handling or material movement (Figure 1) is a system or combination of methods, facilities, labor and equipment for transportation, packaging and storage to correspond to specific objectives.
Material handling is not limited only to movement, but also to packaging, handling, transportation, location and storage taking into account the time and space available. You must have good logistical support and know all the instruments and machinery necessary to perform these functions. Other aspects to take into account are the economic balance, the delivery of components and products "Product (marketing)") at the correct time and estimated place to have acceptable costs and so that the company can obtain benefits.
In addition to all of the above, there is a very important aspect: safety in the handling of material, both by machinery and by human handling. You must know very well the dangers to which you are exposed when working and know how to act in response to them. The best and easiest way is to prevent occupational risks. They must be prevented before they happen. This is very important for the health of the worker and makes the company better trained in all aspects.
Material handling principles
The Material Handling Institute defined 10 material handling principles. The 10 principles are fundamental for the design, conception, analysis and operation of material handling systems.
Monitor the observation and application of the relative provisions contained in article 123 and others of the Federal Constitution, in the Federal Labor Law and in its regulations.
Coordinate the formulation and promulgation of labor law contracts.
Promote increased work productivity.
Promote the development of training and training in and for work, as well as carry out research, provide advisory services and teach training courses that the productive sectors of the country require to increase productivity at work, in coordination with the Ministry of Public Education.
Establish and direct the national employment service and monitor its operation.
Coordinate the integration and establishment of the Federal Conciliation Boards, the Federal Conciliation and Arbitration Board and the commissions that are formed to regulate labor-management relations that are under federal jurisdiction, as well as monitor their operation.
Risk of falling parts
Introduction
handling or material movement (Figure 1) is a system or combination of methods, facilities, labor and equipment for transportation, packaging and storage to correspond to specific objectives.
Material handling is not limited only to movement, but also to packaging, handling, transportation, location and storage taking into account the time and space available. You must have good logistical support and know all the instruments and machinery necessary to perform these functions. Other aspects to take into account are the economic balance, the delivery of components and products "Product (marketing)") at the correct time and estimated place to have acceptable costs and so that the company can obtain benefits.
In addition to all of the above, there is a very important aspect: safety in the handling of material, both by machinery and by human handling. You must know very well the dangers to which you are exposed when working and know how to act in response to them. The best and easiest way is to prevent occupational risks. They must be prevented before they happen. This is very important for the health of the worker and makes the company better trained in all aspects.
Material handling principles
The Material Handling Institute defined 10 material handling principles. The 10 principles are fundamental for the design, conception, analysis and operation of material handling systems.
Monitor the observation and application of the relative provisions contained in article 123 and others of the Federal Constitution, in the Federal Labor Law and in its regulations.
Coordinate the formulation and promulgation of labor law contracts.
Promote increased work productivity.
Promote the development of training and training in and for work, as well as carry out research, provide advisory services and teach training courses that the productive sectors of the country require to increase productivity at work, in coordination with the Ministry of Public Education.
Keep the registry of labor, employer and professional associations under federal jurisdiction that comply with the laws.
Direct and coordinate the Federal Labor Defense Attorney's Office.
Establish the policy and coordinate the social security services of the federal public administration, as well as intervene in matters related to social security in the terms of the law.
Study and project plans to promote occupation in the country.
The determination of the size of the cargo unit, as well as a containerization method, is influenced by various factors, such as: the material being unified; the number of times the material is removed from the loading unit for processing; the amount of material to be handled; the environmental conditions to which the charging unit is exposed; the susceptibility of the material to damage; among other factors. To size the load unit, it is necessary to take into account some measurements:.
Determine the applicability of the concept of unit load;
Select the type of equipment to use for handling the load unit;
Identify the most distant origin of the load unit;
Establish the most distant destination of the cargo unit;
Determine the size of the load unit;
Configure the composition and structure of the cargo unit;
Determine the method of formation of the unit load.
Generally, the unit load is formed through the overlapping of the items on the pallet. The dimensions of the items will influence the type of unit load storage equipment to be used. If the unit load is too heavy, the importance of the weight, rather than the volume of the unit load, should be taken into consideration.
The dimensions of the loading unit and the equipment used for its handling must be compatible with other equipment. Unit load specifications may be influenced by the production or storage facility. The width of the entrance and exit doors, column spacing, width of the aisles, the radius of curvature of the vehicles and the stacking height of the storage equipment are some of the factors that influence the dimensions and structure of the loading unit. There have been countless cases in which the equipment purchased could not be installed or used, due to its large dimensions.
Equipment
Equipment and unifier
• - Pallet (Figure 3).
• - Metal platform and metal platform with box.
• - Stackable box [1] Archived March 10, 2016 at the Wayback Machine.
• - Weight support.
• - Drum / barrel.
• - Palletizable film.
• - Palletizer.
Material handling equipment
• - Slide conveyor.
• - Belt conveyor
*Flat belt conveyor
*Telescopic belt conveyor
Curved belt conveyor
Magnetic belt conveyor.
• - Roller conveyor (Figure 4).
• - Wheel conveyor.
• - Slat conveyor.
• - Chain conveyor.
• - Tow line transporter.
• - Aerial car belt.
• - Birail air conveyor.
• - Car transporter on rail.
• - Sorting belt
Deflector
Push diverter
*Rake sorter
Ribbon Sorter
Wheel sorter
Belt and chain sorter
Roller classifier
Movable slat
*Movable tray sorter
Cross band classifier
Bomber classifier.
• - On foot
Wheelbarrow and handcart
Manual pallet truck (Figure 5) or electric
Figure 5 - A manual pallet truck.
Stacker with legs astride or with pantograph.
• - Driver on board
Pallet truck
Platform truck
Tractor with trailer
Counterweight stacker
Gantry stacker
Yard crane.
• - Automated
Automatically guided vehicle
Unit load charger
Small load charger
Traction vehicle
Vehicle for assembly
Storage and recovery vehicle
*Electrified automatic monorail
Transportation and classification system.
• - Monorail.
• - Winch.
• - Crane
Crane arm
Bridge crane
Gantry crane
Tower crane (Figure 6)
Stacker crane.
Storage equipment
• - Shelf for storage of charging units
Stacking storage
Pallet storage structure
*Single Depth Selective Shelf
Selective double depth shelf
Selective shelf drive-in
Selective shelf drive-thru
Flow selective rack
Selective shelf push-back
Mobile shelf
Bracket shelf (Figure 7).
• - Equipment for storage of load units
On foot
Manual or electric pallet truck
Stacker with legs astride or with pantograph
Driver on board
Wide "Hallway (architecture)" hallways
Pallet truck
Counterweight stacker
Narrow hallways
Stacker with legs astride
Stacker with legs astride and pantograph
Side loading stacker
Stacker with turret
Combi stacker
Automated.
• - Stock operator - Storage equipment
Shelving for boxes (Figure 8)
Modular storage drawers in cabinets
Flow rack for carton
Mezzanine
Mobile shelf.
• - Stock operator - Collection equipment
Collection car
Order collection cart
Person on board automated storage and collection machine
Robotic collection.
• - Stock for operator
Carousel
Horizontal carousel
Vertical carousel
Independent turning shelf
Automated storage and collection machine for mini loads
Vertical lifting module
Automatic distributor.
Identification and automatic communication equipment
• - Automatic identification and recognition
Bar coding
Barcode
Barcode reader (Figure 9)
Optical character recognition
Radio frequency tag
Magnetic tape
Machine vision.
• - Automatic paperless communication
Radio frequency data terminal
Headphones with microphone
Light and computer aids
Smart card.
Accident rate
The preparation of statistical data related to the mechanical handling of materials is very difficult to assess because accidents are classified by activities and not broken down by material agents that caused the accidents. In the classifications of material agents carried out on accident rates, these are divided into minor, serious and fatal accidents. These statistics are collected by the National Institute of Safety and Health at Work in some provinces (Fernando, 1992, p. 326).
Legal criteria
There is a regulation that is represented by a series of legal and technical provisions, whose most important sections are divided between legal aspects made up of ordinances and regulations, mandatory UNE standards and EEC directives (Fernando, 1992, p. 328-329).
Risks and prevention
Wheelbarrows
In the risk classification of self-propelled forklifts, various risk factors can be highlighted, such as side and frontal overturning of the forklift, fall of the driver, fall of transported and stored materials, collisions against obstacles and structure, with vehicles or pedestrians, fall of a lifted or transported person and other risks such as driving of the forklift by unqualified people, lumbar injuries, poisoning and/or burns, fires and/or explosions (Fernando, 1992, p. 336-342).
The risks of falling materials are due to poor support of loads in circulation, hits against shelves or stored materials and/or breakage of shelves and pallets due to excess load. Protective means must be used to avoid these risks, such as having a roof to protect the driver, adapting the loads and avoiding shocks, having good lighting in the circulation and storage area, protecting the shelves and storage areas with adequate defenses, indicating the maximum capacity of the shelves and periodically checking the condition of the pallets.
The risks of the driver falling occur when entering or leaving the forklift and when the driver leans when the vehicle is moving. Due to these risks, protective means must be used such as the correct anti-slip stirrup, avoiding forced marches and visibility problems that cause excessive inclination of the operator.
When handling the forklift, there are also risks of the forklift overturning, which may be due to excess load, inadequate speed, or driving on sloping roads and near uneven terrain. The means of protection for forklift overturning are: the use of forklifts suitable for the load to be lifted, avoid sudden changes of direction and turns in small radii at excessive speed, verify the position, fixation and condition of the loading bridges, do not circulate with a high load and ensure the good condition of the slopes and traffic routes, verify the blocking of the vehicles (trucks and/or wagons) before entering them.
In collisions and crashes against obstacles and structures there are risks due to excess speed, poor visibility of traffic lanes, driving with poor visibility due to the load and lack of signaling of obstacles and traffic lanes, circulation with a high load, slippery, unclean floors and obstacles. The means of protection used for these risks are the following: limit the truck's excess speed when it constitutes a serious risk (signal the maximum driving speed), set adequate lighting levels to the traffic lanes, preferably the areas of turns and changes of lane, circulate in the appropriate direction, when the load does not offer safe visibility conditions, signal with alternating yellow and black lines, or red lamps at night, those obstacles or objects located in the traffic lanes, Circulate with the fork arms at 0.15 m above the ground, keep work areas free of obstacles and clean floors (free of oil and/or grease).
There may be risks in collisions and collisions with other vehicles due to excess speed, inadequate traffic routes and/or defects in signage. For these risks, protective measures will be used to reduce them, thus being able to reduce intersections, provide one-way traffic and sufficient width of traffic lanes, activate the audible alarm and reduce speed at dangerous intersections and limit speed to local conditions.
When driving forklifts there are risks of collisions and collisions with pedestrians due to pedestrians being run over due to excessive speed, lack of visibility and/or inadequate traffic routes. To reduce these risks, it is necessary to provide the forklift with rotating lighting, avoiding the entry of vehicles and pedestrians through the same access door to workshops and/or warehouses. Other means available are: approach swing doors with caution, do not park the truck at intersections or transit areas and park the truck with the fork arms placed flat on the ground.
A person has a high risk of suffering a fall when being elevated, such as when lifting personnel on a pallet or forklift fork to access shelves or maintenance work. These risks will be reduced by signaling and prohibiting the use of the forklift to lift personnel and the use of a safety cage for this type of work.
In the transport of people there are also risks such as the fall of people who are transported by forklifts in the cabin or on the forks, but to avoid this, protective measures must be put in place, such as signaling and prohibiting the use of the forklift as a vehicle for transporting people.
Driving by unqualified people is a risk to which one is exposed but they must be avoided by signaling and prohibiting the use of the forklift by unauthorized personnel and the ignition key must only be in the possession of the authorized forklift driver who will remove it when leaving the forklift.
Lumbar injuries are a risk that must be prevented by using tires suitable for the traffic surfaces, avoiding forced travel with reverse gear and in case of excessive continuity in forced travel, studying the use of a forklift with a seat suitable for the work to be carried out.
The means of protection for poisoning and burns are: use a suitable forklift (thermal or electric), according to the characteristics of the work place, fill fuel in a well-ventilated place or in the open air and anti-heat or anti-radiation screens according to the product transported or when the forklift accesses dangerous places (foundries and/or ovens).
In case of fires and explosions, equipping the forklift with a suitable fire extinguisher if the workplace has a serious risk of fire is a means of protection, as is also placing the charging of electric batteries in a suitable, well-ventilated place and prohibiting smoking if there is a risk of fire and explosion in the premises.
To pick up a load, you must make sure that the load does not exceed the nominal capacity of the forklift that is indicated on the load capacity plates and that depends on the lifting height and the distance from the center of gravity, gradually approach the stacking station and place the forks at the same height of the pallet, check if the distance between the forks corresponds to the holes in the pallet (the forks are adjustable laterally and must always be secured with the pins existing), to pick up the pallet it is necessary that the mast be in a vertical position, it must be advanced slowly until the back of the fork comes into contact with the load or pallet, activate the parking brake, raise the load a little and tilt the mast backwards, when releasing the parking brake make sure if the rearward path is clear, move back gradually and lower the load. To work smoothly with the load at high altitude, it is imperative that the floor has a perfect characteristic. In addition, care must be taken to ensure that the tire pressure is correct (Fernando, 1992, p. 342-344).
When moving with a load, the load must be transported as low as possible, taking into account the necessary distance above the ground, and the load must always be transported using both forks. For the transport of heavy loads, it is very important that the weight is distributed evenly on the two forks; you must always move at a regular speed. Only in case of danger is sudden disconnection permitted.
When placing the load, you must stop shortly before reaching the stacking point and lift the load with a safety margin above the pile, advance the load until it is placed directly on top of the pile and apply the parking brake, put the mast in a vertical position and lower the load until the forks are free of weight and make sure if you can safely go back by releasing the handbrake, back up gradually and lower the forks.
Bridge cranes
During button operation, risks may arise such as not correctly identifying the button controls or bumping against obstacles while guiding the load, but to prevent these situations, button stations with clear identification of the movements and controls will be used and the circulation corridors will be kept free of obstacles and marked (Fernando, 1992, p. 355-367).
Accidents due to radio operation usually occur due to non-specialized personnel and due to lack of control of the load due to the tendency of the manipulator to remain stationary, but they can be avoided by blocking the radio with the safety key after use, or during important stops of the overhead crane and giving instructions to the operator for the mandatory accompaniment of the load during its handling.
In cab operation, failure to adjust the combiners to the stop position automatically leads to the risk of an accident, in the same way unsuitable glass in the windows of the bridge crane against radiation and injuries to the feet and back when accessing the bridge crane also carry risks. For these risks, certain safety standards will be used, such as: combiners that will have a 'dead man' device so that they return to the stop position when they are released and use safety glass in the cabins and suitable anti-radiation windows in dangerous areas (foundries and/or ovens). The high-rise windows will have a handle to prevent the driver from involuntarily falling. The cabins must be arranged in such a way that the driver can, from his workplace, see all the maneuvers and that, even if he is forced to look outside to direct them, he is not exposed to being in a dangerous position. No cabin should open above a vacuum. Exceptions cannot be admitted except when it is impossible to fix platforms or equivalent devices: for example, on storage bridge cranes. In this case, safety devices must be provided and this particular danger must be brought to the attention of personnel.
The absence of walkways and handrails has certain risks: the fall of operators during maintenance operations and the collision of operators in maintenance operations due to insufficient width of the platforms and non-regulatory distances with respect to fixed obstacles. To prevent them, safety standards will be used on walkways and platforms, such as: the passage width of the walkways must not be less than 0.5 m, the vertical distance of a walkway or a normal access platform to the cabin and any obstacle located above, fixed or mobile in relation to the walkway, must not be less than 1.8 m. This distance may be reduced to 1.4 m for a fixed obstacle in relation to the walkway of a length of less than 1 m and to 1.3 m for walkways and entertainment platforms. Walkways and platforms located at a height above the ground above 1 m must be provided with handrails on the sides facing the void. For walkways and entertainment platforms, only one handrail is necessary; A handrail located on the opposite side of the void and fixed to a solid wall can act as a railing.
Slings
Slings are lifting accessories. They are made up of a longitudinal body, normally provided at the ends with an eyelet called a loop, protected by a cable guard, to prevent damage to the cable. They can have truncated-conical terminals at both ends, called single-branch slings (Fernando, 1992, p. 373-383).
Depending on the material they are made of, slings can be made of normally synthetic rope (nylon and/or polyester fibers), steel cable and chain.
Precautions must be taken when using steel cable slings, such as avoiding leaving them on the ground because sand and gravel penetrate the strands, avoiding the formation of kinks that usually always form when pulling in a straight line on a cable that forms a coil without the cable having been sufficiently released to compensate for the deformation due to a rotation around its axis. We must also protect them on the sharp edges using corner protectors and the greasing will be done with neutral grease.
Chain slings use unbalanced chains, endless chains or chains provided with rings. Compared to cables, they are more sensitive to shocks, but more resistant to heat and temperature differences. The workload must be marked with a plate or label. Periodic reviews must be carried out to avoid risks. There are risks such as sags and twists in the chains. Passing the links one by one we will appreciate the looseness of the chain, if it is twisted it should be discarded.
Belt conveyors
In belt conveyors (Figure 12) there are a series of risks of a mechanical, electrical and work-related nature (Fernando, 1992, p. 385-392).
In mechanical risks, entrapment in the moving parts of transmissions occurs due to the movement of elements such as belts, chains, gears, couplings, mainly in belt maintenance operations. Another mechanical risk is entrapment between belts and drums or rollers, when carrying out cleaning operations for material adhesion. Falling materials present a risk when installations run high above traffic areas. Likewise, the prevailing winds present important forces that act on the conveyors that run in the open air, and belts of a certain length can be displaced, leading to their fall and that of the transported material. When the belt tension system is by counterweight, the need to have a vertical space for its movement makes it necessary for this system to be placed at a height. If occasionally the belt breaks, the counterweight will detach, which could cause serious accidents if there is a traffic area in its vertical.
Safety standards will be used to combat these mechanical risks, such as the protection of transmissions and tail and head drums using protective fairings or grilles that allow visibility of the belt and easy disassembly. To prevent the operator from accessing the drum and carrying out drum scraping operations, a mechanism must be installed that allows this operation without the need to access the dangerous area. The automatic locking systems, such as switches or emergency stops, will be manually operated by push buttons that are easily accessible and interlocked with the front or back elements of the belt, placing them every 15m. If they are emergency cables, they will be made of PVC and the reset will not be automatic but manual. Due to the inertia problems of the belt, in case of emergency action, it is necessary, in each case, to proceed to a detailed study of the installation and rules of action in case of emergency.
Against falling materials, it can be protected by covering the belt around its entire contour or by installing protection panels under the belt to prevent materials from falling on people passing under it. Against the possible fall of the counterweight or tension system, the lower part is protected with a guard to prevent the movement of personnel. Another consistent system is to place a mechanical safety device that prevents its free fall.
Many of the electrical risks occur in tapes installed years ago in workplaces, and these risks are fundamentally due to the electrical panel without an adequate IP degree of protection, the lack of inspection of the motor power cables and the absence of protection against overloads and indirect electrical contacts, which in many cases the protection is only based on fuses.
In the face of these electrical risks, the installation panel, when it is subjected to atmospheric agents, must be provided with a degree of protection IP 65; the connection boxes will be watertight; The power cables will be checked quarterly to detect possible insulation failures; and the installation will be provided with protection against overloads and indirect electrical contacts.
Establish and direct the national employment service and monitor its operation.
Coordinate the integration and establishment of the Federal Conciliation Boards, the Federal Conciliation and Arbitration Board and the commissions that are formed to regulate labor-management relations that are under federal jurisdiction, as well as monitor their operation.
Keep the registry of labor, employer and professional associations under federal jurisdiction that comply with the laws.
Direct and coordinate the Federal Labor Defense Attorney's Office.
Establish the policy and coordinate the social security services of the federal public administration, as well as intervene in matters related to social security in the terms of the law.
Study and project plans to promote occupation in the country.
The determination of the size of the cargo unit, as well as a containerization method, is influenced by various factors, such as: the material being unified; the number of times the material is removed from the loading unit for processing; the amount of material to be handled; the environmental conditions to which the charging unit is exposed; the susceptibility of the material to damage; among other factors. To size the load unit, it is necessary to take into account some measurements:.
Determine the applicability of the concept of unit load;
Select the type of equipment to use for handling the load unit;
Identify the most distant origin of the load unit;
Establish the most distant destination of the cargo unit;
Determine the size of the load unit;
Configure the composition and structure of the cargo unit;
Determine the method of formation of the unit load.
Generally, the unit load is formed through the overlapping of the items on the pallet. The dimensions of the items will influence the type of unit load storage equipment to be used. If the unit load is too heavy, the importance of the weight, rather than the volume of the unit load, should be taken into consideration.
The dimensions of the loading unit and the equipment used for its handling must be compatible with other equipment. Unit load specifications may be influenced by the production or storage facility. The width of the entrance and exit doors, column spacing, width of the aisles, the radius of curvature of the vehicles and the stacking height of the storage equipment are some of the factors that influence the dimensions and structure of the loading unit. There have been countless cases in which the equipment purchased could not be installed or used, due to its large dimensions.
Equipment
Equipment and unifier
• - Pallet (Figure 3).
• - Metal platform and metal platform with box.
• - Stackable box [1] Archived March 10, 2016 at the Wayback Machine.
• - Weight support.
• - Drum / barrel.
• - Palletizable film.
• - Palletizer.
Material handling equipment
• - Slide conveyor.
• - Belt conveyor
*Flat belt conveyor
*Telescopic belt conveyor
Curved belt conveyor
Magnetic belt conveyor.
• - Roller conveyor (Figure 4).
• - Wheel conveyor.
• - Slat conveyor.
• - Chain conveyor.
• - Tow line transporter.
• - Aerial car belt.
• - Birail air conveyor.
• - Car transporter on rail.
• - Sorting belt
Deflector
Push diverter
*Rake sorter
Ribbon Sorter
Wheel sorter
Belt and chain sorter
Roller classifier
Movable slat
*Movable tray sorter
Cross band classifier
Bomber classifier.
• - On foot
Wheelbarrow and handcart
Manual pallet truck (Figure 5) or electric
Figure 5 - A manual pallet truck.
Stacker with legs astride or with pantograph.
• - Driver on board
Pallet truck
Platform truck
Tractor with trailer
Counterweight stacker
Gantry stacker
Yard crane.
• - Automated
Automatically guided vehicle
Unit load charger
Small load charger
Traction vehicle
Vehicle for assembly
Storage and recovery vehicle
*Electrified automatic monorail
Transportation and classification system.
• - Monorail.
• - Winch.
• - Crane
Crane arm
Bridge crane
Gantry crane
Tower crane (Figure 6)
Stacker crane.
Storage equipment
• - Shelf for storage of charging units
Stacking storage
Pallet storage structure
*Single Depth Selective Shelf
Selective double depth shelf
Selective shelf drive-in
Selective shelf drive-thru
Flow selective rack
Selective shelf push-back
Mobile shelf
Bracket shelf (Figure 7).
• - Equipment for storage of load units
On foot
Manual or electric pallet truck
Stacker with legs astride or with pantograph
Driver on board
Wide "Hallway (architecture)" hallways
Pallet truck
Counterweight stacker
Narrow hallways
Stacker with legs astride
Stacker with legs astride and pantograph
Side loading stacker
Stacker with turret
Combi stacker
Automated.
• - Stock operator - Storage equipment
Shelving for boxes (Figure 8)
Modular storage drawers in cabinets
Flow rack for carton
Mezzanine
Mobile shelf.
• - Stock operator - Collection equipment
Collection car
Order collection cart
Person on board automated storage and collection machine
Robotic collection.
• - Stock for operator
Carousel
Horizontal carousel
Vertical carousel
Independent turning shelf
Automated storage and collection machine for mini loads
Vertical lifting module
Automatic distributor.
Identification and automatic communication equipment
• - Automatic identification and recognition
Bar coding
Barcode
Barcode reader (Figure 9)
Optical character recognition
Radio frequency tag
Magnetic tape
Machine vision.
• - Automatic paperless communication
Radio frequency data terminal
Headphones with microphone
Light and computer aids
Smart card.
Accident rate
The preparation of statistical data related to the mechanical handling of materials is very difficult to assess because accidents are classified by activities and not broken down by material agents that caused the accidents. In the classifications of material agents carried out on accident rates, these are divided into minor, serious and fatal accidents. These statistics are collected by the National Institute of Safety and Health at Work in some provinces (Fernando, 1992, p. 326).
Legal criteria
There is a regulation that is represented by a series of legal and technical provisions, whose most important sections are divided between legal aspects made up of ordinances and regulations, mandatory UNE standards and EEC directives (Fernando, 1992, p. 328-329).
Risks and prevention
Wheelbarrows
In the risk classification of self-propelled forklifts, various risk factors can be highlighted, such as side and frontal overturning of the forklift, fall of the driver, fall of transported and stored materials, collisions against obstacles and structure, with vehicles or pedestrians, fall of a lifted or transported person and other risks such as driving of the forklift by unqualified people, lumbar injuries, poisoning and/or burns, fires and/or explosions (Fernando, 1992, p. 336-342).
The risks of falling materials are due to poor support of loads in circulation, hits against shelves or stored materials and/or breakage of shelves and pallets due to excess load. Protective means must be used to avoid these risks, such as having a roof to protect the driver, adapting the loads and avoiding shocks, having good lighting in the circulation and storage area, protecting the shelves and storage areas with adequate defenses, indicating the maximum capacity of the shelves and periodically checking the condition of the pallets.
The risks of the driver falling occur when entering or leaving the forklift and when the driver leans when the vehicle is moving. Due to these risks, protective means must be used such as the correct anti-slip stirrup, avoiding forced marches and visibility problems that cause excessive inclination of the operator.
When handling the forklift, there are also risks of the forklift overturning, which may be due to excess load, inadequate speed, or driving on sloping roads and near uneven terrain. The means of protection for forklift overturning are: the use of forklifts suitable for the load to be lifted, avoid sudden changes of direction and turns in small radii at excessive speed, verify the position, fixation and condition of the loading bridges, do not circulate with a high load and ensure the good condition of the slopes and traffic routes, verify the blocking of the vehicles (trucks and/or wagons) before entering them.
In collisions and crashes against obstacles and structures there are risks due to excess speed, poor visibility of traffic lanes, driving with poor visibility due to the load and lack of signaling of obstacles and traffic lanes, circulation with a high load, slippery, unclean floors and obstacles. The means of protection used for these risks are the following: limit the truck's excess speed when it constitutes a serious risk (signal the maximum driving speed), set adequate lighting levels to the traffic lanes, preferably the areas of turns and changes of lane, circulate in the appropriate direction, when the load does not offer safe visibility conditions, signal with alternating yellow and black lines, or red lamps at night, those obstacles or objects located in the traffic lanes, Circulate with the fork arms at 0.15 m above the ground, keep work areas free of obstacles and clean floors (free of oil and/or grease).
There may be risks in collisions and collisions with other vehicles due to excess speed, inadequate traffic routes and/or defects in signage. For these risks, protective measures will be used to reduce them, thus being able to reduce intersections, provide one-way traffic and sufficient width of traffic lanes, activate the audible alarm and reduce speed at dangerous intersections and limit speed to local conditions.
When driving forklifts there are risks of collisions and collisions with pedestrians due to pedestrians being run over due to excessive speed, lack of visibility and/or inadequate traffic routes. To reduce these risks, it is necessary to provide the forklift with rotating lighting, avoiding the entry of vehicles and pedestrians through the same access door to workshops and/or warehouses. Other means available are: approach swing doors with caution, do not park the truck at intersections or transit areas and park the truck with the fork arms placed flat on the ground.
A person has a high risk of suffering a fall when being elevated, such as when lifting personnel on a pallet or forklift fork to access shelves or maintenance work. These risks will be reduced by signaling and prohibiting the use of the forklift to lift personnel and the use of a safety cage for this type of work.
In the transport of people there are also risks such as the fall of people who are transported by forklifts in the cabin or on the forks, but to avoid this, protective measures must be put in place, such as signaling and prohibiting the use of the forklift as a vehicle for transporting people.
Driving by unqualified people is a risk to which one is exposed but they must be avoided by signaling and prohibiting the use of the forklift by unauthorized personnel and the ignition key must only be in the possession of the authorized forklift driver who will remove it when leaving the forklift.
Lumbar injuries are a risk that must be prevented by using tires suitable for the traffic surfaces, avoiding forced travel with reverse gear and in case of excessive continuity in forced travel, studying the use of a forklift with a seat suitable for the work to be carried out.
The means of protection for poisoning and burns are: use a suitable forklift (thermal or electric), according to the characteristics of the work place, fill fuel in a well-ventilated place or in the open air and anti-heat or anti-radiation screens according to the product transported or when the forklift accesses dangerous places (foundries and/or ovens).
In case of fires and explosions, equipping the forklift with a suitable fire extinguisher if the workplace has a serious risk of fire is a means of protection, as is also placing the charging of electric batteries in a suitable, well-ventilated place and prohibiting smoking if there is a risk of fire and explosion in the premises.
To pick up a load, you must make sure that the load does not exceed the nominal capacity of the forklift that is indicated on the load capacity plates and that depends on the lifting height and the distance from the center of gravity, gradually approach the stacking station and place the forks at the same height of the pallet, check if the distance between the forks corresponds to the holes in the pallet (the forks are adjustable laterally and must always be secured with the pins existing), to pick up the pallet it is necessary that the mast be in a vertical position, it must be advanced slowly until the back of the fork comes into contact with the load or pallet, activate the parking brake, raise the load a little and tilt the mast backwards, when releasing the parking brake make sure if the rearward path is clear, move back gradually and lower the load. To work smoothly with the load at high altitude, it is imperative that the floor has a perfect characteristic. In addition, care must be taken to ensure that the tire pressure is correct (Fernando, 1992, p. 342-344).
When moving with a load, the load must be transported as low as possible, taking into account the necessary distance above the ground, and the load must always be transported using both forks. For the transport of heavy loads, it is very important that the weight is distributed evenly on the two forks; you must always move at a regular speed. Only in case of danger is sudden disconnection permitted.
When placing the load, you must stop shortly before reaching the stacking point and lift the load with a safety margin above the pile, advance the load until it is placed directly on top of the pile and apply the parking brake, put the mast in a vertical position and lower the load until the forks are free of weight and make sure if you can safely go back by releasing the handbrake, back up gradually and lower the forks.
Bridge cranes
During button operation, risks may arise such as not correctly identifying the button controls or bumping against obstacles while guiding the load, but to prevent these situations, button stations with clear identification of the movements and controls will be used and the circulation corridors will be kept free of obstacles and marked (Fernando, 1992, p. 355-367).
Accidents due to radio operation usually occur due to non-specialized personnel and due to lack of control of the load due to the tendency of the manipulator to remain stationary, but they can be avoided by blocking the radio with the safety key after use, or during important stops of the overhead crane and giving instructions to the operator for the mandatory accompaniment of the load during its handling.
In cab operation, failure to adjust the combiners to the stop position automatically leads to the risk of an accident, in the same way unsuitable glass in the windows of the bridge crane against radiation and injuries to the feet and back when accessing the bridge crane also carry risks. For these risks, certain safety standards will be used, such as: combiners that will have a 'dead man' device so that they return to the stop position when they are released and use safety glass in the cabins and suitable anti-radiation windows in dangerous areas (foundries and/or ovens). The high-rise windows will have a handle to prevent the driver from involuntarily falling. The cabins must be arranged in such a way that the driver can, from his workplace, see all the maneuvers and that, even if he is forced to look outside to direct them, he is not exposed to being in a dangerous position. No cabin should open above a vacuum. Exceptions cannot be admitted except when it is impossible to fix platforms or equivalent devices: for example, on storage bridge cranes. In this case, safety devices must be provided and this particular danger must be brought to the attention of personnel.
The absence of walkways and handrails has certain risks: the fall of operators during maintenance operations and the collision of operators in maintenance operations due to insufficient width of the platforms and non-regulatory distances with respect to fixed obstacles. To prevent them, safety standards will be used on walkways and platforms, such as: the passage width of the walkways must not be less than 0.5 m, the vertical distance of a walkway or a normal access platform to the cabin and any obstacle located above, fixed or mobile in relation to the walkway, must not be less than 1.8 m. This distance may be reduced to 1.4 m for a fixed obstacle in relation to the walkway of a length of less than 1 m and to 1.3 m for walkways and entertainment platforms. Walkways and platforms located at a height above the ground above 1 m must be provided with handrails on the sides facing the void. For walkways and entertainment platforms, only one handrail is necessary; A handrail located on the opposite side of the void and fixed to a solid wall can act as a railing.
Slings
Slings are lifting accessories. They are made up of a longitudinal body, normally provided at the ends with an eyelet called a loop, protected by a cable guard, to prevent damage to the cable. They can have truncated-conical terminals at both ends, called single-branch slings (Fernando, 1992, p. 373-383).
Depending on the material they are made of, slings can be made of normally synthetic rope (nylon and/or polyester fibers), steel cable and chain.
Precautions must be taken when using steel cable slings, such as avoiding leaving them on the ground because sand and gravel penetrate the strands, avoiding the formation of kinks that usually always form when pulling in a straight line on a cable that forms a coil without the cable having been sufficiently released to compensate for the deformation due to a rotation around its axis. We must also protect them on the sharp edges using corner protectors and the greasing will be done with neutral grease.
Chain slings use unbalanced chains, endless chains or chains provided with rings. Compared to cables, they are more sensitive to shocks, but more resistant to heat and temperature differences. The workload must be marked with a plate or label. Periodic reviews must be carried out to avoid risks. There are risks such as sags and twists in the chains. Passing the links one by one we will appreciate the looseness of the chain, if it is twisted it should be discarded.
Belt conveyors
In belt conveyors (Figure 12) there are a series of risks of a mechanical, electrical and work-related nature (Fernando, 1992, p. 385-392).
In mechanical risks, entrapment in the moving parts of transmissions occurs due to the movement of elements such as belts, chains, gears, couplings, mainly in belt maintenance operations. Another mechanical risk is entrapment between belts and drums or rollers, when carrying out cleaning operations for material adhesion. Falling materials present a risk when installations run high above traffic areas. Likewise, the prevailing winds present important forces that act on the conveyors that run in the open air, and belts of a certain length can be displaced, leading to their fall and that of the transported material. When the belt tension system is by counterweight, the need to have a vertical space for its movement makes it necessary for this system to be placed at a height. If occasionally the belt breaks, the counterweight will detach, which could cause serious accidents if there is a traffic area in its vertical.
Safety standards will be used to combat these mechanical risks, such as the protection of transmissions and tail and head drums using protective fairings or grilles that allow visibility of the belt and easy disassembly. To prevent the operator from accessing the drum and carrying out drum scraping operations, a mechanism must be installed that allows this operation without the need to access the dangerous area. The automatic locking systems, such as switches or emergency stops, will be manually operated by push buttons that are easily accessible and interlocked with the front or back elements of the belt, placing them every 15m. If they are emergency cables, they will be made of PVC and the reset will not be automatic but manual. Due to the inertia problems of the belt, in case of emergency action, it is necessary, in each case, to proceed to a detailed study of the installation and rules of action in case of emergency.
Against falling materials, it can be protected by covering the belt around its entire contour or by installing protection panels under the belt to prevent materials from falling on people passing under it. Against the possible fall of the counterweight or tension system, the lower part is protected with a guard to prevent the movement of personnel. Another consistent system is to place a mechanical safety device that prevents its free fall.
Many of the electrical risks occur in tapes installed years ago in workplaces, and these risks are fundamentally due to the electrical panel without an adequate IP degree of protection, the lack of inspection of the motor power cables and the absence of protection against overloads and indirect electrical contacts, which in many cases the protection is only based on fuses.
In the face of these electrical risks, the installation panel, when it is subjected to atmospheric agents, must be provided with a degree of protection IP 65; the connection boxes will be watertight; The power cables will be checked quarterly to detect possible insulation failures; and the installation will be provided with protection against overloads and indirect electrical contacts.
The failure or absence of limit switches and limiting devices causes: risk of hitting the load due to oscillations caused by hitting the stops; risk of breaking the lifting system due to overload and damage to the bridge structure; risk of load falling due to lack of adequate maintenance of the limit switches; collisions between bridge cranes that circulate on the same taxiway; and collision between an overhead crane against another that is stopped for maintenance operations. The safety standards for overhead cranes must be provided with the following devices: upper and lower limit switches for the lifting movement, maximum and minimum limit switches for trolley translation, and limit switches for bridge translation. These limit switches will be complementary to the service limits of the bridge crane, and must allow movement in the reverse direction after being unlocked, and should not serve as a stop in normal service. Bridge cranes must be equipped with an overload limiter and a torque limiter if the allowable load varies with the span. They should operate between 10 and 20 percent overload. In the case of heat engines, the overload limiters can be replaced by optical or acoustic signals operating under the same conditions.
Due to a drop in the load during the descent, there are possible risks of falling due to the lack of effective devices in the event of failure of a phase of the motor during the descent of the load and due to brake failure during the descent. If an asymmetry relay is placed at the motor output that detects a possible failure of a phase or one of the contactor contacts (also the installation of a magneto-thermal switch in parallel, with the fuses before them, partially solves a possible failure) and by periodically adjusting the brakes, these risks will be reduced.
There are a series of risks due to failure of the lifting accessories (cable-hooks) such as the load detaching from the lifting hook and the load falling due to cable breakage or misuse of staples or dogs. To prevent this from happening, the hooks must have safety latches, periodic checks must be carried out on the hooks, the condition of the cables must be reviewed periodically (every three months) (wear, wire breakage and/or kinks) and the number of staples on the cables must be as indicated.
The risks derived from work may be due to workers falling from a height. As the belts run above the facilities, workers usually circulate along the belt or climb on it for maintenance operations such as greasing, replacing parts and/or rollers. The fall of workers on top of the belts occurs as a result of the operators crossing over the moving belts, or when they pass at ground level or at the exit of pits.
Safety standards will be used to combat these risks arising from work, such as that belts that run at heights that present a risk of falling over 2 m must have platforms or walkways with their corresponding handrails. These platforms will be non-slip and grooved to allow the removal of dust, materials and water. Access will be by ladder, if it is not at floor level. Overpasses or underpasses will be available to allow the passage of personnel and if they pass near pits, they must be protected with railings.
There are other safety regulations such as the use of personal protective material. Tight clothing and safety shoes will be used. If the galleries through which the conveyor runs are dusty, protective glasses will be used, and if necessary, dust masks.
• - FERNANDO PABLO, José Ángel, dir. - Safety at work manual. 1st ed. Madrid: MAPFRE, 1992. ISBN 978-84-7100-987-6.
• - KULWIEC, Raymond A. Basic materials handling concepts. In KULWIEC, Raymond A. ed. - Materials handling handbook. 2nd ed. [online]. New York: John Wiley & Sons, [1985] [Cited October 8, 2010]. Available from World Wide Web: http://books.google.es/books?id=8Rn72t-L_g8C&lpg=PP1&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=false. ISBN 978-0-471-09782-2.
• - MACHADO, Virgílio A. P. – Material movement: material movement equipment [online]. San Francisco: Blogger, [2006][Cited October 21, 2010].Available from World Wide Web: http://eqmovmat.blogspot.com.
• - TAYLOR, G. Don. – Introduction to logistics engineering. Boca Raton, Florida: Taylor & Francis Group, [2009]. ISBN 978-1-4200-8851-9.
• - TOMPKINS, James A. et al. - Facilities planning. 2nd ed. New York: John Wiley & Sons, [1996][Cited October 21, 2010]. ISBN 978-0-471-00252-9.
• - Store.
• - Storekeeper.
• - Industrial automation.
• - Manual transport cart.
• - Cross docking.
• - Delivery.
• - Stock management.
• - Handling of bulk material.
• - Loading dock.
• - Forklift Courses to obtain the forklift license.
• - IMMER John R. - Materials handling. Barcelona: Hispanic European Editorial, 1971.
• - Introduction to Material Handling Equipment Selection.
• - MEYERS Fred E.; STEPHENS Mattehew P. - Design of manufacturing and materials handling facilities. Madrid: Pearson Education, 2006. ISBN 978-970-26-0749-6.
• - Making the Right Order Picking Choices: Static Storage, Automated Systems and Gravity Flow Alternatives Archived November 24, 2009 at the Wayback Machine.
• - Material Handling Equipment.
• - MHIA - Material Handling Industry of America.
• - Storage-Racks.
• - Prof. Jofrant Garcia Fernandez.
The failure or absence of limit switches and limiting devices causes: risk of hitting the load due to oscillations caused by hitting the stops; risk of breaking the lifting system due to overload and damage to the bridge structure; risk of load falling due to lack of adequate maintenance of the limit switches; collisions between bridge cranes that circulate on the same taxiway; and collision between an overhead crane against another that is stopped for maintenance operations. The safety standards for overhead cranes must be provided with the following devices: upper and lower limit switches for the lifting movement, maximum and minimum limit switches for trolley translation, and limit switches for bridge translation. These limit switches will be complementary to the service limits of the bridge crane, and must allow movement in the reverse direction after being unlocked, and should not serve as a stop in normal service. Bridge cranes must be equipped with an overload limiter and a torque limiter if the allowable load varies with the span. They should operate between 10 and 20 percent overload. In the case of heat engines, the overload limiters can be replaced by optical or acoustic signals operating under the same conditions.
Due to a drop in the load during the descent, there are possible risks of falling due to the lack of effective devices in the event of failure of a phase of the motor during the descent of the load and due to brake failure during the descent. If an asymmetry relay is placed at the motor output that detects a possible failure of a phase or one of the contactor contacts (also the installation of a magneto-thermal switch in parallel, with the fuses before them, partially solves a possible failure) and by periodically adjusting the brakes, these risks will be reduced.
There are a series of risks due to failure of the lifting accessories (cable-hooks) such as the load detaching from the lifting hook and the load falling due to cable breakage or misuse of staples or dogs. To prevent this from happening, the hooks must have safety latches, periodic checks must be carried out on the hooks, the condition of the cables must be reviewed periodically (every three months) (wear, wire breakage and/or kinks) and the number of staples on the cables must be as indicated.
The risks derived from work may be due to workers falling from a height. As the belts run above the facilities, workers usually circulate along the belt or climb on it for maintenance operations such as greasing, replacing parts and/or rollers. The fall of workers on top of the belts occurs as a result of the operators crossing over the moving belts, or when they pass at ground level or at the exit of pits.
Safety standards will be used to combat these risks arising from work, such as that belts that run at heights that present a risk of falling over 2 m must have platforms or walkways with their corresponding handrails. These platforms will be non-slip and grooved to allow the removal of dust, materials and water. Access will be by ladder, if it is not at floor level. Overpasses or underpasses will be available to allow the passage of personnel and if they pass near pits, they must be protected with railings.
There are other safety regulations such as the use of personal protective material. Tight clothing and safety shoes will be used. If the galleries through which the conveyor runs are dusty, protective glasses will be used, and if necessary, dust masks.
• - FERNANDO PABLO, José Ángel, dir. - Safety at work manual. 1st ed. Madrid: MAPFRE, 1992. ISBN 978-84-7100-987-6.
• - KULWIEC, Raymond A. Basic materials handling concepts. In KULWIEC, Raymond A. ed. - Materials handling handbook. 2nd ed. [online]. New York: John Wiley & Sons, [1985] [Cited October 8, 2010]. Available from World Wide Web: http://books.google.es/books?id=8Rn72t-L_g8C&lpg=PP1&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=false. ISBN 978-0-471-09782-2.
• - MACHADO, Virgílio A. P. – Material movement: material movement equipment [online]. San Francisco: Blogger, [2006][Cited October 21, 2010].Available from World Wide Web: http://eqmovmat.blogspot.com.
• - TAYLOR, G. Don. – Introduction to logistics engineering. Boca Raton, Florida: Taylor & Francis Group, [2009]. ISBN 978-1-4200-8851-9.
• - TOMPKINS, James A. et al. - Facilities planning. 2nd ed. New York: John Wiley & Sons, [1996][Cited October 21, 2010]. ISBN 978-0-471-00252-9.
• - Store.
• - Storekeeper.
• - Industrial automation.
• - Manual transport cart.
• - Cross docking.
• - Delivery.
• - Stock management.
• - Handling of bulk material.
• - Loading dock.
• - Forklift Courses to obtain the forklift license.
• - IMMER John R. - Materials handling. Barcelona: Hispanic European Editorial, 1971.
• - Introduction to Material Handling Equipment Selection.
• - MEYERS Fred E.; STEPHENS Mattehew P. - Design of manufacturing and materials handling facilities. Madrid: Pearson Education, 2006. ISBN 978-970-26-0749-6.
• - Making the Right Order Picking Choices: Static Storage, Automated Systems and Gravity Flow Alternatives Archived November 24, 2009 at the Wayback Machine.
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