Guarding Guidelines – Updated

GAVIN MOREIRA, CMPA Member Services Manager reports on the updated CMPA publication – Guarding Plant and Equipment in the Construction Materials Industry.

The new year will see several CMPA Publications completed ready for Members to update their libraries. The first of these is Issue 2 – Guarding Plant and Equipment in the Construction Materials Industry.

A Guarding Workshop was held back in November 2017 in Rowville with approximately 40 attendees. Throughout 2018 the Secretariat has been working with Members and Suppliers providing content and reviewing drafts to come up with the finished product. Thank you to the contributions on this update by Albert Toal (Lincom Group), Ken Minch (ESS Engineering Services and Supplies) and Tony Ferrazza.

The CMPA Guarding Guideline has been developed, together with the CMPA Work Safely Reference Manual, aiming to support Members in meeting the requirements of the Victorian Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 and the Victorian OHS Regulations 2017.

In doing so, the document demonstrates a process that can be used to establish and successfully implement plant and equipment guarding specific to site requirements.

The scope of the Guarding Guideline focuses on the guarding requirements of both fixed and mobile crushing and screening plant and equipment inclusive of concrete agitators/mixers used within the construction materials industry.

The definition of guarding is devices such as barriers and other means of physically barring, or restricting access to equipment, or parts of equipment, or material or objects that exit equipment, or parts of equipment which are extremely hot or cold that may present risk to workers.

Guarding is an engineering control as defined in the Hierarchy of Controls. Guarding is a shield or device covering hazardous areas of a machine to prevent contact with body parts, i.e. entanglement or to control hazards like rock chips, scrap steel, dust or noise from exiting the machine. Guarding provides a means to protect workers from injury while working nearby or while operating equipment.

In order to understand the concepts of machine guarding there are three fundamental areas of a piece of machinery that should be guarded. These areas are the point of operation, the power transmission device and the operation controls.

• Tail drum Guard covers all nip and shear points
• Provision is made for clean-up max 200 mm
• Servicing is carried out without removal of the guard

• Positioned to stop driver making contact with barrel ring or placing hands/hose into barrel

The document goes on to give advice on typical shortcomings with guarding and then moves on to explain the different types of guarding. Guidance is given on establishing a Guarding Program.

Included in the document is a:

• Plant and Equipment Identification Checklist for Guarding;
• Plant and Equipment Component Checklist for Guarding; and
• Guarding Integrity Review Checklist.

There is also a Guarding Example Photo Gallery: a series of useful photographs covering a range of guarding of equipment including agitators.

The publication can be purchased through the Secretariat or on the CMPA website https://cmpavic.asn.au/

CMPA would like to thank those that contributed to the Guideline and would appreciate feedback on this document that will be considered when next issued.

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