Any moving machinery or equipment in the workplace has the potential to cause injury to users. Even fully trained operatives following procedures, with fully maintained machines, with prescribed safety features and using appropriate protective clothing and equipment, have to be mindful that things can go wrong.
A whole range of differing injuries can be sustained including:
Entanglement between moving or rotating machinery, whether this be contact with hair, hands, jewellery or clothing. This can include equipment utilising rollers, belts or pulley drives.
Crush injuries from pinch points, or from being struck by moving parts.
Entrapment can result from being ensnared between different parts of the equipment, or between equipment and walls or other objects.
Cut and abrasion injuries can be caused by blades, shears or other sharp pointed component parts.
Electric shock injuries from direct exposure to machinery powered by mains voltages.
Burns and scalds from contact with hot surfaces, or ejected fluids or hot gases.
In the UK between the period, 2010/11 and 2014/15, 20% of all fatalities from accidents through contact with machinery in the manufacturing sector (Riddor). Annually around 70,000 self-reported injuries are recorded annually, and almost 29% of these result in absences of over 7 days duration (Labour Force Survey). The higher incident of above average workplace injuries can be found in firstly, skilled metal, electrical and electronic trades, and secondly, process, plant and machine operatives.
One key area to reinforce the message of vigilance when using such machines, equipment or tooling is to clearly mark the dangers during operation or maintenance and servicing is to use recognised safety signs and machine labels. Label Source has a comprehensive range of such products for use on machinery or their areas of operation. These include; electrical hazard safety signs; lockout products; general hazard warning signs; personal protective safety signs; chemical hazard safety warning signs; and safety labelling.
For more information on these products, together with customised labelling please contact Label Source by e-mail (sales@labelsource.co.uk) or by telephone 0800 3761693 (in UK) or +44 (1443) 842769 (outside UK).
