Why You Need Machine Guarding in Your Operations

Why You Need Machine Guarding in Your Operations
  • Opening Intro -

    It’s no secret that working in a warehouse is an incredibly serious job.

    You are working with heavy industrial machinery that can cause severe injuries, which can even result in death.

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No one should suffer any injury or lose their life due to a workplace incident. You can work to prevent these situations by putting the best safety precautions in place.

While there are many ways to ensure your workers are as safe as possible, you might also consider machine guarding as well. Find out more about why you need machine guarding in your operations.

What Is Machine Guarding?

When you think about machine guarding, it’s easy to imagine its function. Machine guarding is a protective measure that keeps workers from accessing the dangerous parts of a machine while it is in operation.

This guarding acts almost like a shield and serves as a reminder for workers not to touch hazardous areas.

In fact, this guarding is often the main defense against injury for workers when handling these machines.

While you work on a machine, you often aren’t aware of every aspect of the machine. You may place your hand on the machine as you focus on your work. But doing so, even for a moment, can potentially result in catastrophic events.

Why You Need It

Unfortunately, injuries happen all too often in the occupational workplace. Injuries such as amputation, crushed hands, blindness, and burns can easily occur if your warehouse does not follow the necessary safety precautions.

Injuries like these can become life-changing, leaving workers with permanent disabilities and the inability to continue their previous life.

That’s why you need machine guarding in your warehouse operations—it can greatly decrease the likelihood of these injuries occurring.

Due to the high likelihood of injuries that can occur when operating industrial machines, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has strict guidelines that ensure your guarding is effective.

Machine Guarding Requirements

It’s likely you have machine guarding already. However, if you want to improve machine guarding in your workplace, you must ensure that you’re following OSHA guidelines and standards.

First, you’ll want to take a look around your warehouse and double-check that each of your machines contains safeguards. Ensure your local health and safety department does a full assessment of the effectiveness of your machine guarding.

Stay Up-to-Date

One of the best ways to ensure the workers in your warehouse maintain safety standards is to stay up-to-date. You should continually reinforce your workforce with training and reminders of safety protocols.

Moreover, ensure your workers have and wear the required Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) as they operate any machinery. Also, you should include signs to keep workers aware of trip, slip, and fall hazardous areas.

Small changes like these can greatly increase the safety and efficacy of your workers and your warehouse.

 

notes

Image Credit: machine safety Guard for cold rolling machine
by warut

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Categories: Manufacturing

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