Pinch point hazard
Open-knowledge reference entry
A pinch point or pinch point hazard is a common class of mechanical hazard where injury or damage may be done by one or more objects moving towards each other, crushing or shearing whatever comes between them. A nip point is a type of pinch point involving rotating objects, such as gears and pulleys. Injuries can range from minor such as blisters to severe like amputations and fatalities. Examples of pinch point hazards include gaps in closing doors and objects swinging or being lowered near fixed objects.
Common causes of injuries
Poor situational awareness
Proximity to mobile equipment and fixed structures
Loose clothing, hair or jewelry getting caught in rotating parts or equipment
Inadequate/missing safety barriers or machine guarding
Handling errors
Wrong work procedures or tools
Reaching into moving equipment
Safety controls
Pre-work hazard inspections can be performed to identify pinch point hazards. These hazards can be managed with control methods, listed below according to the hazard control hierarchy. The hazard control hierarchy was created by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).
Engineering controls physically prevent objects from entering the pinch point. These are systems and devices designed (Engineered) that cover pinch point hazards to limit worker exposure. The shape and coverage of engineering controls to protect against pinch points varies with the machine involved.
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This entry incorporates text from “Pinch point hazard” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.