by Lina Martinez
If you always dreamt about creating your own business and products for customers to enjoy, building a workshop is an essential first step. Many people, however, make a mistake when choosing the location and considering the features of the workshop. Below you will find a few tips that will help you create your perfect workshop that will serve you for many years to come, and provide you with the ultimate security your business needs.
Building Is Safer than Renting
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If you are tempted to rent an old warehouse and turning it into your own workshop, you might want to think again. You will depend on the owner of the land and the building, and any work you carry out will be wasted when your building lease ends. Instead, you might want to purchase some ex-industrial land and erect a steel building for your startup business that you can call your own, and customize to your needs.
When opting for a steel building, make sure to employ an experienced contractor such as Sunward Steel Buildings who can support you from the pre-planning and drafting stages right through to construction. Using a contractor also ensures that the building housing your new workshop will be of high quality, helping your land to build equity.
Alarms and Security
Once you have your workshop, it is important that you take care of the security of the building. If it is located in a rural or industrial area, you might want to get an alarm system, including potentially a Commercial Fire Alarm System, that is connected to the nearest police station, or get CCTV coverage you can check via your cell phone. This way, you can protect your building and your machinery, while getting a lower rate on your business insurance.
Fire Safety Assessment
Before you start using your workshop and allow employees to work there, you will need to get a fire risk assessment completed by a health and safety professional. This will help you create internal policies that will protect your business reputation and your workers as well. You will need to get some fire alarms and extinguishers installed if you work with highly flammable materials.
Energy Consumption and Security
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If your workshop is located in a rural area, you are not likely to get the best deal on electricity and heating. You might consider going off the grid, of getting a generator installed that will keep your business going when your supplies are unreliable. Check out The General Generator Terminology, Parts and Function Glossary to find out how you can install backup energy sources to keep your business operating in disaster situations.
Insurance You Will Need
When you start your own business, you will need to have several insurances, based on your industry. If you serve the public, liability insurance is necessary, provided that they are at a risk of getting injured on your premises. You will also need property insurance, workers’ compensation insurance, and business interruption insurance, to keep your venture profitable and running smoothly. When you choose the right business insurance, you are choosing to keep your business, the public and your employees safe. You are choosing to put up the right boundaries to keep your business - and the people that interact with it - safe. Safety is the most important thing for your working environment, and it’s insurance that will do that for you.
When you plan your workshop to carry out industrial activities, and run a business from, you need to consider the location, long term plans, insurances needed, and the overall cost of running. Building your own workshop might be more expensive short term, but gives you more security. Pay attention to details, and make sure that you have adequate safety and security procedures in place, to protect what you built over the years.