Hazards in the Workplace: How to Identify and Control Them

Drill presses have various hazards if not used cautiously. Some of the hazards are mechanical emanating from its sharp tooling and boundaries, which can lead to cuts, scratches, and puncture injuries like broken bones. Also, there can be pinch points from gears and uncovered moving drill presses. Similarly, flying objects from cutting and boring actions can yield sharp flying chips posing skin (Yale Environmental Health & Safety, n.d.). Furthermore, drill presses pose the ergonomic hazard, which yields muscular ‐ skeletal conditions and back pain due to the handling of bulk materials and meager working arrangements like the absence of anti ‐ fatigue mats. Additionally, drill presses have heat hazard due to the enormous energy found in rotating parts and components. The friction associated with drilling and cutting produces substantial quantities of heat, which can lead to skin burns, flying sparks, and fire (Yale Environmental Health & Safety, n.d.). Besides, drill presses are associated with physical hazards, which manifest as hearing loss due to high sound levels exceeding 85 dB. Finally, there is an electrical hazard evidenced through electrocutions due to the poor grounding of the equipment (Yale Environmental Health & Safety, n.d.). 

As such, I will employ design precedence to eliminate or reduce the hazards caused by drill presses starting with engineering controls, then administrative controls, and finally the personal protective controls. The engineering controls include f itting guarding above the belts, motor, and pulleys. Also, there would be the installation of a modifiable guard to shield the idle part of the bit and chuck directly above the material being operated. Furthermore, there would be the replacement of protrusive chucks and set screws using the non-projecting safety-bit chucks and set screws. The administrative controls I will employ include the d evelopment and implementation of safe work observations for drill-press tasks, and carry out periodic checks to guarantee compliance. Moreover, there will be the training and supervision of all machinists until they prove to work safely alone. Likewise, the personnel will be instructed not to put on gloves, ornaments, or loose-fitting attire while working with a drill press, and to tie long hair in a cap. Also, there would be the need to ensure operators secure material to the drill press bed well with clamps prior to drilling, for the material not to spin and hit the operator. Moreover, suitable servicing and upkeep activities under an energy control program will be conducted. Lastly, the p ersonal protective controls would include forbidding workers from regulating the drill press while the drill bit is still in rotation. Also, the drill press will only be used for its proposed purposes. Finally, workers will have to shut off the drill press when not in use, and the chuck will have to be removed after every use. 

Reference 

Yale Environmental Health & Safety. (n.d.). Shop Safety Procedure. Retrieved from https://ehs.yale.edu/sites/default/files/files/drill-press.pdf