WorkSAFE Heavy Machinery Operator Safety Rules

When reviewing the importance of using time and resources for safety training and education, consider shocking statistics like the following.

Machine-related injured people among the injured persons related to the automobile are ranked second in the main cause of death due to occupational accidents, accounting for about 14% of all deaths (1).

According to the 2006 survey by the Safety Research Journal (2), heavy machinery operators and construction workers accounted for 63% of heavy machinery and truck related deaths.

Because it is affected by heavy machinery and trucks (especially during retreat), the load and parts of equipment are the main cause of death for pedestrians and maintenance workers.

According to the National Security Council, the most fatal cause of farm workers' injuries is falls of heavy equipment such as tractors.

Considering these indirect effects in particular, the impact of labor-related injuries far exceeds medical expenses.

In 2002, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 92,560 injuries in the mechanically injured private sector. The median loss of working days due to these injuries is 7, accounting for 24% of the total number of accidents resulting in a working day loss of 31 days or more.

According to the data summarized by Missouri Employers Mutual Insurance, the average cost of closing time exceeds 20,000 dollars - this cost can be easily avoided by a real effort to workplace safety.

Employers are ethical and sometimes legally responsible for providing physical health to employers. Companies must comply with safety regulations such as heavy equipment operation rules and evacuation procedures. Employers should also provide comfortable and appropriate seating and ensure that there is no mold or contaminants in the workplace. Addressing these problems can prevent potential causes of workplace stress. Cultural pressure includes factors such as management style, diversity of employees, or lack thereof. Employers must abide by laws on indiscriminate, bullying and harassment. Otherwise, they are not responsible. However, employers can prevent and alleviate stress as much as possible in a reasonable way. For example, employers can use investigations and focus groups to identify the source of stress and discuss cost-effective ways to prevent and mitigate stress.

One of the key to effective construction safety is close communication between the heavy machinery operator and the surrounding staff. When people use heavy equipment frequently, they become too comfortable and frustrated. As a result, people around you may not be taken into account. You can not expect workers to anticipate the next step of the operator. Two-way radios are convenient to communicate with heavy machinery in the field, as well as procedures and practices surrounding visual communication, such as eye contact before moving and providing simple and completely clear hand signals It is a way. The supervisor can also improve the communication with the operator by introducing a tool box before each shift to talk about the need for ongoing communication and directly coping with problems seen in the field.