Accident Prevention e-News December 2009	Volume 4/Issue 12/Dec 2009
In this Issue: Preview: revised power press standard Maximize your vacation time — it’s good for business Preparing for winter weather IAPA’s 2010 Safety Group: complying with Bill 168, and more In the News

Preview: revised power press standard

Expect an updated power press standard to be released in “very early 2010,” says CSA project manager Elizabeth Rankin.

The current standard, CSA Z142-02, Code for Power Press Operations, specifies requirements for the design, manufacturing, installation, maintenance, operation and safeguarding of power presses. The revised standard will have a broader scope, notes Rankin. Among the changes: requirements for

• direct drive and servo presses. These presses started appearing in North America in 2000, explains Cory Newton, chair of the CSA technical committee responsible for the revisions, and president of Tekpress Solutions Limited, which specializes in power-press and machine guarding. He believes the presses now represent 60% of new press sales

• equipment, procedures, and training for pressurizing hydraulic tie rod nuts, following a recommendation from a coroner’s inquest jury. The inquest resulted from the death of a worker who had been struck in the throat by the female section of a quick-connect hydraulic coupling while he was unscrewing it from the port of a hydraulic cylinder. Unknown to the worker, the internal check valve in the coupling section had trapped 10,000 psi of hydraulic pressure behind it. As the worker was unscrewing the coupling, it reached the point where the threads were unable to withstand the force from the pressurized hydraulic fluid, which transformed it into a high velocity projectile. Tests have since shown that pressure can build up to dangerous levels when the fittings are 1 turn or less from fully installed

• new safety devices that allow operators greater flexibility while protecting their safety. Injuries often occur when operators bypass safety devices that lack the flexibility required for many jobs. More flexible safety devices reduce the temptation of operators to bypass them.

Other changes include:

• a 10-mm per second “slow speed” for overriding laser AOPD guarding devices, adapted from Europe’s prEN12622:2006 hydraulic press-brake standard
• slide-lock requirements
• removal of brake monitors as a requirement when not used with safeguarding devices to signal a stop
• removal of radio frequency devices as acceptable electronic safeguarding devices
• replacement of the term “control reliable” with “safety circuit performance level,” to ensure compatibility with other standards with equivalent control reliability levels

“Always a critical injury”

If an injury involves a power press, it will be severe, warns Newton. “Whether a power press starts at 1 tonne or 100 tonnes, getting a hand caught in it will always result in a critical injury.”

Ontario’s Workplace Safety and Insurance Board notes that power press injuries often lead to the amputation of fingers, hands, or arms, or other disabling injuries. Every year, 7,500 workers are injured using machines. Furthermore, 1 in 4 workplace deaths involves machines.

Why these injuries happen

It’s not because of equipment failure. US data show that less than 1% of power press injuries result from electrical control component failures. Instead, the most common causes include:

• disabled safety devices
• improper lockout before conducting maintenance
• failure of die setup or repair personnel to return machine controls to the proper configuration

While these causes sound simple enough, safeguarding power press machines isn’t. Press operations can vary widely, notes Dennis R. Cloutier, co-chair of the ANSI B11.1 Safety Standard for Mechanical Power Presses committee. In an article for Fabricating and Metalworking magazine, Cloutier identified the following common variables:

• size, speed and type of press used
• size, thickness and kind of pieces to be worked
• design and construction of dies; the required accuracy of the finished work
• operator skill
• length of run
• method of feeding, including part and scrap removal

Devising safety procedures to accommodate these variations can be a challenge. Hence, the value of applying CSA’s standard.

Cory Newton attributes the existing standard with creating a safer working environment in many workplaces. “When the standard came out in 2002, there was a big push for training. A lot of workplaces responded, making sure that everybody in the plant has training and is comfortable using the machines.

“The requirement for pre-start health and safety reviews (PSRs) has also made a difference, ensuring that guarding is done properly. In the pre-PSR days, adding guarding devices was often a piecemeal process, just adding an interlocked guard here or a light curtain there. PSRs have changed all that.”

However, continues Newton, he still encounters firms that are unaware of the standard, and of risks that could be avoided. “These firms are not meeting their obligations under the Occupational Health and Safety Act,” says Newton. “Besides putting workers at risk, they’re making themselves vulnerable to prosecution.”

How does your workplace stack up?

Safeguards, worker training, press maintenance, and inspections are all vital to power press prevention. For a quick assessment of your workplace’s prevention practices, ask yourself these questions, courtesy of the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board:

1. Is guarding in place and used properly?
2. Is machinery in good repair and used properly?
3. Are lockout procedures clear and understandable?
4. Are workers and supervisors trained before work starts on machines?
5. Are written job procedures available to, understood and followed by workers?
6. Is required personal protective equipment in good repair and used properly?
7. Are incidents and injuries investigated to find and eliminate the root causes?

How IAPA can help

1. Machinery-related training courses
   • NEW: Power Press Safeguarding: CSA Z142-10 (1 day)
   • Safeguarding of Machinery - CSA standard Z432-04 (1 day) Aussi disponsible en français
   • Lockout (1/2 day). Also available on site
   • Lockout/Tagout: Self-Study Training Program (DVD format)
   • Lockout (1 hour e-course) Aussi disponible en français
   • Pre-Start Health and Safety Reviews (1/2 day). Also available on site
     
     
2. Consulting. IAPA safeguarding specialists can work with you on identifying the various tasks
   • identifying and analyzing the hazards associated with each task
   • evaluating the risks associated with each hazard
   • selecting control measures to mitigate these risks
     
     
3. Free downloads
   • Machines & people can be a deadly mix
   • Lockout
   • Preventive Maintenance
   • Machine Safety

Maximize your vacation time — it’s good for business

Just as our end-of-year holidays approach, an international consulting firm reports that Canadian workers rank at the bottom when it comes to annual statutory (i.e., legislated) vacation days.

Compounding the problem is our reluctance to use all the vacation days we’re entitled to. No wonder our work/life balance feels out of whack.

But first, the business benefits. Employees who perceive that their employer supports personal work-life balance

• are more committed to the company
• have higher job satisfaction
• have better physical and mental health
• experience less job stress
• miss less time at work
• spend less on prescription medications
• are less likely to be thinking of leaving the company

These attributes all affect a company’s recruitment costs, absenteeism, presenteeism, benefits costs, productivity and, collectively, the bottom line. Now compare this to the number of statutory vacation days available to workers.

Vacation time winners and losers

According to a data analysis conducted by Mercer, an international human resources consulting firm, workers in

• Brazil, Finland and France have the greatest amount of statutory holiday time (30 days)
• Canada, China and India, the least (10, 10 and 12, respectively)
• India and Japan have the highest number of public holidays (16)
• Australia, Netherlands and UK, the least (8)
• Lithuania and Brazil potentially have access to the most generous overall holiday entitlements (41)

For comparative country rankings, see below

Vacation Days: Who Gets What

These figures above are based on statutory entitlements for an employee working five days a week with 10 years' service.

Who is and isn’t taking vacation

Despite receiving fewer statutory vacation days than many other countries, many Canadians still don’t use what’s available to them, according to Expedia’s 2008 vacation deprivation survey. The survey indicates that more than one quarter (29%) of Canadians are not using all of their time. Furthermore, 33% of Canadians identify themselves as being vacation deprived.

The table below indicates vacation days available and used by country, and the percentage of employed adults who have vacation days left over.

* estimated

How to prevent vacation deprivation

Assess employee attitudes and behaviour by reviewing vacation usage statistics to identify the extent of the problem, and potential hot spots. Also, conduct a perception survey on vacation usage and other indicators of work-life imbalance.

If the assessments reveal problems or shortcomings, form a multidisciplinary team to identify possible solutions. Examples appear below.

• Create a vacation-positive environment. 25% of Canadian respondents say their employer does not encourage them to take all of the time available. Communicate company policy and expectations in orientation sessions, and periodically through departmental meetings, one-to-one sessions and other opportunities.

• Make holidays mandatory, and assign supervisors responsibility for ensuring workers use their allotted time. Track holiday usage, and alert employees who still have large blocks of time.

• Encourage reasonable working hours: workplaces that depend on overtime may boost productivity in the short term, but diminish it in the long term.

• Discourage workers from continuing to work during off hours: Deterrents include limiting or banning work calls or messages during off hours, or banning the use of work-related electronic devices (Blackberries, PDAs, cell phones…) during non-working hours, including holidays.

• Help workers plan for time off: 20% of Canadian respondents say they have cancelled or postponed their vacation plans in the past because of work. If workload, production schedules and expectations are vacation barriers, sit down with workers and come up with solutions together. For instance, in production areas where vacations are difficult to schedule, consider cross-training or other alternative work coverage strategies. Develop contingency plans for any work/projects, etc. that might come up in a vacationing worker’s absence.

• Discourage workers from banking their holidays. Allowing workers to save unused holidays from one year to the next just encourages them to put off their vacations. However, allow for exceptions if the occasional time-sensitive project or production order interferes with planned holidays.

• Ensure managers set an example. If they’re not taking vacations, others may feel reluctant to do so.

How IAPA can help

IAPA offers a number of resources to help you improve the quality of working life.

• Free downloads on work-life balance, healthy workplaces, and psychosocial risks:
• Work-Life Balance: A Strategic Business Issue (also offered as a 3-hour workshop or a one-hour presentation, and is available on-site, on request)
• Creating Healthy Workplaces, a comprehensive rationale for creating a physically and psychologically healthy work environment.
• Psychosocial Risk Management: What Every Business Manager Should Know
  
  
• Free downloads on workplace stress
  
  
• Training: Creating a Healthy Workplace
  
  
• Healthy workplace consultation and programming. IAPA consultants can help your firm generate safety and performance advantages that result from achieving nationally recognized healthy workplace criteria.

Preparing for winter weather

So far, winter’s let us off easy. November was warmer, sunnier and drier than most of us could have hoped for. Even early December has been relatively tame. However, that’s no excuse to put off winter preparations. What follows are 7 suggestions from Environment Canada, as well as suggested contents for your car’s emergency kit.

1. Don't wait for storm warnings to prepare for poor weather. Begin your preparations early in the season so that you're ready to react quickly when a winter storm is forecast. Assemble and check your existing emergency kits. Get in the habit of factoring the weather into your daily plans, and be ready to cancel or reschedule plans.
   
   
2. Listen to weather forecasts and warnings, and pay close attention to changing weather conditions. Check radio and television broadcasts, Weatheradio, recorded phone messages, and websites.
   
   
3. Travel safely. Give your car a winter tune-up, and have your snow tires installed early to avoid being caught off guard. If it’s time to replace your snow tires, buy them early to ensure availability. Assemble a car emergency kit. See below for suggested contents. Listen to weather forecasts early in the day to assess the potential for severe weather in your area, or along your travel route. Check provincial road reports before setting out.
   
   
4. Assemble a home emergency kit. Have a dedicated supply of bottled water and non-perishable or canned foods on hand in case you are unable to get to a store for a few days. Ensure you have a battery or crank-powered radio, flashlights, new batteries and propane to fuel a propane camping stove and/or barbecue for cooking and heating water. If your water supply depends on electricity, set up an alternative water source (e.g., a rain barrel) or ensure you have a way to melt snow for non-drinking water needs. Do not use propane stoves and barbecues indoors, and avoid using candles if at all possible as they can be extremely dangerous, particularly if you have children or pets.
   
   
5. Work and play safe. Winter storms and severe conditions such as high wind chill values can be hazardous to you, your employees, children, or even pets. When working or playing outside, beware of worsening conditions around you. If conditions worsen, go indoors as soon as possible. If you must be outside during inclement weather, dress appropriately. Wear a hat and dress in thin layers of loose-fitting clothing with water-repellent and wind-resistant outer layers. Watch carefully for symptoms signalling hypothermia: shivering, confusion and loss of muscular control. Frostbite can occur in minutes. Watch for numbness or whiteness in ears, nose, fingers, and toes.
   
   
6. Respect the potentially destructive power of the weather. When severe weather is forecast for your area, make preparations quickly, securing any outdoor property. Take cover inside and stay there until the storm has subsided and the danger has passed. Don't travel unless it's absolutely necessary, and respect evacuation orders that local emergency responders may issue.
   
   
7. Remember that after-storm conditions can pose hazards too. Weather phenomena such as storm surges can wreak lasting havoc on infrastructure, leaving it vulnerable after a storm. Road conditions may remain hazardous too even after the storm has subsided. Take care as you resume normal activities.

An emergency kit for your car

Keep the following supplies in the trunk of your vehicle at all times. And keep the gas tank at least half full all the time.

Communication aids

• cell phone and portable charger
• emergency phone numbers
• change for a public pay phone
• loud whistle

Emergency supplies and personal protective equipment

• extra antifreeze, windshield washer fluid
• flashlight with batteries
• work gloves and coveralls
• foil emergency blanket
• candle, waterproof matches, and a deep can
• fluorescent vest
• warm clothing, boots, and water-proof jacket
• seatbelt cutter (easily accessible, such as the glove compartment)
• shovel
• emergency triangle, warning light, or road flares
• fire extinguisher
• first aid kit
• “Call Police” sign, SOS bag, banner, or fluorescent bag
• non-perishable food items, drinking water, paper towels

Tools

• suitable container or carrying case for easy storage and accessibility of kit contents
• scraper and snowbrush
• spare tire, jack, and tools
• tow rope and jumper cables
• roadmaps and compass
• sand, salt, or cat litter (for traction)
• multi tool/utility knife
• tire pump/inflator
• small hammer to break a window

How IAPA can help

1. Read and share “Protecting workers from extreme weather,” from the January 2009 issue of Accident Prevention e-News.

IAPA’s 2010 Safety Group: complying with Bill 168, and more

Member firms that sign up for IAPA’s 2010 Safety Group will have a leg up in complying with Ontario’s new workplace violence and harassment requirements, says IAPA principal consultant Scott Hood.

Implementation of the new requirements, under Bill 168, An Act to amend the Occupational Health and Safety Act with respect to violence and harassment in the workplace and other matters, is one of five safety “elements” that Safety Group members will work on together over the course of the year.

Bill 168, which received Royal Assent on December 15, imposes new violence and harassment prevention requirements on workplaces. (For more on compliance, see “How Bill 168 will affect employers.”)

“But compliance assistance with Bill 168 is just one reason to sign up for IAPA’s 2010 Safety Group,” says Hood. The prime reason: for most Safety Group members, participation translates into lower injury rates.

Last year’s participants reduced their lost-time injury frequency by 8.6%, and their severity rate by 3.4%. “This is truly significant,” says Hood, “because most Safety Group firms have participated for more than one year, and have already achieved the ‘easy’ safety gains. Continuing to improve their safety record year after year means these firms are effectively integrating injury prevention into their day-to-day operations.”

Lower injury rates can also translate into rebates on workers compensation premiums. Past rebates have averaged $6,900.

How the program works

The Safety Group program helps firms improve health and safety performance by providing them with a forum to collaborate, develop and implement prevention measures. From a list of safety elements provided by the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board, each Safety Group member selects four elements to initiate or improve upon in their workplace. As well, all firms share a fifth common element. For 2010, it’s compliance with their new workplace violence and harassment obligations. For 2009, it was accident investigation.

Throughout the year, Safety Group members work together to implement their selected safety elements, attending at least three out of five facilitated half-day meetings. IAPA helps out by facilitating the meetings, and providing members with the necessary resources to achieve their health and safety goals. Support includes expert advice, information resources, products, and services.

How Bill 168 will affect employers

Among its measures, Bill 168 will require employers to

• assess the risk of violence and harassment
• prepare workplace policies
• develop an implementation program, including control measures
• create a process for responding to complaints and threats

As reported in the October issue of Accident Prevention e-News, the bill would also

• expand workers’ right to refuse unsafe work to include situations of violence
• require workers to report incidents or threats of workplace violence. Correspondingly, employers who are aware or ought to be aware that domestic violence may erupt at work must take every reasonable precaution to protect the worker
• provide for authority to make regulations, including requiring an employer to designate a workplace violence and harassment coordinator
• add definitions of workplace violence and harassment to the Occupational Health and Safety Act. For example, " harassment" would cover a broad range of types of harassment, comprising psychological, sexual, bullying, and intimidation

How IAPA can help

1. Learn more about the features and benefits of IAPA’s Safety Group
   
   
2. Read up on Bill 168
   
   
3. Attend Implications of Bill 168 - Ontario’s New Workplace Violence & Harassment Legislation, (2-hour management briefing)
   
   
4. Attend Preventing Violence & Harassment at Work - How to Integrate Bill 168 Requirements into your OHS Program (half-day interactive workshop)

Special offer: Register 2 or more participants by January 29, 2010 for selected public courses and save 20%! Learn more.

In the News

Christmas lighting safety recall

The Electrical Safety Authority has posted the following recalls for decorative lighting. Consumers are advised to stop using all of them immediately.

• Costco Wholesale Canada Ltd. recalls LED Lighted Moose Outdoor Decoration. Number of units sold in Canada: 1779 in Canada. Importer: Everstar Imports Taipei, Taiwan. Hazard: wiring could short out and cause a fire. Incidents/injuries: 7 incident reports ranging from burning and smoking cords to catching on fire. No injuries or property damage reported other than to the item itself. Description/models: 60-inch LED Lighted Moose, UPC #7-64878-89969-1 and Costco item #909082. Distributed August 24 to November 24, 2009. Manufactured in China. Recommended response: immediately stop using the LED Lighted Moose and return it to Costco Wholesale for a full refund. Contact: Costco Wholesale Canada Ltd. 415 West Hunt Club Road, Ottawa, ON K2E 1C5; Tel: 1-800-463-3783.

• Wellington Street Images Ltd. recalls Christmas Light String Socket Set. Units sold: 24. Manufacturer: GKI/Bethlehem Lighting, Foxboro, Maine, USA. Importer: Wellington Street Images Ltd. Hazard: potential electrical shock or fire hazards. No reported incidents/injuries. Description/models: item #15877 and/or 707200, 25-ft green wire light socket sold by Wellington Street Images Ltd. for $9. Distributed November 2006 to October 2009. Manufactured in China. Recommended response: return the products to Wellington Street for a full refund. Contact: Michael Heaps, Wellington Street Images Ltd., 137 Wellington Street, Apsley, ON K0L 1A0; Tel: 705-656-2323.
  
  
• Costco Wholesale Canada Ltd. recalls LED Lighted Polar Bear Outdoor Decoration. Units sold: 590 in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia. Importer: Everstar Imports Taipei, Taiwan. Hazard: wiring could short out and cause a fire. Incidents/injuries: 6 incident reports ranging from burning and smoking cords to catching on fire. No injuries or property damage reported other than to the item itself. Description/Models: LED Lighted Polar Bear, UPC #764878899707, Costco item # 909083. Distribution period: August 17 to November 30, 2009. Manufactured in China. Recommended response: return it to Costco Wholesale for a full refund. Contact: Costco Wholesale Canada Ltd. 415 West Hunt Club Road, Ottawa, ON K2E 1C5; Tel: 1-800-463-3783.

Alert: tire machines

Ontario’s Ministry of Labour advises that tires for cars and light trucks can explode with devastating force during inflation or when seating the bead. Workers may sustain critical injuries during the installation of tires on a single piece rim for passenger vehicles.

Background

Rim Clamp style tire mounting machines are extremely popular with tire shops and repair garages because the equipment does not damage or mar the finish on the rim surface during tire installation. They are available from a number of manufacturers, and come in a broad range of models with a number of accessory options. However, the potential hazard to workers working with or in close proximity to these machines is not widely known.

Certain models of rim clamp tire machines intended for use and sale in Canada DO NOT typically come equipped with pressure limiting or other safety devices. This means that stock machines can be connected to a shop compressor system without a step down regulator to control pressure, making shop air, typically at pressures greater than 690 kilopascals/100 PSI, available to the tire machine's clamp-on air fill hose.

This particular setup is not fail safe and relies solely on the actions of the worker to ensure that excessive air pressure is not added to a tire during inflation. The worker adds air pressure to the tire via a clamp-on air hose controlled by a multi-function foot control pedal projecting from the base at the side of the machine. The location of this foot pedal necessitates that the worker be close to the tire and rim assembly during the most hazardous stages of the operation.

Hazards

There are two distinct inflation stages of tire installation that may endanger a worker if the tire machine and the tire manufacturers’ recommendations are not followed and the machine is not equipped with an air pressure limiter device:

• when the worker is "seating the bead," a process that uses blasts of air delivered from the machines accumulator in conjunction with tire inflation through the tire valve stem to seat the bead of the tire onto the rim
• during "air up," or initial pressurization of the tire

Both stages are distinct but will appear as a seamless operation when the operation is observed.

A worker may be injured using a commonly available "rim clamp" style tire machine at either stage if a failure occurs in the bead or sidewall structure of the tire, which may be facing up or down on the machine's worktable. A failure due to over-inflation with air pressures far exceeding those recommended by both the tire machine and tire manufacturers can produce a catastrophic release of pressure and launch the tire and rim assembly off the tire machine, potentially striking the worker and causing serious injury and or death.

Location and sectors

These machines are commonly found in the automotive service sector, but may also be found in other sectors where vehicles are repaired or maintained.

Section 25(2)(h) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act requires an employer to take every precaution reasonable in the circumstances for the protection of a worker. Also, for multi-piece or split rims refer to section 77 of the Industrial Establishments Regulation (O. Reg. 851), or section 110 of the Construction Projects Regulation (O. Reg. 213/91) for further requirements.

Hazards and prevention

In most cases, there are no warning signs and no time for workers to react before a tire and rim assembly fails from any cause during tire inflation or when setting the bead.

Workers must be made to recognize the hazards associated with these common tasks and follow the warnings identified both by the machine’s owners/operation manual and by safety warning stickers affixed to each machine.

Employers must regard operations involving the mounting of tires on rims as an acute safety hazard to the health and safety of any worker.

Action required

1. Employers are required to take every precaution reasonable in the circumstances to protect a worker from hazards associated with mounting operations. This may include:
   • worker training with strict adherence to the tire machine and tire manufacturer’s recommended safe operation pressures
   • pressure limiter devices
   • remote filling controls in conjunction with physical barriers
   • tire safety chains, cages, or other protection
   • providing adequate supervision
   It may be difficult to determine if any tire machine is equipped with a pressure limiter device. An integral internal component of the machine, this device is not readily visible. If you are unsure or unable to determine this fact, contact the manufacturer, supplier, and/or service technician.
   
   
2. Remove all operators and bystanders to a safe distance whenever tire inflation takes place.
   
   
3. Never use accelerants or other flammable substances to set the bead on any tire.