Safety is a major concern in the mining industry. When the
injuries, deaths or almost deaths in mining are national or international
holders, the problem becomes even more crucial. The question is: how does a
mining company improve safety?
One aspect that is often overlooked in security matters has
to do with the maintenance of the equipment. The CDC reports that 30% of all
injuries and deaths in underground coal mining are due to machinery maintenance
accidents. It can be shocking for mining managers to realize that simple and
apparently safe maintenance tasks are the cause of so many injuries and deaths.
For this reason, improving the equipment's maintenance capacity is one of the
most direct and effective ways to improve safety.
The causes of mining maintenance injuries
Part of the reason why equipment maintenance is a field
prone to injuries is because it is considered routine, even safe. To use a
metaphor, if a dog looks friendly, why be on guard? Maintenance, however, is
not a friendly dog. The danger of maintenance also lies in the complexity of
the mining machinery. Accidents happen when workers are not properly trained to
operate and maintain large and complicated machines. In the maintenance
process, some companies do not implement adequate supervision, compliance with
procedures and procedural checklists. A final cause, which should not be overlooked,
is the design aspect of the defective equipment. To reduce the number of
injuries and deaths, it is important to address all these problems as
thoroughly as possible. What is the best and most effective way to proceed?
How to improve the safety of equipment maintenance
The best way to improve maintenance safety is to use safer
equipment. A report published by the US Department of the Interior of Mines,
supplemented by WHOHR research, lists "equipment design" as the first
and main way to improve safety.
Most mines are eager to implement checklists, improve
training, change work schedules, launch new safety programs, improve emergency
response plans and organize motivational talks. All of these are important
steps in reducing injuries. However, what they do not do is to address the
crucial problem of maintenance capacity, whose lack is one of the main causes
of injuries. No safety program, regardless of its effectiveness, can mitigate
the risks associated with risky maintainability in poorly mining equipment design.
Technosoft Engineering, Inc. is an engineering services
company offering various engineering design services. Some of the services
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