Cycling to work facilities

Shedite27

We had a H&S audit recently at work which means we no longer have a spot to leave shoes, shower gel etc at work (previously have been an unused closet). What's the norm at work these days?

I realize a lot of places don't even have showers, but our building is a celtic-tiger award winning building. Seems to cater for everything apart from a spot to leave some stuff overnight. Last place I worked was well stocked.

I'm not proposing we all leave smelly clothes around the building, just wondering if others have a spot in their office to leave a few bits rather than bringing everything each morning.

RayCun

I have drawers at my desk, bottom one has pair of shoes, spare pair of trousers, spare tube, and a bag with towel etc for the shower

Parchment

I dont have anywhere. I stuck some rogue hooks on the back of a filing cabinet to hang stuff but they fall down all the time so its not a great option.

We dont have showers or any changing rooms - i use a toilet cubicle. Yet they offered the cycle to work scheme to everyone in the building.....and im the only one who does.

My clothes are not the freshest and i try to keep them out of others way but i dont have anywhere else to put them so they can deal with it! Currently i have an entire outfit drying on the rads in the office.

magicbastarder

we have showers, changing rooms, lockers, a drying room for wet gear, and a swipe-access only bike cage to lock your bike in. i suspect this is as good as it gets for cycling facilities in dublin.

buffalo

Shedite27 wrote: »

We had a H&S audit recently at work which means we no longer have a spot to leave shoes, shower gel etc at work (previously have been an unused closet). What's the norm at work these days?

What H&S grounds were used?

We have changing rooms that are cleaned by contractors once a quarter. Everyone takes their stuff out for cleaning day, anything left over is binned, then people store things again once cleaning is done.

RayCun

buffalo wrote: »

What H&S grounds were used?

There's a sign up in our shower, saying clothes and towels must not be left there on H&S grounds. Probably something to do with the Geneva conventions ban on biological warfare.

Lemming

More often than not "You can't do that, 'ealf n'safetey mate!" is a euphemism for "I don't like the look of, and/or agree with, that there now" and has precisely f*ck all to do with H&S as a friend of mine who genuinely works in an environment that *really* needs H&S awareness likes to point out on occasion. His favourite thing to do is to say "which part of the H&S legislation is it in breach of?" which is often met with a goldfish mouth action and thousand-yard stare followed by a swift retreat.

Unless there's a company policy on xyz - in which case fair enough, their house their rules - and the area where stuff is being stored is kept clean/tidy & has reasonable air flow through it, any cries of H&S boil down to the aforementioned euphemism and/or is just a lazy way of pulling authority on people.

Wishbone Ash

Shedite27 wrote: »

We had a H&S audit recently at work which means we no longer have a spot to leave shoes, shower gel etc at work (previously have been an unused closet)..

Was the closet removed? Was it blocking a fire escape?

As other have said, this sounds like a load of BS. Can't you just ignore it and carry on regardless?

loudymacloud

buffalo wrote: »

What H&S grounds were used?

We have changing rooms that are cleaned by contractors once a quarter. Everyone takes their stuff out for cleaning day, anything left over is binned, then people store things again once cleaning is done.

We have a similar set up here, works out quite well. Except in one section some one repeatedly hangs wet clothes on the main fuse box for the building....

despite there being a rack to hang clothes and a radiator, they put WET clothes on a LIVE fuse box....

Shedite27

buffalo wrote: »

What H&S grounds were used?

Haven't a clue, trying to organise a sitdown to figure out, but just wanted a bit of an opinion on here to make sure I wasn't being over the top

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

Was the closet removed? Was it blocking a fire escape?

As other have said, this sounds like a load of BS. Can't you just ignore it and carry on regardless?

Closet has been locked, so can't get access anymore.

Cheers for the replies folks, I'll see what we can do.

RayCun

Lemming wrote: »

the area where stuff is being stored is kept clean/tidy & has reasonable air flow through it

this would be the problem with the shower room, and probably with a closet too. No airflow -> damp, mould etc

NeedMoreGears

Could you talk to the H&S people to see what issue they were trying to address during the audit? They may be attempting to sort a problem which could have other solutions. Storing some clothes in an otherwise unused closet doesn't seem to be a big deal - unless it's related to the location of the closet.

Leroy42

I'd be heading over to company management and asking how they intend to replace the lost facilities.

It's all well and good saying that it does not meet H&S (although as pointed out they really need to provide some evidence) but the answer should not simply be to remove the ability. The aim of H&S is not to stop things happening (unless it is a clear H&S issue that is unnecessary like having unregulated chemicals on site) but rather to ensure that activities that are done are done with the best H&S protections in place.

Seems like a bit of a cop out by H&S on this one. No alternative solution provided at all.

Alanstrainor

We have a shower and lockers in our building. I had been using a locker to store shoes/shampoo/helmet etc until I was told by our facilities department that we were not allowed to lock the lockers, nor were we allowed to store items there over night. Sometimes I think they are actively out to get us. It wasn't even that the lockers were all taken, half were empty!

All my stuff now sits on my desk in a mess. Waiting for facilities to come and tell me to tidy it up. I wont back down easily if they do!

magicbastarder

was there a reason given for the lockers not being allowed to be used for overnight storage?

07Lapierre

According to everything I've read in this thread, i'm breaking every H&S rule going!
I leave my work clothes in a "Shower Room" (On hangers on the back of the door). I also leave a bag (with Shoes, undies, toiletries etc.) on the floor!
Why on the floor? because I use all the boxes of Bog roll, Cleaning Products etc. to sit on while changing!

Yourmama

We have showers, lockers (overnight as well) and drying room. Bike has to be out in the rain and on thieves mercy though.

Wishbone Ash

Alanstrainor wrote: »

...we were not allowed to lock the lockers, nor were we allowed to store items there over night...

FFS!

So where do staff keep valuables that may not be permitted at work (e.g. handbags, mobile phones etc.)

Hungrycol

We have good facilities here but the lockers are never cleared out and the smell in there could knock out a Rhino. I'm convinced there's dead bodies in more than one locker. The showers need a deep clean too but it's amazing what squalor blokes will put up with. I bet the ladies shower facilities are all flowers and candles.

My bike/changing/shower facilities sound very much like magicbastarder, we probably work in the same place!

Lemming

Common sense says that damp clothes shouldn't be kept in a locker/drawer, etc. - unless you've those 'cage' lockers - but hung somewhere to allow dry out assuming that there's reasonable* ventilation. Everything else about storing dry items like bottles, etc. is someone being a bloody-minded dictator and nothing to do with H&S. If they [the company/managers] have implemented official "company policy" that makes staff's lives awkward well then fine, but they can at least be honest about it with the staff and look them in the eye.


* it doesn't need to be a wind-tunnel or anything even approaching that, just needs to have an ok-ish level of airflow on an hourly basis; even the crappiest of crappy vents can be enough albeit "enough" is subjective and wildly open to interpretation.

buffalo

Hungrycol wrote: »

We have good facilities here but the lockers are never cleared out and the smell in there could knock out a Rhino.

This is what led to the policy in our place. People just forgot they'd left a wet towel to dry... for years. Now if you're not taking it back to your desk (a nice reminder to check the smell), it just goes in the bin*.

After about ten years of not taking anything out, there were about 12 towels, 4 pairs of trousers, 7 tops and one full suit**. Took me three loads of washing to get through them all.


*charity after washing

** this was actually mine :$

Bloggsie

magicbastarder wrote: »

we have showers, changing rooms, lockers, a drying room for wet gear, and a swipe-access only bike cage to lock your bike in. i suspect this is as good as it gets for cycling facilities in dublin.

heres your brother, bar the wet room for hanging wet clothing and the lockers, we do have constant supply of boiling water and a fridge in fairness though!

Bloggsie

loudymacloud wrote: »

We have a similar set up here, works out quite well. Except in one section some one repeatedly hangs wet clothes on the main fuse box for the building....

despite there being a rack to hang clothes and a radiator, they put WET clothes on a LIVE fuse box....

that someone must be in the IT section then!

ThisRegard

Hungrycol wrote: »

The showers need a deep clean too but it's amazing what squalor blokes will put up with.

In an old office I would shower wearing flip flops, the floor was in filthy as the bloody cleaners would use the cubicle as a storage locker for their stuff.

Parchment

I really think if a firm/organisation offers the cycle to work scheme they should be obliged to provide decent facilities for cyclists.

cython

Parchment wrote: »

I really think if a firm/organisation offers the cycle to work scheme they should be obliged to provide decent facilities for cyclists.

I can see the argument for this, but at the same time that's the best way to get the scheme dropped from probably the majority of workplaces, as the expense of providing said facilities will far exceed any savings they may make on employer's PRSI - it would become both easier and cheaper to simply ignore the existence of the scheme instead.

We've basically got the toilets to change in, and a cloakroom to hang stuff in my place, so no great shakes, and would love better options, but don't expect it either.

Alanstrainor

magicbastarder wrote: »

was there a reason given for the lockers not being allowed to be used for overnight storage?

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

FFS!

So where do staff keep valuables that may not be permitted at work (e.g. handbags, mobile phones etc.)

No real reason given, when I pressed they simply said

"Do you know how you use a gym? And you use the lockers just when you get changed, and then remove your items? This is the same."



The shower and locker room is one. So it's actually not possible to have anyone else in the room when you shower. And as I mentioned, there were plenty of empty lockers unused before we were forced to remove locks. There was a notice saying locks were going to be forcibly removed and items within destroyed by a certain date. A certain part of me wanted to get the heftiest lock imaginable and just lock an empty locker. But alas I didn't.

I blame it on a facilities department with little else to do really. :mad:

loudymacloud

Bloggsie wrote: »

that someone must be in the IT section then!

no...but what was more shocking was the fact that this person had to be told more than once that it was not something they should be doing. could not get my head around that fact.

average_runner

We have a shower, usually leave the towel on a hook in the room till Friday. Shower gel is left standing at the bottom of the shower.

My clothes are in a bag at my desk

Lemming

Alanstrainor wrote: »

No real reason given, when I pressed they simply said

"Do you know how you use a gym? And you use the lockers just when you get changed, and then remove your items? This is the same."



The shower and locker room is one. So it's actually not possible to have anyone else in the room when you shower. And as I mentioned, there were plenty of empty lockers unused before we were forced to remove locks. There was a notice saying locks were going to be forcibly removed and items within destroyed by a certain date. A certain part of me wanted to get the heftiest lock imaginable and just lock an empty locker. But alas I didn't.

I blame it on a facilities department with little else to do really. :mad:

Sounds like someone who is bored & looking for stuff to do and who can't see past their own nose whilst lacking any and all common sense. As a suggestion to them, you could put to them the notion of assigned lockers, so they have a name to put to a locker if they need access or whatever. Along with a simple note about not storing damp or wet items (including 'moist' shoes) in lockers and that anyone found abusing this may have their locker privileges removed if they persist. After that, you provide your own lock or take the risk and away you go.

crisco10

magicbastarder wrote: »

we have showers, changing rooms, lockers, a drying room for wet gear, and a swipe-access only bike cage to lock your bike in. i suspect this is as good as it gets for cycling facilities in dublin.

Same here, bar the drying room. But the Lockers are well ventilated, and have under floor heating directly beneath them. If I leave my gear hanging in it in the morning, even on the wettest day its dry come going home time.

We moved offices 2 years ago to a lesser location and nice cycling/running facilities were an olive branch from management.

Lumen

If anyone knows of available office space for about 4 people in Dublin city centre with shower facilities (or even a non-communal basin) and somewhere to lock a bike, I'd appreciate a PM.

Our serviced office rent has just been doubled to 3k/month (:eek:) so we're out in mid-May.

Lemming

Lumen wrote: »

If anyone knows of available office space for about 4 people in Dublin city centre with shower facilities (or even a non-communal basin) and somewhere to lock a bike, I'd appreciate a PM.

Our serviced office rent has just been doubled to 3k/month (:eek:) so we're out in mid-May.

Just did a cursory google for office to rent in Dublin city centre with showers & bike storage; look at regis in harcourt st. Ad was hosted on daft. Up to 11 people. Overkill for what you guys need but where there's that, I'm sure there's smaller offerings.

dermabrasion

Anyone know how this is done in Belgium, Holland or Denmark? It would seem that this is a massive un-met need. Components as I would see it are:
1. Secure locking facility, which is covered or indoor. Swipe-card access.
2. Changing room with lockers. Enough space where you could keep shirts, jacket and so on.
3. Showers which are serviced: Cleaned and a towel service
4. Drying facility, which is well vented, serviced and secure.

This looks like a business to me. What would you pay for a facility like this? I'd pay around €10/week

buffalo

dermabrasion wrote: »

Anyone know how this is done in Belgium, Holland or Denmark? It would seem that this is a massive un-met need. Components as I would see it are:
1. Secure locking facility, which is covered or indoor. Swipe-card access.
2. Changing room with lockers. Enough space where you could keep shirts, jacket and so on.
3. Showers which are serviced: Cleaned and a towel service
4. Drying facility, which is well vented, serviced and secure.

This looks like a business to me. What would you pay for a facility like this? I'd pay around €10/week

From my impression over there, they cycle in their work clothes at a lesser pace (and probably make good progress due to decent facilities/priority) and then just go about their day without need for a change/shower.

Parchment

buffalo wrote: »

From my impression over there, they cycle in their work clothes at a lesser pace (and probably make good progress due to decent facilities/priority) and then just go about their day without need for a change/shower.

Yes - they cycle in a "leisurely" manner in their normal clothes which they wear for the day.

I see the difference being they dont have to battle with traffic and generally always have safe lanes to cycle in so they can potter along. They are always texting/on the phone etc - they dont have to cycle as defensively as us!

Also maybe we are sweatier than our elegant continental relations. I dream about being the stylish woman on her dutch bike listening to music on her phone while gliding through the city but im more like a demented Taz devil trying to dodge pot holes!

OleRodrigo

I stopped commuting in ' gear ' a few years ago. Its a lot easier to do than you might think. A fresh set of work clothes each day, a fold up rain jacket & trousers in the backpack along with mudguards for wet days and you're all set. I used to bring baby wipes but they aren't really necessary.

Some days in summer it might get sweaty and I'll wear a cycling jersey and bring a shirt in. On wet wintry days I'll bring in work shoes and change when I get there.

My employer is very car orientated. My experience is most employers aren't especially cycle friendly so you may as well do your own thing.

irelandrover

Parchment wrote: »

Yes - they cycle in a "leisurely" manner in their normal clothes which they wear for the day.

I see the difference being they dont have to battle with traffic and generally always have safe lanes to cycle in so they can potter along. They are always texting/on the phone etc - they dont have to cycle as defensively as us!

Also maybe we are sweatier than our elegant continental relations. I dream about being the stylish woman on her dutch bike listening to music on her phone while gliding through the city but im more like a demented Taz devil trying to dodge pot holes!

I cycle to work every day in Holland. I just cycle in my normal clothes and its a relaxed cycle.
There are some people that cycle in in full gear and change. We do have very bad shower facilities but nowhere to store wet clothes. We just moved into a new building as well so im surprised they didnt build proper facilities.

magicbastarder

OleRodrigo wrote: »

I stopped commuting in ' gear ' a few years ago.

what sort of distance are you covering?
i'm going to be back to a 20km each way commute soon. i will be able to bottle my sweat at the end of that spin.

OleRodrigo

magicbastarder wrote: »

what sort of distance are you covering?
i'm going to be back to a 20km each way commute soon. i will be able to bottle my sweat at the end of that spin.

I've two sites. One is a 40km round trip and the other is 30km. About 5 days a month I'm doing the 40km.

I think there's a tendency to ride fast when you share the road with vehicles but slowing down just a bit makes a difference.

Rogue-Trooper

Very lucky with the facilities in my work place. Tons of secure bike parking, showers and lockers. What we do lack is a 'dry room' but I hang my lycra on the end of a clothes rail situated beside my desk so it doesn't bother me and it's always dry by home time.

If I were to consider changing jobs, I think I'd have cycling facilities high on my priority list.