Conveyor Safety
2014 Health and
Safety Conference
Fidèle Cormier, CRSP,
Regional Assistant Director
Stéphane Sonier, Chem. Tech.
H&S Officer
Typical Mechanical Hazards
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Guard Against Conveyor Injuries!
 Conveyors are very common in workplaces
and may present serious safety hazards.
 Conveyor-related injuries can be life-altering
and even fatal.
 Preventing such injuries must be in the
forefront of every workplace safety program.
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Definition: Nip Point
 "Nip Point" by definition is that point at which
an element of the conveyor machinery moving
in a line or rotating meets another element
which is either rotating or moving in a line in
such a manner that it is possible to nip, pinch,
squeeze, or entrap objects coming in contact
with one of the two elements.
 "Pinch Point" terminology is often used to
describe nip points.
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Typical Conveyor Hazards Occur
 Where power is transmitted
 At nip points, shear points, pinch points, and
spill points
 At transfer counterweights and transfer
mechanisms
 Where workers can walk or drive under the
conveyor
 When there are special circumstances
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Threat
 Broken bones
 Amputation
 Death
 Serious injury from falling or moving
product
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Conveyor Work-related Hazards
Include
 Missing guards
 Improperly installed guarding
 Residual hazardous energy
 Performing repetitive actions without rest
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Conveyor Safety
Equipment safety must be
designed from the standpoint
of workers who are carrying
out their tasks in their
workplace.
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Tasks
 PRODUCTION OPERATIONS:
Start-up, shut-down, and other operations
such as loading and unloading, assembly,
fastening, labelling, coding, monitoring, etc.
 MAINTENANCE:
Inspection, cleaning, unclogging, load
unjamming, greasing, adjustments, repairs or
other maintenance
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Workers
 OPERATORS:
Persons operating the machinery or equipment used
in the production process and generally posted at
the control station.
 MAINTENANCE CREW:
Persons trained and authorized to maintain
equipment.
NOTE: Properly trained operators can perform maintenance
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tasks such as unclogging, unjamming and cleaning.
OHSA - Chapter 15
Amendments
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Power Transmission Moving Part
Hazards
 Includes: shafts,
couplings, pulley belts,
chain and sprockets.
 Dragging, crushing or
entanglement on
contact with rotating
parts or pinch points
can result in serious
injuries.
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Guarding
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Guard by Location and Overhead
Protection
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Why is This a Bad Guard?
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Why is This a Better Guard?
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Why is This a Bad Guard?
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Why is This a Better Guard?
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OHS Regulation 91-191
Mechanical Safety
Machines and manufacturer’s specifications. . . . . 235(1)
Manufacturer’s rated capacity or other limitations 235(2), (3)
Inspections and defects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
Starting and stopping machines. . . . . . .. . . . . . . . 237, 238
Lock out procedure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
Code of practice …... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240
Contact of employee with machines. . . . . . . . . . . 241
Safeguards. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . …. . . 242, 243
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OHS Regulation 91-191
Conveyors
Conveyors – construction and installation. ….. …………255(1)
Emergency stop devices for power driven conveyor. …..255(2)
Where fire of conveyor belt pose hazard..…….………….256(1)
Spiral chute conveyor and fire hazard..…………………...256(2)
Anti-rollback device for conveyor.……………………….…257
Access to elevated conveyor.………………................… 258(1)
Crossing over conveyor – safeguards.……………………258(2)
Protection of employee from material falling off conveyor.….
259(1)
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OHS Regulation 91-191
Conveyors (continued)
Protection of employee in proximity to conveyor belt. ... 259(2)
Safeguard for inclined bucket conveyor. ........................ 259(3)
Screw conveyor – safety measures..……………….........259(4),
(5)
Enclosed or pneumatic conveyors. …………………….. 260
Employee responsibilities – conveyors..……………….. 261
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Accident frequency – Belt Conveyors
Conveyor Location
Location
Percentage
Between the drive pulley, head pulley or tail pulley and the
belt, inside one of these pulleys or between one of these
pulleys.
48%
Between an idler arm or a return idler and the belt.
13%
Other locations (between electromagnets and other
components).
13%
Drum motor-transmission mechanism.
7%
Between a take-up pulley and the belt.
5%
Between a caught tool and the belt.
2%
Not indicated or uncertain.
12%
Source: Giraud, et al.
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Accident frequency – Belt Conveyors
Worker Activity
Activity
Percentage
Cleaning a pulley or applying adhesive on a pulley or cleaning 24%
another component of a conveyor (idler or return idler, frame).
Maintenance work (other than cleaning) conducted on a
moving conveyor
20%
Normal work (sorting, packaging) performed on or near a
conveyor
11%
Recovering an article caught in an unprotected nip point
9%
Cleaning under or around a conveyor
7%
Maintenance work (other than cleaning) near a moving
conveyor
Source: Giraud, et al.
6%
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Accident frequency – Belt Conveyors
Worker Activity (continued)
Activity
Percentag
e
Unjamming the conveyor or removing an accumulation
of material
5%
Adjusting belt tension or alignment
4%
Other activities (e.g. worker being transported by a
conveyor)
4%
De-icing and unjamming a frozen belt.
1%
Not indicated
9%
Source: Giraud, et al.
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Conveyor Safety Rules to
Help Prevent a Tragedy
 Never walk, ride, sit, or climb on a conveyor
not intended for that purpose.
 Don’t attempt to service or repair a conveyor
without procedures for locking out power.
 When working near a conveyor, don’t wear
loose clothing, jewelry, or other articles that
might catch.
 Do not operate any conveyor without
thorough training in its use.
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Conveyor Safety Rules to
Help Prevent a Tragedy (continued)
 Don’t overload conveying equipment.
 To avoid slips, ensure all work areas are clean
and grease free.
 Keep all body parts away from moving
conveyor parts.
 Do not operate any conveyor unless all safety
guards, covers, and maintenance panels are
in place.
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Sectors in Which Conveyors are
Used - Partial List
 Farming operations
 Large bakeries
 Food and beverage manufacturers
 Waste recycling
 Cement plants
 Printing sector
 Soil screening operations for landscaping
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Sectors in Which Conveyors are
Used - Partial List (continued)
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Saw mills
Chemical plants
Pharmaceutical plants
Computer plants
Electronic plants
Bottling plants
Mines
Mills
Peat moss plants
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Focus on the Following Key
Priorities: Guarding
 Safety officers will check for pinch points and other
hazardous locations lacking guarding devices on
conveyors.
 Guarding is typically required in locations such as:
• Power transmission interfaces
• Nip points
• Shear points (where a moving conveyor part meets
or passes near a stationary point such as a wall)
• Spill points (where material could spill from a
conveyor)
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Focus on the Following Key
Priorities: Lockout
 When it is necessary to open or remove guards,
workers must follow lockout procedures to prevent
injury from the conveyor starting.
 Lockout procedures typically involve bringing the
machine to a complete stop and disconnecting all its
power sources.
 Blocking is an extra step that must be carried out to
prevent the conveyor belt from moving under its own
power due to tension on the belt
 Zero energy must be achieved and verified
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Focus on the Following Key Priorities:
Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSDs) or (MSIs)
Safety officers will check that workers are not exposed on
an ongoing basis to things such as:
 Repetitive work
 Forceful exertions such as heavy lifting and carrying
 Awkward postures
 Vibrating equipment that can affect the bones, joints,
ligaments and other soft tissues
These types of activities can result in MSDs, which are
injuries and disorders of the muscles, tendons and nerves.
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Conveyor Accident Stories What’s Gone Wrong?
 Between 2005 and 2008, Workplace Safety and
Insurance Board (WSIB) reported 48 serious
conveyor-related injuries in Ontario that cost an
average of 68 workdays and $7.3 million. In that
same period, the Ministry of Labour recorded two
fatalities.
 These accidents mostly occurred during cleaning,
maintenance on a moving conveyor, recovery of a
jammed article, and normal production activities like
sorting and packing.
August 6, 2013 · by Francis Felices
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Some Sad Stories
 June 2013, an 18-year-old Lavington worker got
caught in a conveyor belt and was later
pronounced dead.
 In 2011, a meat processing plant employee in
Toronto became injured after his arm was pulled
into still-moving conveyor cogwheels.
 A 31-year-old worker in Alberta was pulled into
conveyor drum pulleys and sustained serious
injuries in that same year.
August 6, 2013 · by Francis Felices
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Legal Consequences
 In 2010, a tubular steel manufacturer in Ontario
pleaded guilty and paid a hefty sum of $140,000 for not
securing conveyor guards that could have prevented a
bundle of tubes from striking one of their workers.
 In Carberry, Manitoba, a business also pleaded guilty
and was fined $50,000 in 2012 after a 15-year-old boy
straddled a moving conveyor belt, fell and got pulled
under the metal brace resulting in bone fractures and
internal injuries. Workplace Safety and Health “found
there was no safe way for workers to cross the belt.”
August 6, 2013 · by Francis Felices
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Risk
Assessment
and Reduction
Flowchart
Employers should…
 Train workers about the guarding and lockout
procedures specific to their job
 Ask workers to report unsafe conditions to their
supervisor
 Identify job-related machine hazards and work
together to implement solutions
 Follow up to make sure solutions are working
 Comply with all of their other duties under the OHS
Act and applicable regulations
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Questions?
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