Maintaining and manufacturing safety is a full-time job virtually anywhere. But when there is a single piece of machinery that can cause a tremendous amount of human damage, safety professionals like us need to pay attention.

And it happens to be a tool that is common machinery, maintaining and manufacturing many notable risks to human operators.

We’re talking about the abrasive wheel grinder, which is often used in many repair or maintenance shops and in various manufacturing sectors. Jean Ndana, who has been a safety auditor in many worksites that have these machines, wrote an important article in the November 2015 issue of Professional Safety magazine that specifically addresses this single machine, which was the subject of more than 1,000 OSHA violations in fiscal year 2014 alone. When it comes to the totality of violations, incidents and injuries/fatalities, the abrasive wheel grinder is perhaps the most dangerous piece of equipment in maintenance and manufacturing.

[Image courtesy of Flickr user KLINGSPOR Schlelftechnologie via a Creative Commons license]

[Image courtesy of Flickr user KLINGSPOR Schlelftechnologie via a Creative Commons license]

Ndana sought, in her article, to dispense with many of the numbers that would generate fear about the use of these machines, insted jumping right into what she describes as 10 best practices in safety when it comes to these grinders, so that the numbers of incidents and safety violations can drop across the board. We’ll discuss a couple here, then follow with the others in future posts.

 #1: Authorized Personnel

When using dangerous equipment, many companies have programs in place to effectively train and authorize workers to use equipment such as grinders. With turnover sometimes being very high in these workplaces, keeping track of who can use and should not use dangerous equipment is not always clear – it’s often “easier” to just have any available hand work on the machine so the work gets done.

A company should take the time to not only provide proper training for equipment, but should also display on the worksite a list of all authorized personnel who are trained and able to use dangerous equipment such as grinders. If someone is using the grinder who is not on the authorized list, he or she is engaging in a high-risk activity and must be removed from that equipment immediately.

#2 Document the Spinners

Abrasive grinder wheels must be replaced every so often,and they must be closely inspected before installing them. Even microscopic cracks can increase risk of problems if they are used. OSHA provides for a standard of conducting what is called a “ring test” on a grinder wheel to ensure it is in proper working order before installation.

Whenever a new wheel is put on a grinder, there should be documentation of the installation, which includes the name of the person doing the installation (cross-referencing with the list of authorized personnel), determination that a proper ring test was conducted and a report about the status of the wheel that is installed. If the wheel fails the ring test, that muust also be documented and documentation of a different wheel being installed. This document could be valuable in determining reasons for any incident involving a grinder.

#3 Mark Territory

Another step to enhancing safety around grinders is to mark off an “exclusion zone” for other workers. This is likely a square or circle around the grinder where only authorized personnel are allowed. All other workers are diected to stay clear of the zone to prevent any collateral damage should a grinder fail and parts fly off. Also, having reminder and warning signs around the area of the grinder, providing a very visual safety workplace, will help enhance the overall safety of the entire workplace, not just the immediate vicinity of a grinder.

Taking these steps now will dramatically improve the safety of your worksite.

Next time I will write about Best Practices #4 through #7 in regards to working with abrasive wheel grinders.