Industrial Safety and

Environmental Management
23MECH40H

Prof. Tamer A. Mohamed

Professor, Mechanical Engineering Department
The British University of Egypt
 Types of Work Equipment
• The work equipment in a very wide sense means:
– Simple hand tools, e.g. a hammer, screwdriver or chisel.
– Hand-held power tools, e.g. a portable electric drill or
circular saw.
– Single machines, e.g. a bench mounted abrasive wheel,
photocopier, lathe or compactor.
– Machine assemblies, where several machines are linked
together to form a more complex plant, such as a
bottling plant.
– Mobile work equipment, e.g. a tractor or mobile crane.
 Equipment Controls and
Environmental Factors
• Equipment controls, such as stop
and start buttons should be:
– Well designed so they are easy to
use.
– Placed at suitable locations on the
equipment.
– Easily identifiable.
– Kept in good working order.
– Compliant with relevant standards.
 Mechanical and Non-Mechanical
Hazards

• The hazards of machinery can be divided into:

– Mechanical hazards – mainly from contact with or
being caught by dangerous moving parts.
– Non-mechanical hazards – mainly from the power
source or things emitted by the machine.
• This follows ISO 12100:2003 (Parts 1 and 2)
“Safety of Machinery”.
 Mechanical Hazards
• The mechanical hazards
of machinery can be
further subdivided into
the following classes:
• Crushing – the body is
trapped between two
moving parts or one
moving part and a fixed
object (e.g. a hydraulic
lift collapses crushing a
person underneath it).
 Mechanical Hazards
• Shearing – a part of
the body (usually
fingers) is trapped
between two parts of
the machine, one
moving past the other
with some speed. The
effect will be shearing
off the trapped body
part.
 Mechanical Hazards
• Cutting or severing
– contact is made
with a moving
sharp-edged part
such as a blade
(e.g. the blade of a
bandsaw).
 Mechanical Hazards
• Entanglement – loose items such as clothing
or hair get caught on a rotating machine part
and the person is drawn onto the machine.
 Mechanical Hazards
• Drawing in or trapping - a part of the body is
caught between two moving parts and drawn
into the machine, e.g. at “in-running nips”
where two counter-rotating rollers meet.
 Mechanical Hazards
• Impact – the body is struck by a powered part
of a machine (this is similar to crushing, but
there is no fixed structure to trap the person;
the speed and weight of the object does the
damage).
 Mechanical Hazards
• Stabbing or puncture – sharp parts of the
machine, or parts or material ejected from the
machine, penetrate the body (e.g. sewing
machine needle, abrasive wheel fragments,
nails from a nail gun).
 Mechanical Hazards
• Friction or abrasion - contact is made with a
fast-moving surface which may be smooth
(e.g. touching a spin dryer) or rough (e.g.
touching a belt sander).
 Mechanical Hazards
• High pressure fluid injection – fluid at very
high pressure is ejected from the machine and
penetrates the skin (e.g. hydraulic fluid
escaping from a burst hydraulic hose).
The non-mechanical hazards of machinery

• Electricity
• Noise
• Vibration
• Hazardous substances
• Radiation
• Extreme temperatures
• Ergonomics
• Slips, trips and falls
• Fire and explosion.
 Machine Guards, Protective Devices and
Other Methods of Protection
• It may be possible to eliminate the risk created
by a piece of machinery by:
– Get rid of the machine. However, this is not an
option in most circumstances.
– Change machine design (done by the
manufacturer).But even when this is done hazards
will still remain.
– Install safe guards
 Machine Guards – Fixed Guards
• A fixed guard is a physical barrier that prevents a person from
coming into contact with dangerous moving parts.
• The guard may by shaped to fit the machine quite closely
(enclosing guard), or it may be more like a fence around the
machine (perimeter guard).
• It may have openings in it (e.g. to allow raw material to be fed
into a machine), but these must be designed in such a way that
it is not possible to reach in and contact dangerous parts
(distance guard).
• Basic principles of a fixed guard:
– It completely prevents access to dangerous parts.
– It is fixed in place.
– Fixings require a tool for removal – the guard must not be removable
by finger force alone.
Fixed Guards
 Interlocked Guards
• An interlocked guard is designed to be removed as a
normal part of routine machine operation. When the
guard is removed a safety interlock system prevents
machine operation.
• For example, a microwave oven has a hinged door on the
front to allow easy access; this door is interlocked so that
power to the microwave generator is shut off when it is
open.
• Basic principles of an interlocked guard:
– Power to the machine is disabled and the machine will not
operate until the guard is in place.
 Adjustable and Self-Adjusting Guards
• Adjustable and self-adjusting guards are used
when it is not possible to completely prevent
access to dangerous parts.
• They are commonly used to safeguard
woodworking and metalworking machinery
where a workpiece has to be fed into the
machine or manipulated during machine use.
 Adjustable Guards
 An adjustable guard can be
set to a range of positions
by the operator depending
on the size of the workpiece
and the operation being
carried out.
 For example, the top guard
on a bench-mounted
circular saw can be set at a
range of heights depending
on the size of wood being
cut.
 Self Adjustable
• A self-adjusting guard
does the same thing but
is spring loaded or linked
to other machine parts.
• As the machine operates
the guard adjusts
automatically to fit the
workpiece.
• It does not require the
operator to set it to the
right position.
 Trip Device
• Trip devices are protective devices that do not put a
physical barrier between the operator and the
dangerous parts of machinery.
• Instead some form of sensor is used to detect the
presence of the operator and stop the machine.
 Trip Devices Types
• Pressure mats – mats placed on the floor around an
item of machinery such as an industrial robot. If a
person stands on the mat their weight activates the
trip and the robot stops moving.
• Trip bars – wands or rods placed close to dangerous
parts which when touched will stop machine
movement.
• Photoelectric devices – shine beams of light across
an access point. If the beams are broken then the
machine is stopped.
 Two-Hand Controls
• These are a way of protecting the machine
operator’s hands where operation of the
machine can only be achieved when two start
buttons are pressed at the same time.
 Basic characteristics of a guard or safety
device
• Meets relevant standards – with regards to preventing contact
with dangerous parts.
• Strong and robust - to withstand the forces it may be
subjected to.
• Compatible – must not interfere with machine operation.
• Not easy to defeat or bypass.
• Vision – must not interfere with any need to see in.
• Ventilation – must not interfere with any ventilation required.
• Ease of maintenance – should be easy to maintain.
• Removal for maintenance – ideally the guard should not have
to be removed to allow maintenance on the machine to take
place.
A. Manual Handling Hazards and Risks
 Manual and Mechanical Handling
A. Manual Handling Hazards and Risks
– Common Types of Hazard and Injury
– Assessing Manual Handling Risks
B. Minimising Manual Handling Risks
– Minimizing the Risks
– Safe Lifting Technique
 Manual Handling
• Manual handling is an activity that takes place in
most workplaces.
• Often manual handling is a routine part of day-to-
day work activity:
– Workers on a construction site frequently move
building materials by hand;
– Factory workers routinely pack boxes by hand;
– Farm labourers spend hours at a time bent double in
the fields picking crops.
• In some workplaces like office workers manual
handling occurs infrequently.
 Manual Handling
• Manual handling can involve very repetitive
movements of relatively small loads (e.g.
handling small components on a production
line);
• In other instances it can involve one
movement of very large and heavy items (e.g.
handling structural steels).
Common Type of Manual Handling Injury

• Back Injury
• Tendon and Ligament
• Muscle Injuries
• Hernias
• Work Related Upper Limb Disorders (WRULDs)
• Cuts, Burns and Broken Bones
 Back Injury
• The spine is made up of individual bones
(vertebrae) separated by tough pads
(intervertebral discs).
• Wear and tear can occur to these discs so that
they become distorted (slipped disc).
• This causes extreme pain and discomfort and
is often accompanied by nerve pain because
the distorted disc traps nerves where they
enter the spinal cord.
 Back Injury
• This type of injury is perhaps the most serious
of all manual handling injuries because:
– Recovery is often slow, and incomplete
– Sometimes the victim will have to undergo surgery
to repair the defect
– The victim may end up permanently disabled.
Back Injury
 Tendons and Ligaments
• These are the connective tissues that join
muscle to bone (Tendons) and bone to bone
(Ligaments).
• When tendons and ligaments are overloaded
they tear causing extremely painful injuries
which can take a long time to heal.
• In some instances recovery is incomplete and
an operation may be required.
 Muscle Injury
• Overloaded muscle tissue can tear.
• This is painful and likely to lead to short-term
impairment.
 Hernias
• When the sheet muscle that surrounds the gut
is overloaded it can distort and tear. This
usually happens in the lower abdomen and
can be a painful injury that will not repair
naturally.
• In many instances an operation is required.
 Work Related Upper Limb Disorders
(WRULDs)
• The chronic soft-tissue injuries to the arms, wrists
and hands as a result of repetitive movements (also
referred to as Repetitive Strain Injuries (RSI)).
• Examples include: carpal tunnel syndrome and tennis
elbow.
• WRULDs usually involve inflammation and discomfort
through overuse of muscles, tendons, ligaments or
nerves. WRULDs usually start as minor discomfort
that gradually worsens to severe pain and immobility.
• They can result in corrective surgery, and even
disability if left untreated.
 Cuts, Burns and Broken Bones
• Physical injury may result if the load is hot,
sharp or dropped on to the feet.
 Assessing Manual Handling Risks
• When a manual handling activity cannot be
completely eliminated then it must be
assessed.
• This risk assessment focuses exclusively on the
hazard of manual handling and ignores all
other hazards.
 Assessing Manual Handling Risks
• Manual handling risk assessment focuses on
four main factors:
– The task
– The load
– The environment
– Individual capabilities
 1. Task
• The task can be assessed by asking questions such as:
– At what height is the load being picked up, carried or put down?
– Is the task very repetitive?
– Is a long carrying distance involved?
– Does the task involve stooping (worker has to keep their legs
straight and bend their back) to move the load?
– Does the task involve twisting (turning the shoulders while the
feet stay still)?
– Can rest breaks be taken as the worker requires them?
– Does the task involve lifting the load through a vertical
distance?
– Does the task involve reaching above shoulder height?
– Does the task involve the worker holding the load away from
 1. Task
• Each of these risk factors increases the risk associated
with the task. For example:
– Picking up a load at waist height, carrying it a short
distance and putting it down at waist height is a simple
task that does not complicate the risk associated with the
handling.
– But picking up the same load from floor height (risk factor
1) from the bottom of a box that requires the worker to
stoop down into the box (risk factor 2) then carrying the
load at arms’ length (risk factor 3) for a distance of 15
metres (risk factor 4) and putting it down above head
height (risk factor 5) increases the risk associated with the
task very significantly.
 2. Load
• Here the focus is the load that is being handled.
• The load can be assessed by asking questions such as:
– How heavy is the load?
– How large and bulky is the load?
– How stable is the load?
– Where is the centre of gravity (C of G) of the load?
– Is the load difficult to grip?
– Is the load hot, sharp or otherwise hazardous?
• For example, the risk associated with handling a concrete
block of 12 kg is lower than that associated with handling a
bundle of flexible plastic pipes each 3 metres long that weighs
the same.
 3. Environment
• The focus here is the environment in which the handling takes
place.
• The environment can be assessed by asking questions such as:
– Are there restrictions on the space available?
– Is the floor surface slippery or uneven?
– Are there changes in floor level (steps, stairs, etc.)?
– What are the light levels like?
– What is the temperature and humidity?
• For example, handling activities carried out outdoors on a
poorly lit construction site in freezing conditions when there is
ice on the ground will be higher risk than similar activities
carried out indoors in a warm, well lit area.
 4.Individual Capabilities
• The focus here is on the worker carrying out
the handling activity.
• Relevant questions would be:
– Does the activity require unusual ability? Some
handling activities require unusual strength,
energy, size or technique.
– Does the activity present significant risk to
vulnerable individuals such as pregnant women or
people with pre-existing back injuries?
B. Minimising Manual Handling
Risks
 Minimising the Risks
• Control of manual handling risk can be achieved
by using a simple hierarchy of controls:
1. Eliminate the manual handling.
2. Assess the manual handling that cannot be
eliminated.
3. Use handling aids.
4. Modify the task, load or environment.
5. Ensure individual capabilities are matched to the
activity.
 Safe Lifting Technique
• Employees should be trained in basic safe lifting technique. This
technique minimises the risk of musculoskeletal disorders.
• Before lifting
– Check the weight, C of G and stability of the load.
– Plan the route of the carry.
– Establish a firm grip.
• The lift
– Bend the knees and use the leg muscles to lift.
– Keep the back upright.
– Keep the load close to the body.
– Avoid twisting, or over-reaching.
• Setting down
– Use the same principles as when lifting.
– Maintain good balance.
– Set the load down and then adjust its position using body weight.