Pit & Quarry, January 2018
SAFETY PREVENTING SLIPS TRIPS AND FALLS FROM FRONT END LOADERS Researchers share insights from two decades of findings on equipment injuries BY JONISHA POLLARD AND MAHIYAR F NASARWANJI ront end loaders are the workhorses in mining and are ubiquitous to many operations Unfortunately slips trips and falls STFs are also commonplace at mine sites Many non fatal injuries occur when getting on ingress and off of egress equipment at surface mines Mobile equipment such as front end loaders tractor shovels payloaders high lifts and skip loaders account for the largest proportion of these non fatal injuries The high prevalence of slip and fall injuries when getting on and off of equipment especially front end loaders highlights the need to improve the safety of this critical activity Researchers at the National Institute for Occupational Safety Health NIOSH examined 20 years of injury data to determine the injury causes contributing factors and equipment characteristics associated with STFs on front end loaders Our key findings and recommendations from that analysis can be used by mining companies to improve worker safety during ingress and egress from front end loaders FINDINGS Most STF injuries 63 percent of the 1457 incidents examined occurred when front end loader operators were egressing from their equipment In addition more than 75 percent of injuries occurred when the operator was on the ladder or steps Losing contact with the ladder due to a misstep slip or balance problem was a common cause of injury contributing to 53 percent of the examined injury records Environmental conditions often contributed to these STFs We found that water ice snow grease oil and mud accounted for 21 percent of the identified contaminants on the equipment ladder when slips occurred The condition of the ground in the parking area is also a concern Slippery or uneven ground conditions such as mud ruts rocks and debris on the ground were the only identified contributing PHOTO COURTESY OF CASE CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT F NIOSH researchers pored over two decades of injury data to determine the injury causes contributing factors and equipment characteristics associated with slips trips and falls on front end loaders 66 PIT QUARRY January 2018 pitandquarry com
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