Australian and International Manufacturing

Manufacturers who specialise in structural steel fabrication need to take steps to ensure that the powerful machinery and extremely heavy raw materials used in their facilities do not endanger the health and safety of their employees. Here are two ways that they can do this:

Do not allow inexperienced employees to operate complex equipment

It is absolutely critical for structural steel manufacturers to ensure that only employees who have the relevant training are allowed to operate the complex equipment used in their facilities. Allowing inexperienced individuals to access and operate this type of equipment is likely to result in someone sustaining an injury.

For example, if an untrained employee is tasked with operating a CNC plate processing machine (an item often used to drill holes or make marks in sections of structural steel), there is a risk that they might not take the appropriate safety precautions before they begin using the equipment.

They might, for instance, fail to securely clamp down the piece of structural steel that needs to be processed by the machine. This, in turn, could lead to the steel falling from the machine and striking a nearby employee. Being struck by a piece of heavy structural steel could cause a fracture or a severe wound.

Additionally, they could forget to lock the guardrails into place before using the machine. This could lead to other employees getting too close to the machine while it is in use which could, in turn, lead to them being injured by the equipment's drilling mechanism.

Minimise manual lifting

As mentioned above, structural steel is incredibly heavy. Because of this, employees who are instructed to manually lift and carry steel components from one part of a facility to another are at risk of back, neck and shoulder injuries.

Additionally, if they accidentally drop these heavy items, the steel could fall onto their own feet or the feet of a nearby employee; in either case, an impact of this kind would probably result in a major bone fracture.  

While providing these employees with manual handling training will help to reduce the risk of them being hurt, it is much safer to eliminate manual lifting entirely (where possible).

Manufacturers can do this by investing in several pieces of transport equipment, such as forklifts and cranes. Although this equipment can be very expensive, its usage in a structural steel fabrication facility could drastically reduce the number of lifting-related accidents that occur on the premises.