8 Tips to Improve Welding Safety –

Welding is one of the most utilized metal fabrication processes. Due to exposure to heat, metals, harmful gases and fumes, and welding sparks, this process becomes hazardous to the operators. The operators may sustain injuries on their skin, eyes, and respiratory system if they do not take any safety precautions. Therefore, while welding, the operator is always at risk if proper safety precautions are not taken. The Occupational Safety and Health Association (OSHA) suggests industrial safety precautions under standard 1910.252-Subpart Q. Even if there are basic safety precautions taken during the welding process, the welding safety can be enhanced by using few methods. If you are unsure how to enhance welding safety then this post will guide you through the steps of improving welding safety.

Guidelines for Enhancing Welding Safety

This section offers tips to improve welding safety. These tips will not only help secure the lives of welding personnel but also allow their employers to adhere to comply with OSHA safety standards.

1. Tool Introduction and Practice: The welding process is versatile, there are several types of welding, and so are the types of welding equipment. Therefore, regardless of the operator’s industrial welding experience, he must go through the operation manual. The operation or product manual gives insights about specific parameters at which the process is to be performed without endangering the safety. Some welding equipment like Plasma Arc Welding (PAW) equipment possess complex designs and are tough to handle. Therefore, in such cases, before performing final welding, the operator must read through the operation manual, get introduced to functioning parameters, and practice the operation. This way, the chances of human errors and operational accidents get reduced.
2. Wear an Appropriate Welding Gear: “Button Up” is a welding safety protocol. The operator must wear suitable welding gear that covers all his clothes and skin portions. The welding gear is for operator safety, it prevents skin burns, heat rashes, and chemical touch-sensitivity to the operator. The welding spark has an intense chemical composition, also the fumes after welding are highly reactive to human skin and eyes. Therefore, welding safety gear or suite must be worn.
3. Use Auto-Darkening Helmets: The operator must use auto-darkening helmets of specific grade to secure against welding sparks. Industrial-grade welding auto-darkening helmets with shade 9 to 13 are suitable for any type of welding as they react to the light speed of 1/10000 to 1/20000. The industrial auto-darkening helmets are important to be manufactured according to ANSI Z87.1-2003 standards.
4. Prevention from Periodic Stress Injuries: The stress injuries involved in welding are generally neck fatigue due to helmet weight, head snap, and gun strain on the operator’s forearm and shoulders. These are periodic stress injuries that are important to prevent for operator safety. To achieve it, the use of lightweight auto-darkening helmets, periodic breaks, and appropriate welding gun supports are to be installed.
5. Declutter the Welding Space: Welding spaces are exposed to fumes and gases that can be chemically reactive to other materials in the surrounding. Cluttered welding spaces also create disturbance in the walking or working path of the operator, which may cause accidents. Therefore, the welding space must be cleaned and organized.
6. Utilize Boom-Mounted Wire Feeders: The boom-mounted wire feeders generally mount the wire feeder controls over 12 to 16 feet of floor. The boom itself rotates 360° which gives operational flexibility to the operator. This method ultimately adds safety and efficiency to the welding process.
7. Use Optimized Welding Fixtures: These welding fixtures provide flexibility and convenience to the workpiece handling in the welding process. Tasks like holding a workpiece, flipping, and aligning a workpiece are easily performed by the optimized fixture. This avoids accidents.
8. Avoid Welding Flash Arc: Welding flash arc has high luminosity and should not be seen with naked eyes. The operator must protect the eyes against the welding flash during the process.

Along with knowing how to improve welding safety, it is important to use quality welding equipment. The welding equipment must be purchased from a trusted supplier to ensure the product isn’t faulty. Woodward Fab is a metalworking equipment manufacturer. The company offers superior quality weld positioner and welding tools and necessary resources. You can also find other industrial work equipment with the company.

Browse Best Quality Welding Tools & Equipment Product Range:

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