Abstract

Wool or cotton carding machine operators and mechanics are frequently victims of upper limb accidents that are sometimes serious. Faced with very diversified machines, safety professionals have little information for eliminating hazards at source in the one hundred Québec plants where these machines are used. This study provided a better understanding of why and how workers perform operations on operating carding machines despite being aware of the risks involved. These observations also provided information on the maintenance, safety devices and accidents that occurred. Analysis of the information then identified the solution scenarios for making wool and cotton carding machines safe. Twenty solutions were identified for cotton carding machines and eighteen for wool carding machines. The solutions can be generalized to all the companies. Emerging as more problematic are the cleaning of the carding machine and its components and identifying dysfunctions.