Machinery Accidents – Packaging Machines
Packaging machines are used in most manufacturing industries. The largest proportion are used in the food/drink manufacturing industries, with the pharmaceutical industries the second largest user.
Because of their widespread nature it is not possible to pinpoint an injury rate for any particular type of machine. However an analysis of machinery accidents investigated by UK HSE in the food/drink industries has established the classes of machines listed below require particular attention. Injuries arising from the use, maintenance or clearing blockages at packaging machines can be severe or even fatal (for example with palletizers).
Conveyors
- Conveyors are involved in 30% of all machinery accidents in the food/drink industries – more than any other class of machine.
- 90% of conveyor injuries occur on flat belt conveyors.
- 90% of the injuries involve well known hazards such as in-running nips, transmission parts and trapping points between moving and fixed parts.
- Safeguarding of hazardous parts of conveyors may be by design (eg lift-out rollers that prevent finger trapping), fixed guarding (requiring a hand tool such as a spanner to remove) or hinged or removable interlocked guards (eg guards fitted with coded, magnetic interlock switches to prevent the machine running with the guard removed). In the food industry interlocked guards have the advantage of making the machine easier to hygienically clean on a frequent basis, however maintenance when subject to cleaning fluids may be higher.
- A safe system of work should be in place for daily and routine hygienic cleaning of the conveyor that ensures workers are not placed at risk of injury from unguarded moving parts. The system of work used should be formalised and workers appropriately trained.
In relation to Thermoform, fill and seal machines – Around 50% of injuries are caused by failures in guarding the two main hazard areas:
- the forming dies, and
- the cutters that separate the continuous packaging into individual packs.
The major causative factors are:
- guards removed or inadequate (36%)
- guards not provided or fallen into disuse (19%) – unsafe systems of work especially during maintenance (17%).
Palletisers and depalletisers
- Most injuries occur when operators or maintenance personnel enter the machine and become trapped between fixed parts and moving parts such as transfer heads, sweepers, pushers etc. The risk is made greater by the unexpected nature of machine movements. managing the safe maintenance and inspections and maintaining asset compliance with regulations will reduce injuries.;
- There are also hazards from falling loads, sudden movements of jammed product or pallets that are freed, or by movement due to failure to dump stored energy in pneumatic or hydraulic systems.
IMEC Technologies provides Safety Management Software to increase worker safety and aid compliance. IMEC’s Safety Management Software will manage inspections and audits, provides hazard identification, incident reporting, management of corrective and preventative actions from generation to closure. IMEC provides lock out tag out software solutions that will allow users to create lockout tagout procedures using an intuitive Mobile App and Manage Lockout Tagout Procedures, also the Review and Execution of those Lockout Tagout Procedures using the Mobile App. Annual Lockout Tagout Procedures audits are conducted using a Mobile App. The Mobile Inspection App allow users to perform inspections and audits, for example the system can be used as a Fire Extinguisher Barcode Inspection Software system to manage monthly fire extinguisher inspections and general fire safety inspections and also to record safety observations and manage corrective actions, anywhere and anytime. The solution can be used as a fire extinguisher barcode inspection software system or life safety inspection system to aid compliance in Higher Education, Healthcare, Industrial and Commercial Organizations. Benefits from a Fire Extinguisher Barcode System include the elimination of paperwork and reducing the burden of compliance with regulations such as NFPA, The Joint Commission. The Incident Reporting App allows users to easily and quickly report incidents, hazards and near-misses, these are then sent to the appropriate people for action and are managed to closure. Web Apps provide features such as, setup, management, scheduling tools, analysis, reporting and dashboards etc with the ability to report incidents to government bodies such as OSHA and RIDDOR. HazMat T&T is a hazardous waste management software solution designed for Environmental Service Companies and companies who generate a large quantity of hazardous waste. The solution tracks hazardous waste from cradle to grave aiding compliance, providing accurate waste inventory, increasing waste handling efficiency, reducing risk and also helps manage waste costs. HazMat T&T Hazardous Waste Management Software can be deployed in a number of deployment scenarios, from Large Hazardous Waste Generators, tracking their hazardous waste at their site to Environmental Service and Waste Management Companies using it track and manage hazardous waste at transfer and disposal sites. For more information visit our website www.imectechnologies.com