What is Mechanical and non-mechanical hazards of machinery ????

Mechanical machinery hazards

• acceleration, deceleration – potential for impact,being thrown, run-over, slipping, tripping or falling, for example from a piece of mobile plant or an overhead travelling crane
• angular parts – potential consequences are impact,crushing or shearing when a person hits a stationary part of the machine or a moving part impacts on an operator particularly in mobile plant;
•  approach of a moving element to a fixed part – potential consequences are crushing or impact through being trapped between a moving part of a machine and a fixed structure, such as a wall or any material in a machine
• cutting parts – potential consequences are cutting or severing through contact with a cutting edge, such as a band saw or rotating cutting disc

• elastic elements – consequences are crushing or impact when an elastic part is deformed and suddenly straightens or returns to its original dimensions or explodes when an airbag used for lifting fails
•  falling objects – potential consequences are crushing or impact, for example if a load fell from an        overhead hoist or rail system;
• gravity – potential consequences are crushing or trapping, for example if a vehicle lift failed while a person was underneath
• height from the ground – potential consequences are crushing, impact, slipping, tripping or falling,for example getting out of a truck or large piece of mobile plant or gaining access to a tower crane;
• high pressure – potential consequences are injection, stabbing or puncture, impact, for example from a high pressure hydraulic system leak;
•  Instability – potential for being thrown, crushing or impact when a machine breaks its holding down  bolts and falls over or a tower crane is not left free to slew to the wide direction and is blown over;
•  Kinetic energy – potential for impact, puncture or severing, for example when a kinetic recovery rope is used to tow a vehicle or ship and it snaps the whiplash can be very hazardous
• Machinery mobility – potential consequences are being run over, impact, crushing when, for example, a large machine is being manoeuvred in a small space;
• moving elements – potential consequences are crushing, friction, abrasion, impact, shearing, severing, drawing-in, for example on grinding wheels or sanding machines, or when a moving part directly strikes a person, such as with the accidental movement of a robot’s working arm when maintenance is taking place. A further example is when persons are drawn-in between in-running gear wheels or rollers or between belts and pulley drives;
• rotating elements – potential consequences are severing or entanglement, for example an exposed rotating shaft which grips loose clothing, hair or working material, such as emery paper. The smaller the diameter of the revolving part the easier it is to get a wrap or entanglement. A further example is a shearing which occurs when part of the body, typically a hand or fingers, is trapped between rotating and fixed parts of the machine;
• Rough, slippery surface - potential consequences are friction, abrasion, slipping, tripping and falling, impact when, for example, the operating area round a machine is very slippery from product spillages and the operator falls over and/or into the machinery hazard zone;  sharp edges - potential consequences are severing, impact, shearing, stabbing or puncture;
• stored energy – potential consequences are crushing, impact, puncture, suffocation when the stored energy is released suddenly, for example when the valve on a welding gas bottle (other hazards such as explosion or fire may also be present) is broken off or a high pressure air hose breaks;
• vacuum – potential consequences are crushing,drawing-in suffocation for example the sudden failure of a large vacuum vessel.

Non-mechanical machinery hazards

Electrical hazards from:

•  arc;
• electromagnetic phenomena;
•  electrostatic phenomena;
•  live parts;
•  not enough distance to live parts under high voltage;
•  overload;
•   parts which have become live under fault conditions;
•  short-circuit;
•  thermal radiation.

Thermal hazards from

•  explosion;
•  flame;
•  objects or materials with a high or low temperature;
•  radiation from heat sources.

Noise hazards from:

• cavitation phenomena;
•  exhausting system;
•  gas leaking at high speed;
•  manufacturing process;
•  moving parts;
•  scraping surfaces;
•  unbalanced rotating parts;
•  whistling pneumatics
•  worn parts.

Vibration hazards from:

• cavitation phenomena;
•  misalignment of moving parts;
•  mobile equipment;
•  scraping surfaces;
•  unbalanced rotating parts;
•  vibrating equipment;
•  worn parts.

Radiation hazards from:

•  ionising radiation sources;
•  low frequency electromagnetic radiation;
•  optical radiation (infrared, visible and ultraviolet), including laser;
• radio frequency electromagnetic radiation.

Material/substance hazards from:

•  aerosol;
• biological and microbiological (viral and bacteria) agent;
•  combustible;
•  dust;
•  explosive;
•  fibre;
•  flammable;
•  fluid;
•  fume;
•  gas;
• mist;
• oxidiser.

Ergonomic hazards from:

•  access;
•  design or location of indicators and visual display units;
•  design, location or identification of control devices;
•  effort;
•  flicker, dazzling, shadow, stroboscopic effect;
•  local lighting;
•  mental overload/underload;
•  posture;
•  repetitive activity;
•  visibility.

Hazards associated with the environment in which the machine is used from:

• dust and fog;
• electromagnetic disturbance;
•  lightning;
•  moisture;
•  pollution;
•  snow;
•  temperature;
•  water;
• wind;
• lack of oxygen.