Safeguard
Plant and Machinery
Conveyors
Objective
• Keep the area clean and tidy. Good housekeeping eliminates hazards e.g. tripping, slipping, falling.
To provide guidance on the safe use of conveyors.
• Isolate and danger tag the power source before working on a bogged or overloaded conveyor.
Background
Conveyors may have a number of moving parts and
potential nip points, which can make them a dangerous
item of equipment.
Risk control measures
Training
During the training of conveyor operators, care should
be taken to ensure that each operator understands the
safe operation of the conveyor and all safety precautions,
including:
• the method of stopping and starting the conveyor
• the hazards in the course of normal working of the conveyor
• Ensure all persons wear appropriate clothing and avoid loose clothing near moving conveyors.
• Ensure conveyors are guarded/fenced (if not a walk-
under conveyor).
• Don’t clean belts, pulleys, drum, trough or return idlers while a conveyor is moving.
• Don’t ride on a moving conveyor.
• Don’t repair or maintain a conveyor while in motion. *
* Should repairs, adjustments or tracking be required on
a moving conveyor belt without normal guarding, it is
important that:
• the work is carried out by an authorised competent
person
•
an attendant is at the emergency stop station
• the hazards from bad practices, inattention, and misuse
•
the appropriate safe work procedure is in place.
• the purpose of the guard or safety device, and how the guard or device may fail
Starting the conveyor
• informing the person in charge if any faults or defects arise, and the danger to the operator in attempting to correct any faults.
During the training period a conveyor operator should be
closely supervised by a worker with a thorough knowledge
of conveyors.
Before you start a conveyor, check to ensure that:
• no personnel are working on the conveyor, and that access platforms are clear (inspect the area to make sure)
• all the guards are fitted
• the emergency stop switches are working and clearly
marked
Safe operating procedures
• lanyards are fitted and working correctly
The following safe operating procedures apply to all
conveyor installations:
• the warning siren is working
• Ensure all START/STOP and emergency controls are clearly marked.
• all the lights are working and clean.
• Ensure persons working near a conveyor are aware of the location of START/STOP and emergency controls.
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• firefighting devices are in place and ready for use
Nip points
The most important danger points on belt conveyors are
the nip points marked with arrows (see Figure 1 below).
Further information
Australian Standard AS 1755: Conveyors – Safety
requirements
Any nip point that is within 2.5 metres of any walkway or
access way (i.e. within reach) must be guarded to prevent
accidental contact with nip points.
Figure 1: AS 1755 Fig 5.1 – reproduced with permission from SAI Global Ltd under Licence 1408-c056.
© Government of South Australia, 2015 | SG0011-1 FEB 2015
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work health and safety obligations refer to current Acts, Regulations and Codes of Practice.