Safe Conveyor Practices & The Importance of Reliable Guarding

Productivity on a mine site is of utmost importance, with whole industries dedicated to reducing costs and saving time for mining companies around Australia. Conveyor belts are one of those areas designed to increase productivity. However, there is only one thing more important on a mine site than productivity, and that is the safety of the staff working on the site.

If your staff are working with a conveyor belt, it’s imperative they are familiar with the safety hazards associated with conveyors and the steps to take for protection. 

Risk Assessment

The first step should be to conduct a thorough risk assessment, preferably by trained professionals to help bridge the gap between workers and managers. Once hazards have been identified, controls should be implemented immediately to reduce risks and potential workplace injuries or fatalities. 

Conveyor belts on Australian mining sites will typically run between 0.5-10 metres per second making moving conveyor belts a danger zone for all involved. Touching a running conveyor belt, with either a hand or tool of any kind, can hit return idlers, chute uprights, stringer supports, pulleys and drives, having potentially disastrous results. 

Proper Preparation Prior to Conveyor Maintenance

Sadly, two out of three of the fatalities involving conveyor belts occur while the belt is moving. The majority of these occur when maintenance or housekeeping is being done on or around an energised conveyor. 

Before performing maintenance, thorough preparation must be carried out, including locking, tagging, blocking, and testing the conveyor. 

No Shortcuts!

All staff, including mining personnel, are tempted at times to find ways to make their role faster and easier. Unfortunately, taking shortcuts on a mining site, especially around a conveyor belt, can be fatal. 

A common shortcut is not “locking out” a conveyor system properly. The purpose of a lockout is to de-energise all sources of energy, whether latent or active. Disregarding lockout requirements, working on a moving conveyor, or improperly stopping the conveyor is extremely unsafe. 

Another common workaround is entering a confined space without following protocol. Very specific rules apply to workers when dealing with confined spaces, and failure to follow those rules can result in increased danger or death.

Crossing a conveyor in a risky manner is another unsafe but common shortcut.  Conveyor belts are often lengthy systems dividing a production facility. Workers needing to cross a conveyor line for service or maintenance will often step over or cross under a conveyor to save time. This causes multiple hazards. Coming in contact with a conveyor can pull the worker toward rolling components, and crossing under places the worker at risk from falling objects.

A designated crossover or cross-under point engineered for the purpose is the only safe way to cross a conveyor.

Install Fit for Purpose Guarding

Most serious accidents and fatalities involving conveyors result from inadequate guarding, between the conveyor belt and other parts, such as the discharge plate/roller, pulleys, idler pulleys, conveyor frame, projecting shafting, belt cleats and belt fasteners. It is imperative that we are supplying our people with the necessary safeguards to ensure they go home safe and injury-free every day.

To ensure safety, managers should fix all guards, including interlocked guards. They should also install fencing around pulleys to isolate hazards and install pop-out rollers to relieve trapping hazards where powered conveyors transfer goods to conveyors of idle rollers. Stop/start control switches must be in reach of the operator, including emergency stops. When belt conveyors are out of sight of the control start position, audible and visible warnings must occur before movement.

Incorrectly designed and installed guarding can result in injuries to the hand caused by being caught between or struck by guards as well as over-exertion injuries sustained to the shoulders and back.

While these guards and covers are necessary to protect workers from mine hazards, they may also pose safety risks when designers do not consider their maintainability. To reduce the prevalence and severity of overexertion and traumatic injuries associated with manually handling machine guards, the mining industry should reduce the size and weight of machine guards so that they may be easily handled by one person.

HDPE Guarding

Liquimech HDPE Guarding is an ergonomic, lightweight robust system designed to protect your staff in the important but risky role of working with conveyor machines.

In comparison to steel guarding alternatives, our systems can reduce the weight of guards by up to 60%. As there is no chance of corrosion with our guards the handles remain as smooth as the day they were installed. As HDPE and other poly derivatives have an incredible memory, where steel would dent, our systems absorb the impact and spring back into their original shape. Liquimech manufactures guards from high visibility, UV stabilised, chemical resistant polyethylene which means even the harshest and most arid conditions are no problem.

Liquimech also offers steel guarding for those applications that steel is more suited to. If you are looking for guarding solutions, be sure to get in touch with our team and outline your situation and application. Our team has the expertise to make personal recommendations on material, size and other specifications, based on your unique requirements. Whatever the application, from small mobile equipment to large critical infrastructure Liquimech guards are built for all industries, by a team truly passionate about keeping personnel free from harm.

In summary

Studies show that for every fatality there are an estimated 300,000 unsafe behaviours. Statistically speaking, the most effective way to reduce fatalities is to reduce unsafe behaviours.  Eliminating the unsafe practices outlined above,  installing fit-for-purpose guarding, and removing the possibilities for risky shortcuts will considerably improve the chances of avoiding an accident.

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