ECN Forum Forums Safety Discussion and News Occupational Safety Discussion Industrial Machine Safety

We have almost everything that has been said. Also something i see alot in the japanesse factories i have worked in is that they love to build cages around the entire mach except were the operator works. we use alot of door saftey switchs and limits. In my 10yrs of maint experience i would say one of the biggest reasons people by pass its the time factor they get tired of waitting. This problem usually could be solved if the engineer who decided to put the saftey componet in would listen to the maint guy and the operator a little more often. As for the pull cords we have them on our paint line and assembly lines

Trumpy, sorry I haven't been back, 7 days a week at work. I agree with jlh about switches being bypassed is to save time. We have 5 manufacturing lines that use a pull cord E-stop. We test aour E-stop devices when the machine is PM'd. The co. I work for just recently posted that if anyone is caught not wearing PPE or defeating safety devices they can be dismissed.

spkjpr,
No worries, mate!,
Good to see you're still getting time to post here, you're more than welcome.
I wouldn't hesitate to dismiss a person that was found to be tampering with E-stops and the like, after all we don't put these things in for the sheer fun of it!.
What would happen if some guy lost a limb because the guy on the shift before disabled the E-stop?.

Hey Trumpy, I just investigated a workplace accident where the employee was actually injured when he got into the electrical panel to shut off the power to the light curtains and alarms on a line. Not only is it a GREAT case why unqulaified personnel should not be opening electrical panels they know nothing about, it is a prime example of the lengths that employees will go to, to defeat the very mechanics in place to protect their futures. The employee was fired and the Union is taking his termination to arbitration. Not slamming unions here, but here is a guy that put an additional 40+ workers at risk should he have been sucessful in shutting down the systems and the very union that he put at risk is fighting for him!!!! I am sorry but this is one that they should just let go.

SAFETENG,
Well,
This certainly heralds a new era in stupidity.
I've never liked the idea of Un-Authorised Personnel, having access to Circuit-Breakers, Fuses or any other equipment that is installed for the protection of Life and Property.
Also, I'd agree, that the Union, should leave this one alone.
To represent a worker that has done a thing like this, sounds rather strange.