Some 570,000 workers in Singapore's manufacturing industries will now work safer, thanks to a new national standard for the safe use of machinery. The new SS 537: 2008 Singapore Standard Code of Practice for Safe Use of Machinery was jointly launched by SPRING Singapore, the national standards body, and the Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) Council on 28 July 2008.

The new standard sets out the critical requirements necessary for ensuring the safety of our workers when they use machinery. It covers general requirements on the methods of safeguarding the dangerous parts of machinery and enhancing the safety of workers in the use of machinery.

It also includes various aspects of machinery safety, such as hazard identification and risk assessment, machinery design, safe use, installation considerations, maintenance and safe work practices.

Incidents involving machines happen because of four key reasons.
1. Many machines are not designed adequately for safe use, such as the lack of proper machine guards.
2. Companies fail to put in place sufficient safe work procedures.
3. Employees fail to follow safe work procedures, due to ignorance, carelessness, lack of experience or disregard for safety.
4. Safety management practices are not in place to identify and eliminate unsafe acts and habits.

In 2007 alone, such incidents led to the loss of 17,000 man days. Highlighting how incidents involving machines affect both workers and businesses, Professor Low Teck Seng, Chairman of the WSH Council Manufacturing and Metalworking Committee, said, "Affected businesses struggle with multiple losses. Besides the loss of efficiency, extended down time is needed for the repair and replacement of machinery."

The use of machinery for manufacturing can be potentially hazardous. "SS 537 provides guidelines for controlling the risks associated with operating machinery," added Mr Edwin Yap, President, Singapore Institution of Safety Officers. "As the institution representing Workplace Safety & Health professionals in Singapore, SISO members can be expected to use this standard to make their workplace safer."

SS 537 is the first Singapore Standard on safe use of machinery which was developed by aligning both national and international practices. "The implementation of SS 537 will enhance safety standards and reduce the number of accidents at workplaces involving workers handling machines," said Mr Teo Nam Kuan, Group Director, Quality & Standards, SPRING Singapore.

SS 537 is intended for those who use machinery, machinery guarding. Machine guards are common methods of safeguarding machinery such as barrier guards, electronic-eye shutdown devices, beam scanners, interlocks, and enclosures or safety devices. The standard is also meant for use by those who provide information, instruction and training in safe work practices.

It includes maintenance personnel, workers, building and factory owners, contractors, facilities managers and engineers, equipment engineers, consultants and technical personnel for the maintenance of machinery.

SS 537 was developed by SPRING's Technical Committee on Safety of Machinery under the purview of the General Engineering and Safety Standards Committee. It comprises members from industry, government and academia. ET

More details about this and other Singapore and International Standards are available at http://www.standards.org.sg