Power Saw Incident

Introduction

Serious injuries can result from the use of portable and stationary power saws. Most accidents occur because either the operator is inexperienced or the blade guard on the machine has been deliberately disabled. Many different types of power saws can be found on the campuses of colleges and universities that have Theater, Drama, Engineering, Architecture, Art, and Facilities Management departments. Individuals operating these saws often include faculty, staff and students.

According to estimates made by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, there were more than 311,160 injuries involving workshop power tools that were medically attended to in the United States in 1995. About one-third (87,397) of these injuries were associated with power saws, both portable and stationary. The risk of injury associated with stationary saws is approximately 70 injuries per 10,000 stationary saws in use.

The majority of injuries from power saws are hand and finger injuries or eye injuries. Hand and finger injuries caused by saws are predominantly lacerations with some fractures and amputations, while eye injuries are primarily attributed to foreign bodies. The most common causes of these injuries are: hands coming in contact with the saw blade, kick-back of the saw or stock, thrown objects (debris in the eyes) and loss of control of the saw.

Analysis of Losses

Since its inception, the University Risk Funding Group (URFG) has experienced a total of four (4) claims arising out of injuries to staff and students while operating power saws. These injuries range from lacerations to amputated fingers. The URFG and its member institutions have paid out over 1.4 million dollars in claims and have reserved another 350,000 dollars for open claims. The Loss Control Subcommittee recognizes that saws and other power tools represent a serious safety hazard and general liability exposure for our institutions. Communicating this hazard to all institutions is an essential step in controlling our losses.

Identification & Analysis of Exposures

There are several common safety issues that have been identified from the URFG power saw incidents. From a physical safety perspective, disabled and/or missing blade guards have been a recurring theme in many of the accidents. Whether installed by the manufacturer or added by the user, guards are an essential machine part. Machine guards keep body parts, clothing, hair and jewelry from getting caught in machinery, and they help prevent injuries when machines produce sparks and fragments. Guards are often disabled or removed because they are perceived to be an impediment to the operation of equipment. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires machinery with moving parts to be equipped with guards. Removal of power saw blade guards is a violation of OSHA machine guard regulations and noncompliance can result in civil fines.

From a legal perspective, permitting and requiring a student to use a piece of equipment where the guard has been disabled or removed may be a source of institutional liability. Consequently, ensuring that guards are present and operational limits institutional liability by protecting the operators from a known physical hazard. Although safety guards protect operators from contact with the saw blade, displacement of the blade guard may be required in order to facilitate certain cuts. Therefore, there are certain operations whereby removal of the blade guard is necessary.

Another factor that played an important role in these accidents was the level and quality of instruction provided to students who were first-time users of power equipment. In most of the accidents, it was either the first time the operator had used a power saw, or the first time they had used it without supervision. Adequate safety instruction and close supervision is critical for all first-time operators of power equipment. Accidents occur most often when operators are not familiar with the equipment and the potential safety hazards. Technical supervisors of power equipment should make every effort to communicate safety hazards to the students and should possess the knowledge necessary to evaluate the students’ proficiency with each piece of equipment. In an ideal environment, instructors and technical supervisors should have the responsibility for establishing, implementing and enforcing safety rules and procedures.

Prevention/Control Measures

Probably the three most important factors playing a role in the causation of these accidents were: inexperienced operators, inadequate supervision and missing or disabled machine guards. The following items outline a number of loss prevention/control measures that can be implemented to reduce the frequency and severity of power saw accidents.

1. Survey of Saws

A campus-wide survey should be conducted to identify all saws that are currently in use. The inventory will serve as a starting point in identifying the individuals who are responsible for operating the equipment. The inventory should contain information on the type of saw, location, department, individual responsible and condition of the equipment.

2. Written Safety Program

A written safety program should be established for all power equipment in use. The program should outline the institution's standard operating procedures and safety requirements for the use of power equipment. The written procedures should also establish and define authorized users, hours of operation, level of supervision required and training and accident procedures.

3. Departmental Responsibility

Departments that are using power equipment in their curriculum should identify an individual who will be responsible for overseeing all safety-related activities for that department. This individual should also be responsible for ensuring that all machine operators are properly trained and supervised.

4. Engineering Controls

Engineering controls such as machine guards, signs and interlocks should be used to minimize the possibility of accidental contact with the saw blade. Power saws with missing or displaced blade guards should be taken out of service until the guard can be replaced. Operations requiring the removal of blade guards should only be performed under the direct supervision of an experienced individual. If there is a question as to whether or not a piece of equipment should have a guard, it is recommended that the user contact the manufacturer for the operating instructions and equipment specifications.

5. Personal Protective Equipment

Personal protective equipment, specifically safety glasses and goggles should be used at all times while operating a power saw. Kick-back of stock and debris can be projected into the eyes causing serious injury. Another commonly used personal protective device that can prevent an operator's hands from coming in contact with the saw blade is a push-stick. Push-sticks are used to guide stock through the saw and to also remove debris away from the blade.

6. Training

Adequate and effective safety training is extremely important for inexperienced and first-time users of power equipment. No one should be allowed to operate any piece of power equipment unless they have been appropriately trained. Training and supervision go hand in hand, and when effectively used together will result in the prevention of accidents, compliance with safety procedures and properly maintained equipment. In order to reduce institutional liability, it is highly recommended that all student safety training on power equipment be formally documented. This can be accomplished by requiring all students to sign a training acknowledgement after they have successfully completed a safety training program.