If your business works in the production industry, you likely have a variety of machinery and equipment. Depending on the products and goods you make, some of this equipment can pose hazards. As a company, you need to do your part to protect employees and safeguard them against injuries. One effective way to do this is to use devices that provide machine guarding in Ontario. Such protection also complies with laws, thus helping you to provide a good working environment.
An Overview of Machine Guarding
While manufacturing and production machinery is in operation, its parts and components can injure operators and other employees. To reduce these risks, companies use industrial machine guarding. These safety measures act as shields or barriers to keep people away from hazardous areas. The guarding may cover risky areas of the equipment. It may create a barrier so the equipment is not easily accessible to anyone who may be in the vicinity. Furthermore, the guarding can protect people from sparks, chips, or other materials the machinery may produce while running.
Industrial Machine Guarding Is a Requirement by Law
With certain machinery, guarding is legally necessary on and around the device. This legal requirement is in place to mitigate human error, mechanical failure, poor design, and electrical problems. Canadian law states, “any machine, part, function, or process that can cause injury to a human must” have guarding.
Your Company Can Comply with the Law
Because of machine guarding in Ontario, your company can follow legal standards. As a result, your employees can stay safe. You can also avoid fines, sanctions, and even shutdowns and other penalties. To ensure you remain compliant, only qualified technicians should install machine guarding. You should use approved materials and products to satisfy legal requirements. Also, companies should regularly test the machine guarding to make sure it meets industry standards.
With machine guarding, your business can have peace of mind. You will follow the law by reducing certain hazards. These include getting caught in machinery by unguarded moving parts. Also, guarding will minimize exposure to hazardous motion, including rotating parts. Your company will also remain in compliance by giving employees correct training and instruction on how to use machine guarding. You can comply by ensuring that the guarding is in good working order. You should also regularly clean the equipment and make repairs when necessary.
Have a Productive, Safe Workforce by Using Machine Guarding
It is clear that using machine guarding has many benefits. By protecting your workers, you also are obeying important laws. Your business can then be more productive and cut down on workplace incidents. If you need to implement guarding, machine guarding companies can help. Call the team at S.A.F.E. Engineering today to help you comply with the law.
