Safety in Use of Hand Tools and Portable Power Tools

The possible causes and type of accidents in industries, construction or manufacturing, are many and various. They may arise from unsafe mechanical equipment, arduous environmental condition, and hazardous arrangements in and around the workplace and unsafe acts committed by individuals. The occupational accidents, defined as undesirable event that results in injury to certain length of disability causing stoppage of work and time loss affecting the progress of work or production in quantity and quality. The injury can be mechanical (bruise, cuts, tissue ruptures, breakage etc), thermal (shock, bum, frost bite) or chemical (bum, intoxication, poisoning). The result of injury may extend from serious to no injury or from permanent to temporary disablement. In industries a large number of such accidents are caused from use of hand tools viz hammers/sledge hammers, chisels, cutters, punches, spanners, wrenches, knives etc. The ischolar_main and obvious causes of accidents are use of unsuitable hand tools, misuse of tools, and their poor maintenance and improper storage. The general recommendation for prevention of such accidents and for the quality of materials for tools, laid down in the appropriate standards.can be summarized as under:

"Hand tools for factory use should be made of materials of good quality and be appropriate for the work for which they are used".