Machine guarding is a safety feature consisting of barriers or electronic devices used to bridge the gap between centuries of machines and the hazardous conditions they present to workers. Machines have traditionally been built for the purpose of producing, assembling, or packaging a product. Safety was either an afterthought or minimal focus by protecting against only the “highest” risk.
Over the years, these machines have been modified for faster production rates or ease of routine maintenance by minimizing or removing the machine guards. This has created unsafe conditions for workers presenting such hazards as crush points, pinch points, shear points, and thrown objects resulting in injury or death.
Due to the lack of training, a decline in the skilled workforce, increased distractions, and unexpected machine failures have made it difficult to ensure safe work conditions with a human-controlled environment. The level of injuries and deaths from machines have increased exponentially over the years, putting machine safety in OSHA’s, a government regulations agency, top 10 most-cited violations.
