Wood manufacturing

Wood manufacturing is one of the most hazardous industries to work in due to the equipment used and the products manufactured. Processes used in wood manufacturing include sawing, planning, shaping, routing, sanding, laminating, finishing and assembling wood products. A wide variety of equipment is used to facilitate these processes, including saws, jointers, planers, sanders and routers.

These processes pose the following hazards to workers:

• moving equipment
• being struck by moving objects
• being caught between machinery and objects
• material kickback
• slivers
• equipment noise
• vibration
• exposure to chemicals

Handling heavy wood products can also cause various musculoskeletal injuries (MSIs).

It is imperative to have adequate controls in place to reduce the risk of injury and illness, including:

• effective machine safeguards that meet Canadian Standard Association (CSA) requirements
• lifting aids
• lockout procedures
• safe work procedures
• training to ensure employees perform their work safely

Wood manufacturing generates a lot of wood dust. Fine wood dust is combustible, and exposure to high levels can harm personal health. Minimizing the accumulation of dust and controlling ignition sources are crucial for preventing fires and explosions related to wood dust. Also, periodic monitoring of wood dust is essential to determine workers’ exposure levels, the effectiveness of existing controls and the development of additional controls.

To lower workers’ exposure to wood dust, put the following control measures into place:

• a wood dust control program
• training for workers to ensure they recognize hazards
• preventative measures to reduce exposure to dust, including a reporting system for incidents