Manual Handling - Short Guide for Employers
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Transcript of Manual Handling - Short Guide for Employers
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W T02C1519 CIOF!3AD7 L58 =----------- _____ ______ ---- ______
Whats the problem?
More than athlrd of all over-
three-day Injuries reportedeach year to HSE and local
authorities arise from manual
handllng the transporting or
supporting of loads by hand or
by bodily force
Most of the reported accidents
cause back In Jury. though
hands, arms and teet are also
vulnerable The ple chart
shows the pattern for over-
three-day Injuries reported In199091 On average, each
Injury results [n 20 days offwork, The cost IS enormous
And sometimes the victim
never fully recovers
Many manual handllng Injuriesbuild up over a period rather
than being caused by a single
handllng lncldent, These
Injuries occur wherever peopleare at work on farms and
building sites. m factories,
otfices. warehouses, hospitals.
banks. Iaboratorles, and while
making deliveries
What should I do
about it?
Consider the risks from
manual handllng to the health
and safety of your employees-
the rest of this booklet WIII
help If risks exist, the Manual
Handling Operations
Regulaflons 1992 apply.
Other: 17% Handling: 34%
1-------r-
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OO23A1O 37T _
Employees have duties
too. They should:
These points are explained in
detail in sections 4 and 5.
Machine~: 5%-----------
Fall: 8%-----------
Struck by: 15%-----------
r.
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Avoiding manual
handling
Check whether you need tomove it at all.
Bewarenewhazards from
automation or mechanisation.
can wrapping ormachining be done withoutmoving the materials?
can you take the treatmentto the patient, not viceversa?
an automated plantstill needs cleaning,maintenance etc
lift trucks must be suitedto the work and haveproperly trained operators
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m TEIZ!J517----- ---- ------------------- ----
Assessing and reducing
the risk of injury
Who should make the
assessment?
The assessment is the
employers responsibility. You
should be able to do most
assessments In-house; you
know your business better than
anyone, Most WIII require just afew minutes observation and
the use of common sense.
Adv[ce from outside experts maybe helpful in difficult or unusual
cases, or to get you started. See
the chart on page 7 for the kind
of problems to look for.
What role can employees playin carrying out assessments?
Your employees can help you
carry out the assessment they
often know what problems there
are and how they can best be
solved. If their work is varied or
not closely supervised, make
sure they are aware what risks
to look for when manual
handling. and what to do about
them. But the final responsibility
for assessments rests with
employers.
IICIZ!3AJ2 142 m
Need assessments be
recorded?
No, except where the
assessment could not easily be
repeated. In such cases the
slgnlflcant flndlngs should be
recorded and kept.
Do I have to do assessments
for each individual employee
and workplace?
No. Its quite acceptable to
combine parts of assessments
that are common to several
employees or to more than one
site or type of work
The important thing /s to identifythe risk of Injury and point theway to pract/ca/ improvements.
How should I use my
assessment?
Dont just forget t or file It away.The purpose of the assessment
IS to pinpoint the worst features
of the work and theyre the
ones you should try to improve
first. See the chart on page 7.
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= TDi21J517 001?38113 087 W- -------------------------------
How far must I reduce the
risk?
To the lowest level
reasonably practicable. Thatmeans reducing the risk until
the cost of any further
precautions - in time, trouble
or money - would be far too
great in proportion to the
benefits.
Must / provide mechanicalaids in every case?
It depends whether its
reasonably practicable to do
so. But you should always
consider mechanical aids -
they can improve productivityas well as safety. Even
something as simple as a sacktruck can make a bigimprovement.
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Problems to look for whenmaking an assessment
The tasks: Do they involve -holding loads away from trunk?twisting, stooping or reachingupwards?large vertical movement?long carrying distances?strenuous pushing or pulling?unpredictable movement of loads?repetitive handling?insufficient rest or recovery time?a work rate imposed by a process?
The loads: are they -heavy, bulky or unwieldy?difficult to grasp?unstable or unpredictable?intrinsically harmful, eg sharp orhot?
The working environment:are there -constraints on posture?poor floors?variations in levels?hotlcold/humid conditions?strong air movements?poor lighting conditions?restrictions on movement orposture from clothes or personalprotective equipment?
Individual capacity:does the job -require unusual capability?endanger those with a healthproblem?endanger pregnant women?call for special information ortraining?
Ways of reducing the risk ofinjury
Can you -improve workplace layout toimprove efficiency?reduce the amount of twisting andstooping?avoid lifting from floor level orabove shoulder height?cut carrying distances?avoid repetitive handling?vary the work, allowing one set ofmuscles to rest while another isused?
Can you make the load -lighter or less bulky?easier to grasp?more stable?less damaging to hold?Have you asked your suppliers tohelp?
Can you -remove obstructions to freemovement?provide better flooring?avoid steps and steep ramps?prevent extremes of hot and cold?improve lighting?consider less restrictive clothing orpersonal protective equipment?
Can you -take better care of those who have aphysical weakness or are pregnant?give your employees moreinformation, eg about the range oftasks they are likely to face?provide training(see sections 6 and 7)?
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= TtlZC15Jq CI023AIIS 751 m----------------- --------- ------
What about training?
Training is important but
remember that. on its own, it
cant overcome:
a lack of mechanical aids
unsuitable loads
bad working conditions
Training should cover
how to recognise harmfulmanual handling
appropriate systems ofwork
use of mechanical aids
good handling technique(see section 7)
Goo(d handling
technique
Here are some important
points, using a basic lifting
operation as an example,
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luE3dlL d7/1 E
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How do Iknowif
theres a risk of injury?
Its a matter of judgement ineach case, but there are certain
things to look out for, such asexcessive fatigue, bad posture,
cramped/untidy work areas,awkward or heavy loads or a
history of back troubles
Can you be more definite?
Its difficult to be precise: so
many factors vary between jobs,
workplaces and people. But the
general guidelines (see
section 9) should help.
So anything within the
guidelines is safe?
There is no such thing as a
completely safe manualhandling operation. But working
within the guidelines will cut therisk and reduce the need for a
more detailed assessment.
However, you should still make
the work less demanding if itsreasonably practicable to do so.
Are you saying / mustnt
exceed the guidelines?
No. They are not legal limits.But work outside the guidelinesis likely to increase the risk of
injury, so you should examine itclosely for possible improve-
ments, ie you will need to make
a more detailed assessment.
G General guidelinesS.>
Each box in the diagram shows
guideline weights for lifting andlowering. The weights assume
that the load is readily graspedwith both hands; and the oper-
ation takes place in reasonableworking conditions with the lifterin a stable body position.
If the lifters hands enter more
than one box during the
operation, use the smallestweight, Use an in-betweenweight if the hands are close toa boundary between boxes. If
the operation must take place
with the hands beyond the
boxes, make a more detailed
assessment.
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Twisting
Reduce the guideline weights if
the lifter twists to the side
during the operation. Asa
rough guide, reduce them by
100/~ if the handler twists
through 45, and by 200/0 if the
handler twists through 90.
Frequent lifting and
lowering
The guideline weights are for
infrequent operations up to
about 30 operations per hour -
where the pace of work is
not forced, adequate pauses to
rest or use different muscles are
possible, and the load is not
supported for any length of
time. Reduce the weights if the
operation is repeated more
often, As a rough guide, reduce
the weights by 30/0 if the
operation is repeated once or
twice per minute; by 50/0 where
the operation is repeated five to
eight times per minute; and by
80% where the operation is
repeated more than 12 times
per minute.
Individual capability
For the working population the
guideline weights will give
reasonable protection to nearly
all men and between one-half
and two-thirds of women. To
provide similar protection to
nearly all working women,
reduce the guideline weights
about a third.
by
Any operation involving more
than twice the guideline weights
should be rigorously assessed
even for very fit, well-trained
individuals working under
favorable conditions.