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6.3: Safegaurds

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    Use machinery that is properly guarded

    Never remove a safety guard when a tool is being used. Hazardous moving parts of power tools and equipment need to be safeguarded. For example, belts, gears, shafts, pulleys, sprockets, spindles, drums, fly wheels, chains, or other reciprocating, rotating, or moving parts of equipment must be guarded if such parts are exposed to contact by workers. Be sure to avoid wearing loose clothing or jewelry that can be caught in moving parts.

    Use other methods to ensure that machinery is sufficiently supported, secured or otherwise made safe

    Make sure that your equipment is de-energized and cannot be started accidentally. First, disconnect tools when not in use, before servicing, and when changing accessories such as blades, bits, and cutters. Turn off vehicles before you do maintenance or repair work. If possible, lock out the power source to the equipment. The type of power source may be electric, pneumatic, liquid fuel, hydraulic, or powder-actuated. Lower or block the blades of bulldozers, scrapers, and similar equipment before you make repairs or when the equipment is not in use.

    Protect yourself from being pinned between equipment, materials, or other objects

    Be aware at all times of the equipment around you and stay a safe distance from it. Never place yourself between moving materials and an immovable structure, vehicle, or stacked materials. Make sure that all loads carried by equipment are stable and secure. Stay out of the swing radius or cranes and other equipment. Wear a seatbelt, if required, to avoid being thrown from a vehicle and then potentially being crushed by the vehicle if it tips over.

    Protect yourself on excavation sites

    Do not work in an unprotected trench that is 5 feet deep or more. The type of protection may be one of the following:
    • Sloping or benching. Sloping is cutting back the sides of the trench to a safe angle, so it won’t collapse. Benching uses a series of steps that approximate the safe sloping angle. The angle depends on the soil type.
    • Trench box or shield. These do not prevent cave-ins but protect the workers who are in them if a cave-in happens.
    • Shoring. Shoring are wooden structures or mechanical or hydraulic systems that support the sides of an excavation.

    Enter or exit a trench or excavation only by using a ladder, stairway or properly designed ramp that is placed within the protected area of the trench.

    Do not work outside of the confines of the protection system!

    This page titled 6.3: Safegaurds was last modified on Fri, 14 Aug 2026 17:00:15 GMT and is shared under a CC BY 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Jenny Huang.