July 2003 Pressing Matters on Safety A survey carried out by the Safety Assessment Federation (SAFed) has revealed that thorough examinations of power presses have resulted in comparatively high levels of serious defects being detected. All owners of these very hazardous pieces of equipment should be aware of their obligations under the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER '98). Regulation 32 of PUWER '98 states that employers should ensure that power presses are thoroughly examined by a competent person on a regular basis to ensure that they are safe for use. SAFed is the UK leading trade body for the independent engineering inspection industry. Its survey of more than 80,000 power press thorough examinations was carried out over a 3 year period. The survey identified that in excess of 2,000 serious defects were discovered by it's member companies per year. Excessively worn flywheel bearings and clutch keys were the most frequent kinds of serious defect detected during thorough examinations. Failure to have identified these serious defects could have lead to the presses in question making an uncovenented stroke, thereby crushing or amputating the operator's fingers, hands or even forearms. It has also been known for maintenance personnel to have their head or upper torso crushed whilst carrying out essential adjustments to the press. All power presses must be fitted with guards to prevent such injuries occurring. However these offer little or no guarantee of operator safety if they are not properly fitted or maintained. SAFed's survey identified that openings, excessively worn taper pins and insufficient interlock overlaps were the most common types of serious defect in guards. Employers should not underestimate the extent of this problem as shown by the latest figures into workplace injuries from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) . These reveal there were over 32,000 plant and machinery operatives injured last year, 41 of them fatally. This is nearly 2.5 times the average rate for all vocations and represents a fifth of all employees injuries annually, the highest for any defined sector. The number of workers that were fatally injured as a result of contact with moving machinery rose by 16% to 22, making it one of the most common causes of death within the workplace last year. More encouragingly there were nearly 6,000 fewer non-fatal injuries to employees, representing a 17% improvement over last year's figure. Nearly 3,000 enforcement notices issued and 200 convictions were achieved by the HSE under PUWER '98 last year, with the resultant fines approaching £1 million. This makes it by far the most commonly actioned set of regulations after the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. Richard Morgan, SAFed's Technical Director commented. "Our survey's findings, when read in conjunction with latest HSE statistics re-emphasises to employers the importance of providing a safe working environment. Each year our member companies thoroughly examine over 1 million items of work equipment, identifying some 100,000 serious defects. As the potential failure mechanisms are well known to the independent inspection industry, serious defects can be readily identified. This allows the necessary preventative steps to be taken before defect has the chance to manifest itself into a potentially serious incident." The HSE will shortly be issuing updated guidance for power press owners which will include advice on ensuring the safety of electrical control systems. Along with other interested parties SAFed was involved in the drafting of this new guidance, which is designed to provide information that if followed should help to ensure the continued safe use of power presses. Ends Back to Press Release Index