[SSDC-Safety] FW: accident in SDC this morning

[Victoria Alderson]

Hello,
Forwarding on behalf of Peter  - Please see below.
Cheers,
Victoria
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Hi everyone,

There was an accident in one of the student team workbays this morning involving a core member working on the team project.  The student was working alone using an angle grinder that had its guard removed.  The grinder kicked back and struck the student, requiring a trip to the hospital for stiches. As part of our investigation we have been asked to remind all student teams who do work on the SDC about the following safety guidelines.

First, guards on power tools should never be removed or modified.  In the case of the accident that happened this morning, the accident would likely have been a near-miss if the grinder had the guard installed.  I have been / will be visiting your workbays this week and next week for the midterm safety reviews, and I will be looking specifically for tools without proper guards.

Second, please remind everyone on your teams to avoid working alone, particularly if they are using power tools or doing other potentially hazardous tasks.  Make sure that someone knows you are working in the workbay, open the overhead door if you are working alone, and avoid working late at night when no one else is around - these are all good ways of avoiding working by yourself and mitigating the risk of injury.

Thanks for your help in this matter.


Peter Teertstra, Ph.D., P.Eng
Director, Sedra Student Design Centre
Faculty of Engineering, University of Waterloo<https://uwaterloo.ca/engineering>
P: 519-888-4567 x35610
Office: E5 - 2105
[Description: Description: Description: Description: Description: logo]<https://uwaterloo.ca/>

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