HSE is issuing this safety alert for the attention of firms in the printing and cardboard packaging industries who use these machines. This is to raise awareness of the potential dangers of whole body access between the platens of these machines when operating in the dwell mode. This alert follows two fatalities in the last 13 months where operators have been crushed between the platens as they made an intervention during normal production.
The Health and Safety Commission's (HSC's) Revitalising Health and Safety Strategy (RHS) aims to reduce work related injuries and ill health by 2010.
HSE’s Manufacturing Sector (Printing Group) has published a progress report [PDF 375kb] 
for Health and Safety in the Printing and Publishing Industries between 2001/2002 and 2005/2006.
Headline figures show a 23% reduction in the overall number of RIDDOR reportable accidents since 2001/2002. This is made up of a:
HSE's Manufacturing Sector (Printing Group) is working on a number of projects in conjunction with printing industry stakeholders on the Printing Industry Advisory Committee (PIAC) to support the revitalising strategy.
HSE have analysed all the 2002/2003 RIDDOR Reportable Manual Handling accidents in the printing and publishing industries. We have identified some of the common tasks in the printing industry that can lead to manual handling injuries and produced a number of good practice video solutions for these tasks. See the manual handling module.
HSE Inspectors will be carrying out a targeted inspection/ enforcement initiative as part of HSE’s ‘Better Backs’ 2006 campaign. Inspectors will be visiting some Printers and Publishers specifically to inspect the standards of manual handling . Where standards are found to be below the legal minimum, enforcement action will be considered.
In 2004, Inspectors from HSE’s Employment Medical Advisory Service (EMAS), carried out a project to gather intelligence about Upper Limb Disorders (ULD’s) in the Printing Industry. The finding of the project [PDF 108kb] identified ‘print finishing tasks’ as the greatest contributor to ULD’s risks and symptoms in the printing industry.
If you think that you may have an Upper Limb Disorder (ULD) issue within your own company, HSE have produced a free leaflet INDG 171 [PDF 240kb] designed to help employers and managers understand ULD’s and how to avoid them in your workplace.
HSE have also produced a priced publication ‘Upper Limb Disorders in the Workplace’ HSG 60 should you require more comprehensive advice and risk assessment worksheets for ULD’s
HSE have analysed all the 2002/2003 RIDDOR Reportable slips and trips accidents in the printing and publishing industries. The Slips and Trips Module identifies where most accidents are occurring and what the main causes are.
HSE Inspectors will be carrying out targeted slips and slips inspections to Printers and Publishers throughout 2006/2007. Where standards are found to be below the legal minimum, enforcement action will be considered.
HSE have analysed all the 2003/2004 RIDDOR Reportable ‘machinery accidents’ [PDF 600kb] in the printing and publishing industries. The report identified that up to 40% of all machinery related accidents in the Printing and Publishing Industries occur on printing presses.
The Machinery Safety Module provides useful guidance on where some of the most common machinery accidents, in printers and publishers, happen.
Falling from height is the most common cause of workplace deaths in the UK. In 2004/05 a worker in the printing industry was fatally injured as a result of falling through a fragile roof.
42 other workers were serious injured as a result of falling from height whilst at work. Many of these injuries were as a result of people falling less that 2 metres. Falls from ladders and step ladders are implicated in a significant number of accidents.
The HSE will be running a ‘Falls from Height Campaign’ in 2006 to raise the awareness of falls from height accidents and provide useful guidance on how to reduce the risks.
The HSE have also developed new Falls from Height Guidance covering many of the key issues involved.
A new Dermatitis Module has been developed and provides useful advice on dermatitis in printers.
HSE Inspectors will be carrying out regional targeted dermatitis inspections to Printers and Publishers from September 2006 through to March 2007. During the inspections, Inspectors will be referring to relevant ‘control guidance sheets’ in COSHH Essentials for Printers, to illustrate what is considered to be ‘good practice controls’ for dermatitis. Where standards are found to be below the legal minimum, enforcement action will be considered.
A new ‘COSHH Essentials for Printers’ was launched in November 2005. The new guidance provides simple and clear good practice advice on reducing chemical exposure for a range of common printing tasks.
The HSE Manufacturing Sector (Printing Group) is working with printing industry stakeholder on PIAC, including: the British Printing Industries Federation; AMICUS; the Newspaper Society; the Scottish Printing Employers Federation; and the Screen Printing Association to promote key health and safety messages contained in a selection of HSE free leaflets and priced publications.