IG2 Element 9: Key Learning Points

IG2 9.1 Describe general requirements for work equipment

In this element, the phrase ‘work equipment’ is used to identify a wide range of items including simple hand tools, e.g.
a hammer; hand-held power tools, e.g. a portable electric drill; single machines, e.g. a bench-mounted abrasive wheel,
or waste compactor; and mobile work equipment, e.g. a tractor. Machinery has a narrower meaning; machinery has one
or more moving parts powered by a drive system.

Most importantly, work equipment should be suitable for the task it is being used for and the environment and
conditions it is used in. For example, a chisel is not appropriate for prising lids off tins and a standard halogen spotlight
is not suitable for use in a flammable atmosphere. Manufacturers have a duty to ensure that work equipment that they
make meets basic safety standards. For example, in the European Union, manufacturers are required to ensure that
machinery meets basic safety standards, create a technical file containing the information to show that the machine is
safe, fix a CE mark to the machinery, and provide instructions and a declaration of conformity to the end user.

Access to dangerous parts of machinery should be prevented and safeguards applied according to a hierarchy of control
measures:
• Fixed, enclosed guards that encase or surround the dangerous part.
• Other guards and protection devices, such as interlocked guards and self-adjusting guards.
• Protection appliances, such as push-sticks.
• Information, instruction, training and supervision.
Other general requirements for work equipment include that its use must be restricted to competent operators, that
the equipment controls should be clearly labelled and accessible, and that the equipment should be maintained in safe
working order.

Routine inspection of equipment is sometimes necessary to ensure its safe condition.

Work equipment should be stable, adequately marked with appropriate warning signs. Operators must obey rules for
safe use of work equipment.

IG2 9.2 Explain the hazards and controls for hand-held tools
Simple hand tools (or hand-held tools), such as a hammer, chisel or screwdriver, present relatively simple hazards:
• The tool may shatter during use, throwing off sharp metal fragments.
• The handle may come loose during use.
• The tool may be blunt, leading to use of excessive force which causes loss of control.
• Simple human error, where the user misjudges a movement.
• The tool may be misused.
Portable power tools include items such as drills, sanders, portable grinding wheels, portable power saws, etc. and are
commonly used in the construction and maintenance sectors. Portable power tools create greater risk than simple hand
tools because the forces generated by the tool are far greater, so the potential for very severe injury or death exists;
and power tools have additional hazards not present with simple hand tools, such as electricity, fuel (e.g. petrol), noise,
dust, vibration, etc.

To effectively manage the risk associated with the use of both types of hand-held tool, management must ensure that:
• Tools are carefully selected to ensure suitability for task and environment.
• Instructions and safety rules are available in the form of manufacturers’ handbooks or in-house safe working
procedures.
• Operators are trained and given information on safe use of the tool. Operator competence is a key control for the
safe use of power tools and should be verified.
 IG2 Element 9: Key Learning Points

• Operators are supervised to ensure safe use.

• Tools are routinely inspected by the operator before use. Additional formal inspections may have to be carried out
by the supervisor or maintenance staff.
• Substandard tools are repaired or discarded.
• Tools are maintained in safe working order. This might be done according to a maintenance schedule.
• Maintenance is carried out by competent personnel only and records should be kept. The tool might be labelled
to indicate the date of next maintenance.

IG2 9.3 Describe the main mechanical and non-mechanical

hazards of machinery
The hazards of machinery can be divided into two categories:
• Mechanical hazards - arising from contact with dangerous moving parts.
• Non-mechanical hazards - arising from the power source or things emitted by the machine.
The mechanical hazards of machinery can be further subdivided into the following classes:
• Crushing - the body is trapped between two moving parts or one moving part and a fixed object.
• Shearing - a part of the body is trapped between two parts of the machine, one moving past the other with some
speed.
• Cutting or severing - contact is made with a moving sharp-edged part such as a blade; for example, the blade of a
bandsaw.
• Entanglement - loose items, such as clothing or hair, get caught on a rotating machine part.
• Drawing in or trapping - a part of the body is caught between two moving parts, such as two counter-rotating
rollers.
• Impact - the body is struck by a powered part of a machine.
• Stabbing, puncture or ejection - sharp parts of the machine, or parts or material ejected from the machine,
penetrate the body.
• Friction or abrasion - contact is made with fast-moving surfaces.
• High-pressure fluid injection.
The non-mechanical hazards of machinery are all of the other hazards that do not arise directly from contact:
electricity, noise, vibration, radiation, fire and explosion.

IG2 9.4 Explain the main control measures for reducing risk from
machinery hazards
A hierarchy of control measures can be used to control the risks arising from dangerous moving parts of machinery.

A fixed guard is a physical barrier that prevents access to dangerous parts, it is fixed in place and the fixings used require
a tool for removal.

An interlocked guard is designed to be removed or opened as a normal part of routine machine operation. When the
guard is removed, a safety interlock system prevents machine operation and the machine will not operate until the
guard is back in place. When the guard is closed either the guard is locked shut until it is safe for the guard to open, or
the act of opening the guard stops the dangerous parts.

Adjustable and self-adjusting guards are used when it is not possible to completely prevent access to dangerous parts,
such as some wood-working machinery where a workpiece has to be fed into the machine or manipulated during
machine use.

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 IG2 Element 9: Key Learning Points

Trip devices or sensitive protective equipment cover a range of devices that do not put a physical barrier between the
operator and the dangerous part of machinery. Instead, some form of sensor is used to detect the presence of the
operator and stop the machine. These include pressure safety mats, trip bars and photoelectric devices.

At the very bottom of the hierarchy, we find protective appliances - clamps, jigs and push-sticks - that allow an operator
to keep their hands away from dangerous parts, and information, instruction and training for operators.

Other controls measures for machinery include two-hand controls, hold-to-run controls, emergency stops and PPE.