Hazardous Mechanical Machine Motions and Amputations
Amputations are debilitating workplace injuries. Amputations occur most often when workers operate unguarded or inadequately safeguarded machinery such as:
mechanical power presses
power press brakes
powered and non-powered conveyors
printing presses
roll-forming and roll bending machines
drill presses
milling machines
Amputations can also happen during materials handling activities, using forklifts around doors, using trash compactors, and powered and non-powered hand tools. Non-routine operations also expose workers to potential amputation hazards including setting up, threading, preparing, adjusting, cleaning, lubricating, and clearing jams.
What types of machine components are hazardous?
The following types of mechanical components present amputation hazards:
• Point of operation – the area of a machine where it performs work on material
• Power-transmission apparatuses – flywheels, pulleys, belts, chains, couplings, spindles, cams, and gears in addition to connecting rods and other machine components that transmit energy
• Other moving parts – machine components that move during machine operation such as reciprocating, rotating, and transverse moving parts as well as auxiliary machine parts
What kinds of mechanical motion are hazardous?
The following mechanical motions are potentially hazardous:
Pinch Points
Pinch Points develop when two parts move together and at least one moves in rotary or circular motion. In-running nip points occur whenever machine parts move toward each other or when one part moves past a stationary object.
Typical nip points include gears, rollers, belt drives, and pulleys.
Rotating Motion
Rotating Motion is circular movement of couplings, cams, clutches, flywheels, and spindles as well as shaft ends and rotating collars that may grip clothing or otherwise force a body part into a dangerous location.
Reciprocating Motion
Reciprocating Motion is back-and-forth or up-and down action that may strike or entrap a worker between a moving part and a fixed object.
Transversing Motion
Transversing Motion is movement in a straight, continuous line that may strike or catch a worker in a pinch or shear point created between the moving part and a fixed object.
Cutting Motion
Cutting is an action generated during sawing, boring, drilling, milling, slicing, and slitting.
Punching Motion
Punching is motion resulting when a machine moves a slide (ram) to stamp or blank metal or other material.
Shearing Motion
Shearing is movement of a powered slide or knife during metal trimming or shearing.
Bending Motion
Bending is action occurring when power is applied to a slide to draw or form metal or other materials.
What can employers do to help protect workers from amputations?
We will answer this question during next week’s blog post on January 26th, 2021!
Stay tuned!
Click here for more OSHA’s Safeguarding Equipment and Protecting Workers from Amputations
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