Wood Chippers

Wood Chippers

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Mobile Wood Chipper

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Wood Chippers  Common use in landscaping that involves smal trees, brush, limbs, etc.

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The feed mechanism or Wood chips chipper knives will propelled through the discharge spout grab the material. Feed in limbs, brush, usually into a chip etc. Into the truck. machines in-feed hopper.

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Knives mounted on a rotating chipper disc removable hood that or drum grind the allows access to material. machine components for maintenance (power should be shut off when hood is opened).

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Hazards Associated With Wood Chippers  Caught-By Hazard  Struck-By Hazard

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Caught-By Hazard  Workers feeding Material into self-feeding wood chippers are at risk of being fed through the chipper knives if they reach or fal into the in-feed hopper or become entangled in branches feeding into the machine.

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Caught-By Hazard Incident  A 28-year-old groundsman died after he was caught and pulled into a wood chipper. The victim and two coworkers, a foreman and a climber, were cleaning up limbs after pruning a tulip poplar behind a townhouse. The coworkers were behind the building gathering loose branches while the victim was in front operating the chipper. The coworkers began dragging brush to the chipper. As the climber approached the chipper, he saw the victim’s legs sticking out of the in-feed hopper. Investigators concluded that the victim either fell or reached into the in-feed hopper while feeding short branches. His hands were caught by the feed mechanism, forcing his head and upper torso into the chipper knives.

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Struck-By Hazard  Workers are at risk of being struck by unlatched, improperly secured, or damaged or improperly maintained hoods that may be thrown from the wood chipper after contacting the rotating chipper knives.

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Struck-By Hazard Incident  April 6, 1995, A worker was struck by the front part of the hood on a Morbank Eager Beaver wood chipper. The two latch pins on the hood and three mounting bolts had been removed before the accident and were found on the flat area of the in-feed spout. The employee was either opening or closing the hinged hood when it was struck by the rotating chipper disc. The hood was ripped off its hinge and struck the employee, who was found dead approximately 10 feet away from the chipper. He sustained fatal head and face injuries.

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Fatal Cases Involving Wood Chippers  During 1992-2002, a total of 31 occupational injury deaths were attributed to wood chippers.  Twenty-one (68%) were the result of being caught or compressed by the chipper.  Nine (29%) were the result of being struck by the machine or a machine part.  Al victims were male.

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Nonfatal Cases Involving Mobile And Stationary Wood Chippers  During 1992-2001, an estimated 2,042 injuries resulted from working with chippers, an average of 204 per year.  47% occurred among workers aged 25-34 years.

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Nonfatal Cases Involving Mobile And Stationary Wood Chippers  During 1992-1996, an estimated 155 amputations caused by injuries from chippers occurred.  In approximately one quarter of the cases, the injured person missed more than 30 days of work.

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Safe Operating Procedures

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Safe operating procedures go beyond wearing protective clothing, you must also be aware of your surroundings.

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Protecting Workers From Being Caught By The Chipper Feed Mechanism.  Al safety devices and controls should be tested and verified to be functioning properly before the chipper is used. (Emergency shut-off device)  Workers should be trained in safe work procedures. Never work alone. Workers should wear close-fitting clothing, gloves without cuffs and skid resistant foot wear.  Do not put any body parts into the in-feed hopper. Feed brush and limbs into the in-feed hopper butt end first.

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Protecting Workers From Being Caught By The Chipper Feed Mechanism.  Work to the side of the machine where there is ready access to the emergency shut-off.  Walk away once the feed mechanism has grabbed the material.  Lay short material on top of longer material or use a longer branch to push in short material.  Load smal leaves and twigs directly into the chip truck, not into the hopper.  Keep the area around the wood chipper free of tripping hazards.  Wear hard hats, eye protection, and hearing protection.

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Protecting Workers From Being Struck By Flying Hoods Covering Chipper Discs Or Drums  Inspect wood chippers each working day before startup for defects such as broken or missing hood latches and pins or cracked and worn hinges. Any defects should be repaired or replaced immediately.  Verify that the hood covering the chipper knives is completely closed and latched before starting the machine.

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Protecting Workers From Being Struck By Flying Hoods Covering Chipper Discs Or Drums  Before processing material run the machine at lowest possible speed and listen for any noises that might indicate a broken or loose machine part. If unusual noises are detected, shut-down the machine immediately and have it inspected, evaluated or repaired by a competent person before placing it back in service.  Make sure that al internal machine parts have come to a complete stop before the hood covering the chipper disk or drum is opened.

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OSHA Regulations Pertaining To Wood Chippers  www.osha.gov  1910.269 – Electric Power Generation, Transmission, and Distribution  1910.265 – Sawmil s 1910.266 – Logging Operations

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Additional Information www.cdc.gov UNL Environmental Health and Safety http://ehs.unl.edu Al statistics provided by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

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