Does any one have advise on the crushing hazard from machine clamping mechanisms.

I have a machine we are looking to design that will as part of the process clamp lose items of a timber frames between a fixed and moving clamp before these are fixed into a solid frame. At present we have a single push button on the far side of the machine to operate the moving clampp, this pushbutton is approx. 675mm from the front of the machine bed edge and the machine bed edge is at approx. 900mm from the floor.

The machine is only operated by a single person, but the single far side pushbutton does leave the possibility of the operators other hand between trapped between the timber items and the stop. The moving section of the clamp is travelling quite slowly and there is not a location of the near side of the machine to locate the switch that operates the clamping mechanism. Nor, I believe, would a twin push button be a solution as the operator would be leaning at an awkward angle and couple induce some lower back problems over a long period of operation.

Am I able to use no more than operator training and signage on the fixed and moving clamps to resolve this hazard?

My opinion without seeing the equipment or how it operates would be to install a twin button in a suitable position (you may have to relocate the controls) that doesn't cause him to stand at and awkward angle or to use a dead man switch that if re-leased will stop the machine or shut off/ release the pressure to the clamp depending what provides the source of power should be easy to do.

I think trying to use training or signs might not be sufficient depending on the possible injuries as there would always be pressure to cut corners when setting up the work piece especially as you should be already be providing training for the equipment already.

i think you need to establish the extent of any injuries if it is minor and unlikely to occur then you may have suitable measures in place. If the injuries are likely to be severe and by the sounds of it likely to occur then you will need additional measures.

Comparison you could make is someone using a hammer to nail a nail into a piece of wood to that of a 50 tonne hydraulic press used for forming car panels both have there risks but different outcomes if something went wrong so each needs it's own set of control measures.

i wouldn't be happy with the argument we trained the person and put warning labels on the machine for the hydraulic press after the guy was just crushed to death.

reasonable foreseeable and reasonable practicable comes into play on this one what is it reasonable practicable to do given the type of injury's you have identified

Phil