Heavy Equipment Safety

Heavy Equipment Safety – 10 Basic Rules

Operating heavy equipment means lives are at risk.  Simple as that. Heavy equipment safety rules and procedures are not optional – lives of operators and those around them can be in jeopardy at any moment.  Heavy equipment safety laws are no frivolous – they are there to keep everyone safe and uninjured.

Heavy Equipment SafetyBasic, simple rules that will limit unnecessary injury include:

1.  Never operate heavy equipment under the influence of alcohol or drugs.  What may be surprising is that this means illicit, prescription and over-the-counter drugs.  Read the drug monogram.  Seemingly ‘harmless’ things like allergy or cold medications may increase drowsiness and reaction times.  They don’t write this stuff for fun.  It’s real.  Don’t do it. Period.

2.  Operating manuals…they’re not just light reading.  Again, these are not written just for fun.  There are real and serious advice in them.  The people who designed and build this equipment know a lot more about them than you do.  Read them, study them, know them.  They may save your life.  Heavy equipment safety tips are plentiful, just pay attention.

3.  Personal protective clothing.  There is the right gear for every job – be sure to use it.  Be it goggles and gloves, fire retardant suits, hearing protection and steel-toed boots, know the proper gear for your environment.

4.  No long or dangling, extraneous items hanging off of you.  Tie back long hair – not only can it impair your vision, but it can get caught in moving parts.  Same goes for belts, jewelry or anything else.  Get rid of it.

5.  Heavy equipment may be big, but it still has capacity limits.  If it’s meant for one person, keep it to one.  If capacity of a transporter is 10 people, that means 10, not 12 or 15.  It’s got limits for a reason – room, visibility, restraints.  Three people and one safety belt doesn’t work.

6. Refueling heavy equipment – turn off the engine.  Just like at the corner gas station, engines shouldn’t be idling.  Learn proper refueling methods for your heavy equipment. Don’t assume the procedures are interchangeable.  A forklift is not an excavator, is not a cement truck.

7. Whenever you leave your vehicle – turn it off, engage the brakes, lower attachments…essentially “disarm” the vehicle.  Disengaged brakes and raised buckets can do a lot of damage.

8. Your equipment comes with safety guards.  Be sure to use them.  Cages, shields, guards save limbs and lives. They are worth the time.

9. Does your workplace have a system of hand signal?  Work sites are noisy places – make sure you don’t have to rely on shouting or unreliable electronic communications to know what’s going on.  At the very minimum “STOP” should be understood.   Establish and use a standard set of communications.

10. Whenever checking for jams, blockages, loose belts, whatever, ALWAYS turn off your machinery. There is no such thing a “just a quick” look.  Heavy equipment can ‘quickly’ take off a finger.

Heavy equipment safety is never a given.  The list can go on and on.  These seemingly obvious steps are but a few…a starting point to help ensure that a workplace is efficient and safe.  There are no shortcuts or unimportant steps with heavy equipment safety.


 

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