service includes everything from monitoring to record-keeping.
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