SafEty MattErS

The repair and maintenance of motor vehicles is considered as a high-risk occupation. The nature of the work means there is a risk of severe injury or death, and many people are injured and killed every year while working in vehicle maintenance workshops or attending to off-site service, repair, and vehicle recovery activities. This is because there are many things that can go wrong if safety management is not given the attention it deserves. Some risks are obvious, such as vehicles falling from hoists or jacks, people being hit by a passing vehicle while carrying out roadside recovery and repairs, or tyres exploding during inflation. Other risks are less obvious such as the long-term effects of breathing dusts or fumes from fuels, solvents, and paints.

Motor vehicle repair and maintenance (MVRM) influences the safety and health of workers in two ways.

Regular maintenance, correctly planned and carried out, is essential to keep work vehicles safe and reliable, thereby protecting the drivers and anyone in their vicinity.

The maintenance work itself must be performed in a safe way, with appropriate protection of maintenance workers and other people present in the workplace.

There are two different types of MVRM: n corrective (or reactive) maintenance is carried out to restore a vehicle from a failed state to a working state (for example repair or replacement of broken components). This is also known as ‘reactive maintenance’ because the action is started when an unexpected failure occurs. n preventive maintenance is carried

out at set intervals, or to set criteria, to reduce the chances of failure or the reduced functioning of the vehicle. In this case, actions are scheduled and planned to control the wear and tear that can lead to failure of a system (for example replacement, lubrication, cleaning, or inspection).

Studies show that most MVRM injuries happen during corrective maintenance operations, so it is better if maintenance is planned and pre-organised as much as possible.

Motor Vehicle Repair & Maintenance is High Risk - Safety Management is vital in Workshops & Garages

workers can be exposed to a variety of hazards when carrying out maintenance on vehicles. they can be:

n physical (impact, noise, vibrations, excessive heat and cold, radiation, exposure to high voltage electricity, high physical workload), n chemical and biological (welding, exposure to hazardous substances or dusts), or n psychosocial (poor work organisation).

Musculoskeletal injuries are the most common type reported for MVRM workshops. These injuries result from workers handling heavy or awkward objects, heavy lifting, and working in sustained awkward postures for lengthy periods of time. Slips, trips, and falls are the second highest cause of injury, usually from floors in poor condition. The changing industry, introducing electric and hybrid vehicles, presents new hazards associated with working with, and storing, electric energy.

Some examples of deaths associated with MvrM in recent years are:

n jack failure, vehicle fell on mechanic, n tyre fitter was struck by split rim assembly while inflating tyre, n operator working under an

unsupported tipper truck body was crushed when the hydraulic mechanism failed, and n visitor to the workshop fell into an open inspection pit.

While there is no doubt that there are many risks associated with vehicle maintenance work, these risks can be controlled. It is essential to put in place appropriate risk assessment procedures and adequate injury prevention measures to make sure workers are kept safe. The process of making sure MVRM activities are safe should start with proper planning before maintenance work begins. The control measures are well known, tried, and tested, and are generally about putting in place sensible, practical precautions.

The Health & Safety Authority has an information sheet which draws attention to the dangers of this industry. The guidance is aimed at anyone involved in motor vehicle repair and maintenance, working with both work vehicles and privately owned vehicles. It stresses the need for carrying out risk assessment by identifying the dangers of each work activity and putting in place safe ways of doing the work to reduce the chances of something going wrong.

It sets out samples of some of the more common hazards and control measures to show how to make risk assessments part of a safety management system. Most importantly, the guidance provides details of where employers can get information about dangers and control measures, to help them to put that safety management system into action.

The Safe Motor Vehicle Repair and Maintenance Information Sheet is available to download at https://www. hsa.ie/eng/publications_and_forms/ publications/work_related_vehicles/safemotor-vehicle-repair---info-sheet.pdf