Talking about Tractors and Implements In an average year more than five people are killed using farm tractors. If you own or work with tractors, it’s important to be aware of the risks they pose and to know how to manage those risks. A person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health and safety of workers, and that other persons are not put at risk by its work. Risks that arise from work must be eliminated so far as is reasonably practicable. If a risk can’t be eliminated, it must be minimised so far as is reasonably practicable.
KEY POINTS
• Operators must be trained/experienced
Other risks are: • tractor fires
• working under raised loads
• touching overhead power lines • noise-induced hearing loss
• slips, trips and falls while getting on and off the tractor. Being safe at work is important. It is a responsibility shared by both the employer and the employee.
enough to do the job
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ISSUE 62 / SEPTEMBER 2021
and move in the vicinity of the implement. A PTO shaft rotates at a speed of
either 540 rpm (9 rotations per second)
or 1,000 rpm (16.6 rotations per second). At these speeds, a person’s limb can be pulled into and wrapped around a PTO stub or driveline shaft several times
before the person, even a person with
persistent hazard on farms
Injuries that can be sustained from PTO
incidents include severe contusion, cuts, spinal and neck injuries, dislocations,
broken bones, and scalping. A fatality is very likely when entanglement occurs.
• Never jump on or off a moving tractor
• people being tangled in implements and machinery.
enabling an operator to leave the tractor
lack of proper guarding make PTOs a
• Ensure power take-off (PTO) shafts and connections are guarded and keep clear when it is engaged
• people being run over
are operated in a stationary position,
fast rotation speed, operator error, and
• Do not carry passengers on tractors that do not have instructor seats, ROPS, and safety belts
• tractors rolling over
grain augers, silage blowers, and so on,
extremely fast reflexes, can react. The
• Always wear a seatbelt if the tractor has a Roll-Over Protective Structure (ROPS)
The main types of accidents involving farm tractors are:
of farm equipment, such as elevators,
POWER TAKE OFF (PTO) SAFETY A power take-off (PTO) shaft transfers mechanical power from a tractor to an implement (shown above). Some PTO-driven equipment is operated from the tractor seat, but many types
The main PTO hazards involve the PTO stub and driveline.
PTO STUB
The tractor’s stub output shaft, referred to as a PTO stub, transfers power from the tractor through a drive shaft to the
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