4 Ways To Achieve Workplace Safety Through Automation – Occupational Health and Safety

4 Ways To Achieve Workplace Safety Through Automation

A safer workplace can lead to healthier workers, lower injury costs, less stress and higher employee retention.

As the manufacturing industry has become more competitive, many manufacturers have turned to automation to improve their efficiency and productivity while cutting costs in the long run. Automation reduces repetitive tasks, provides greater uptime and improves the quality of products.

On top of that, automation can also contribute to worker safety in multiple ways. A safer workplace keeps workers healthy, reduces the costs of injuries, creates a stress-free environment and helps with employee retention. Here are some ways automation can make your plant a safer place.

Automating the High-Risk Production Tasks

Automating production processes is one of the central parts of creating a smart factory. CNC machines, robots, turn-over machines, conveyors and others are widely used to improve productivity and efficiency.

Most plants tend to run manufacturing processes which feature some hazardous conditions for the workers. It might be working close to a large lathe machine or using machining tools (like a drill) that can cause severe injuries when they break down or get mishandled. For such tasks, automation becomes a safety investment which might also improve efficiency as a byproduct.

With automation for high-risk tasks, the workers stay away from hazardous conditions, and the chances of incidents and injuries get reduced.

Energoinwest Serwis achieved that by switching from manual to robotic welding in their bucket teeth manufacturing process. The main issue with manual welding was harmful fumestheir workers were endangering themselves every day with exposure to ultraviolet and infrared radiation.

They installed two robots that are programmed to weld bucket teeth, and equipped their workstations with extraction hoods that prevent welding fumes from spreading. That way, their workers could perform the remaining tasks in a safer environment.

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4 Ways To Achieve Workplace Safety Through Automation - Occupational Health and Safety