The importance of industrial safety was realized from the fact that every year, millions of occupational / industrial accidents occur, which result in loss of production time equivalent to millions of man hours, machine hours, etc.
Of these, about one-fifth of the production time is lost through those injured due to temporary and permanent disablement while the remaining production time is lost by fellow personnel helping the injured, taking care of damage caused by the accident, etc. The loss to an Industrial unit would appear more alarming, when cases of injury / death due to these accidents are considered.
It is therefore essential to identify & examine the causes of such accidents and take steps to control them. Many disciplines are concerned with this safety approach. Industrial engineering is one field which deals with design of an efficient work place, equipment and industrial layout design. Other disciplines which can contribute to safe working environment are Psychology, Sociology and Medicare science.
The following steps may be taken to effectively and efficiently eliminate an unsafe working environment:
1.Elimination if possible of the causes of accidents.
2.If it is not possible to eliminate the cause of accidents, make arrangements to shield the hazardous place by guards, enclosures or similar arrangements.
Need for Safety:
As discussed earlier, need and concern for safety is the need of the hour. While there are some direct costs / effects of an accident, there are certain indirect costs involved as well e.g. machine down time, damage to machine, loss of time, in aid cost compensation, legal implications and allied costs etc. So safety measures would not only eliminate above costs but would mean performing their moral responsibility towards on-site workforce as well.
An accident is due to an unsafe factor that results from an unsafe condition, which can also be a combined effect of the two.
An unsafe act results in the form of personnel doing things without proper authority, misuse of safety devices, ignoring warnings and precautions etc.
An unsafe condition may be present in various forms, like faulty or defective electrical fittings, inadequate maintenance of gang way, use of defective tools etc. So to prevent the occurrence of such mishap, unsafe acts have to be avoided or checked.
Unsafe acts:
For rectifying the causes due to unsafe acts, attention must be paid to following factors:
1.Personnel Adjustment: If a supervisor identifies that a worker is unfit either physically or mentally or a job, he should be quickly taken off the work in consultation with the personnel department.
2.Method Used: Some techniques requiring change should be replaced by safe methods.
3.Operator Training: No matter how safe or unsafe a Job procedure may be, operators must be trained to the task.
4.Publicity and Education on Accident Prevention: Personnel are led by the skill, energy and leadership of the supervisor. So, it is the duty of these seniors to educate the workforce about prevention of accidents to become safety conscious in order to recognize an unsafe situation and act intuitively to avoid the accident.
The Unsafe Conditions:
To avoid accidents due to unsafe conditions, in areas like moving parts of prime movers, electrical generators and transmission machinery etc., various provisions like fire protection devices, dangerous fume control, chains and ropes etc. Thus safety in industry helps:
i.Increasing production rate.
ii.Reducing production costs & damage to machinery and equipment.
iii.Prevention of suffering and pain to employees.
iv.Preventing premature / untimely death of assets (talented workers)
Safety Programmes:
A safety programme intends to identify when where and why accidents occur. On the same lines, it aims at reducing accidents and associated losses. A safety programme is initiated with the assumption that it is possible to prevent most work connected accidents.
A safety programme is a continuous process and tries to decrease the accidents influenced via personal and environmental factors. Normally, a safety programme consists of offering special training to employees, while providing safety equipment.
Implementation:
The need for adequate fire protection warning and extinguisher systems from a safety supplier is well known. However, other hazards exist – chemical, physical, radiation or even a simple wet floor. Wherever applicable, warning signs should be displayed and the area be quarantined. Where there are risks of spillage, special kits should be made available in the area.
At an individual level, safety helmets should be used in construction and other sites where there is a risk of injury due to falling items. Eye and respiratory protection should be worn as necessary, especially when working near hazardous substances. Where there are excessively loud noises, ear defenders are necessary to provide hearing protection. Staff working at altitude should be protected from falling, by wearing the appropriate and securely anchored safety belts and ropes.
Indian Standards Institute has done a commendable job in this context and lays down the following regulations:
i.Safety precautions to be taken during manifesting operations.
ii.Standards for proper lighting, ventilation and proper layout of the industrial unit.
iii.Standards and specifications of safe industrial operations and practices etc.
iv.Requirements for effective maintenance of tools and equipment.
v.Guidance on safe cutting and welding processes.
vi.Guidance on use of powered industrial trucks, belt conveyors and fire protection equipment’s.
vii.Safety requirements for personal protective equipment’s.
viii.Classification of hazardous chemicals and provision of accident provision tags.
ix.Markings for handling and labeling of dangerous items/ goods.
x.Standards for safety:
a.In industrial building
b.Safety procedures to be followed in electrical work
c.in use of electrical appliances in hazardous area and explosive atmosphere.
xi.Specifications for protective clothing, safety helmets, face shields and safety equipment for eyes, ears, legs, hands and feet, etc.