Mechanical Hazards: Page 1

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Page ▪ 1 Mechanical Hazards

29/8/2019
Machinery can injure people by:
▪ crushing
▪ cutting
▪ shearing
▪ puncturing
▪ burning
▪ tearing
▪ stretching.
Common injuries include:
▪ amputation
▪ crushing
▪ electric shock
▪ hearing loss
Page ▪ 2
Mechanical hazards
Prime movers
Prime movers are devices that turn energy into motion to power a machine.
Prime movers include:
▪ water turbines
▪ electric generators
▪ electric motors
▪ the head and tail race of water wheels
▪ motors powered by burning fuel, such as coal, petrol or natural gas.
Page ▪ 3
Transmission machinery
▪ Transmission machinery takes energy from a prime mover to the part of a

machine where it is used. Every part of any transmission machinery
should be securely fenced unless, because of its position or construction,
it is safe.
▪ Transmission machinery can include gears, shafts, pulleys and belts,
chains and sprockets, or friction drives.
▪ All transmission machinery should have a device in every room or
workplace to cut the power to the machinery.
Key for arrows:
▪ Solid red arrows = where a part of the body could be drawn into a nip-
point
▪ White or grey arrows = movement of machine parts
Page ▪ 4
Drawing-in or trapping hazards
Injuries can be caused when a part of the body is drawn into a ‘nip-point’.
such as:
▪ in-running nips between two counter-rotating parts like meshing gears,
rolling mills, mixing rolls, press rolls
▪ in-running nips between a rotating surface and tangentially moving
surface such as a power transmission belt and its pulley, a chain and
its chain wheel, a rack and its pinion
Page ▪ 5
Crushing hazards
▪ between a fixed and moving part of a machine

▪ between two moving parts of a machine
▪ between a moving part of a machine and a fixed structure
Page ▪ 6
Impact hazards
▪ Impact hazards are caused by objects that strike the body, but do not
enter it.
▪ Impact hazards are different from crush hazards even though the
machines involved may be the same.
▪ Impact hazards involve the inertia of the body while crush hazards involve
trapping the body between two machine parts or between a machine part
and a fixed structure.
Page ▪ 7
Friction and abrasion hazards
Rough or moving surfaces adjacent to work stations can cause burns or

removal of skin and muscle
▪ the sides of a grinding wheel

▪ the belt of a belt sanding machine
▪ pulleys and fast-moving ropes or belts.
Page ▪ 8
Entanglement hazards
▪ Entanglement is when someone is caught in a machine by loose items (such

as clothing, gloves, ties, jewellery, long hair, or rough material being fed into
the machine).
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Shearing hazards
▪ Shearing trims or shears metal (or other material) with a

powered knife or slide. Shear points are found where stock is
inserted, held and withdrawn.
Parts of the human body can be sheared:
▪ between two machine parts
▪ between a machine part and a work piece
Page ▪ 10
Between machine and
Page ▪ 11
workpiece
Cutting hazards
Cutting hazards exist at the point where wood, metal or other materials are
cut.
Cutting hazards may involve rotating, reciprocating or sideways motion.
Danger exists at the cutting point, where a finger, arm or body part can
be injured. The danger is worse if the person caught cannot move away
from the cutter.
Page ▪ 12
Stabbing and puncturing hazards
The human body can be pierced by flying objects. For example:

▪ a loose tool in a lathe
▪ broken tooling on a press
▪ an abrasive wheel breaking up
▪ timber from a bench saw
▪ molten metal from a die-casting machine
▪ sparks from welding
▪ debris thrown by hedge cutters.
Page ▪ 13
A few options available in guarding a hazard
▪ Fixed barrier guards

▪ Adjustable guard
▪ Interlocked guard
▪ Electronic presence sensing devices
Page ▪ 14
Fixed guards are probably the most
common because of their simplicity and
effectiveness. Fixed guards are
attached permanently to equipment and
can only be removed with considerable
effort.
Fixed Barrier Guard A fixed guard (permanent

protector) is a guard that can only be removed with
the assistance of a tool or that is set in place
permanently, for instance by being welded
Page ▪ 15
Fixed distance guard
Fixed distance guard Fixed guard that does not completely enclose a danger
zone, but that prevents or reduces access to it due to its dimensions and its
distance from this zone.
Page ▪ 16
Adjustable Guard
An adjustable guard is one that can be moved or reconfigured to the
dimension of the work at hand.
Adjustable guards will allow a machine to handle a wide variety of material
sizes while protecting users from the danger zone.
It is important that any manual guard adjustment is carried out by a trained
and competent person.
An example of an adjustable guard is the guard covering the point of
operation of a circular band saw
Page ▪ 17
Interlocked Guard
When the interlocked guard is opened or removed, the tripping

mechanism and/or power automatically shuts off or disengages,
and the machine cannot cycle or be started until the guard is back
in place.
An interlocked guard may use electrical, mechanical, hydraulic or
pneumatic power or any combination of these.
Replacing the guard should not automatically restart the machine.
Page ▪ 18
Presence Sensing Devices
Page ▪ 19
Examples of Personal Protective Equipment
▪ Safety glasses
▪ Gloves
▪ Hard hats
▪ Steel-toed boots
▪ Lab coats
▪ Safety harnesses for fall protection
▪ Ear plugs
Page ▪ 20
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Access to Machineries
▪ Safe and adequate
means of access
including hand rails shall
be provided to all parts
where a person may have
to walk, climb or work.
▪ It has to restrict
unauthorized entry of
workers.
Page ▪ 21 29/8/2019
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Emergency Stop
▪ All the machineries must have
an emergency stop switch.
▪ It should be easily visible & well
marked.
▪ It should be easily reachable.
▪ If operated, the machine must
stop completely without any
delay.
Page ▪ 22 29/8/2019
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Maintenance Procedures
⚫ Work-permit system shall be
implemented
⚫ Maintenance shall be done
only by authorized personnel
⚫ No repair & maintenance
works while the machine in
operation
⚫ Electric Power shall be shut
off and relevant fuses
removed.
⚫ Lock out / Tag out system
shall be followed.
Page ▪ 23 29/8/2019

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Page ▪ 1 Mechanical Hazards

▪ Transmission machinery takes energy from a prime mover to the part of a

▪ between a fixed and moving part of a machine

Rough or moving surfaces adjacent to work stations can cause burns or

▪ the sides of a grinding wheel

▪ Entanglement is when someone is caught in a machine by loose items (such

▪ Shearing trims or shears metal (or other material) with a

The human body can be pierced by flying objects. For example:

▪ Fixed barrier guards

Fixed Barrier Guard A fixed guard (permanent

When the interlocked guard is opened or removed, the tripping

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