...
Conveyors are used in many industries to transport materials horizontally, vertically, at an angle, or around curves. Many conveyors have different and unique features and uses, so that hazards vary due to the material conveyed, the location of the conveyor, and the proximity of the conveyer to the employees.
Conveyors eliminate or reduce manual material handling tasks, but they present amputation hazards associated with mechanical motion.
Caution
When using conveyors, warehouse workers may get their hands caught in nip points where the conveyor medium runs near the frame or over support members or rollers. Workers also may be struck by material falling off the conveyor, or they may get caught in the conveyor and drawn into the conveyor path as a result.
Scope
OSHA’s requirements to provide adequate safeguards for conveyors apply to all employers with the equipment. However, except for a few industry-specific standards, the OSHA requirements are performance-oriented. Note: Some industry-specific OSHA standards, such as those for bakeries, cover conveyor safety to varying degrees.
Regulatory citations
- 29 CFR 1910.212 — General requirements for all machinery
- Note: OSHA also uses the General Duty Clause of the OSH Act to cite employers for conveyor hazards. Additionally, some industry-specific OSHA standards, such as those for bakeries, cover conveyor safety to varying degrees.
Key definitions
- ANSI B20.1-57: The industry standard, Safety Code for Conveyors, Cableways, and Related Equipment, which OSHA references for various aspects of conveyor safety. Note: There is a newer version of the standard, ANSI/ASME B20.1.
- Conveyor: A material handling system that moves materially, commonly along a belt, from one location to another. There are many types of conveyors, such as belt conveyors, screw conveyors, chain conveyors, and roller conveyors.
Caution
An employee was inside a robotic area attempting to retrieve a bag that had fallen off a pallet when he tripped a sensor that triggered a conveyor to start. He rode the conveyor line, but when that conveyor ended and another began, his right foot was caught between the two belts. He suffered cuts to his knee and a laceration to his finger when he pulled his foot out of the conveyor. Source: OSHA Severe Injury Reports.
Summary of requirements
Employers must:
- Evaluate each conveyor to determine what primary safeguarding methods and energy control (lockout/tagout) practices are required.
- Provide guards for dangerous moving parts.
- Provide an emergency stop or pull cord accessible from all operator locations.
- If materials could fall off the conveyor and injure workers below, install guards/pans.
- Where necessary, use prominent awareness devices, such as warning signs or lights, to alert employees to the conveyor operation.
- Allow only trained individuals to operate conveyors and only trained, authorized staff to perform servicing and maintenance work.
- Visually inspect the entire conveyor and immediate work area prior to start-up to determine that the actuation will not cause an employee hazard. Inspect and test conveyor safety mechanisms, such as its alarms, emergency stops, and safeguarding methods.
- Forbid employees from riding on conveyors.
- Prohibit employees working with or near conveyors from wearing loose clothing or jewelry, and require them to secure long hair with a net or cap.
- Perform servicing and maintenance under an energy control program in accordance with the Control of hazardous energy (lockout/tagout), 29 CFR 1910.147, standard. For example, instruct employees to lubricate, align, service, and maintain conveyors when the conveyor is locked or tagged out if the task would expose them to an area of the conveyor (or adjacent machinery) where hazardous energy exists.
To illustrate
Without proper energy control, injuries may occur. For example, while changing a roller on a power conveyor system, a warehouse employee’s fingers were caught in the machine. The employee suffered two finger amputations. The system was still operating at the time of the incident, and an energy control program was not implemented.