!!STOP Beveling DIP with a cut-off saw immediately!!

[SeaMac]

Help me spread the word HEF,

I just got off the phone with a buddy of mine, his employer is getting sued and fined by OSHA to the point of extinction.

I was not aware of the OSHA Regulation until 15 minutes ago, it is NOW ILLEGAL to bevel Ductile Iron Pipe (DIP) or PVC pipe (C900, SDR etc) with a cut-off saw for ANY reason.

Seems one of my buddies coworkers had an abrasive wheel grenade on him while beveling 6" DIP and did permanent and major damage to the mans innards. Apparently it was enough damage to catch the eye of OSHA, once they conducted their investigation they informed the employer that since July 2010 such practice is illegal. Not only is OSHA fining the company but the coworker is suing them as well, with the fine and the suit the company is going to become extinct.

For whatever reason OSHA's website is not working for me but I did find a reference to the OSHA Regulation (OSHA letter #20090917-9171).

Further research found two alternatives to using the side of the wheel on a cut-off saw to bevel pipe. Bevel-Sert and Ductile Buddy

 

[OzDozer]

Let me get this right. The employee injured was using the cut-off wheel like a stone grinding wheel to bevel the pipe? - by using the SIDE of the cut-off wheel to grind on?

This is a big NO-NO, and this style of "incorrect use", is advertised in the safety info, of every cut-off wheel you buy. Cut-off wheels MUST only be used to CUT (not grind), at an angle of close to 90° to the item being cut.

Using the side of a cut-off wheel to grind items on, is a guaranteed way to have your cut-off wheel disintegrate in an explosive manner. The bigger the wheel, the bigger the flying chunks, and the higher the likelihood of personal injury.

 

[willie59]

Agreed, I think we need to establish what we are talking about, worker was beveling with an abrasive "cut off" blade as opposed to beveling with either an abrasive grinding disk or stone grinding wheel?

 

[BlazinSS934]

Also need to look at abrasive blade storage. Never store the blades with the gas can or other petroleum products. The vapors break down the adhesive in the blade and can cause a blade failure


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[DirtHauler]

Are you talking about beveling pipe like is seen in this video at 1:48 ? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vlts4Ry4fHI&feature=player_detailpage#t=102s
But with a fiber disk instead of the diamond one in the video?

 

[tuney443]

Are we talking about the thin metal or carbide disc or the wider carbide wheel here?

 

[digger242j]

Are you talking about beveling pipe like is seen in this video at 1:48 ? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vlts4Ry4fHI&feature=player_detailpage#t=102s
But with a fiber disk instead of the diamond one in the video?

That's exactly what I assumed SeaMac was talking about. It's been a couple of years since I had to do any pipe work, but that's the way we always did it. Did a fair bit of ductile, but I did tons of PVC that way.

(And 35 years ago, we did Asbestos Cement pipe the same way. There was a picture in the literature somewhere that showed using a cut off saw to cut it, and the caption read, "This procedure is not recommended." We wondered why. It seemed to work just fine... :beatsme)

Thanks, SeaMac. I'll be passing that along.


On edit:

For whatever reason OSHA's website is not working for me...

Me neither:

Oops! Internet Explorer could not find www.osha.gov

Firefox can't find the server at www.osha.gov.

 

[SeaMac]

Okay then,

OSHA's website is working again and yes, I was referring to "side-grinding" with an abrasive wheel on a cut-off saw. It's the only way I have ever done it and the only way I have ever seen it done in 26 years.

It appears the OSHA Reg only mentions abrasive wheels, we use diamond wheels with diamond grit on the sides specifically for side-grinding however, that will come to an abrupt end as well. Since there are far safer and economical alternatives now available why risk injury or possible death? I have always been aware and concerned that a grenading wheel of any material can very easily send a shard or fragment right through a femoral artery which will have you bleed out in short order with precious little chance of survival.

The moral of this story, if you're using abrasive wheels (not designed for side-grinding only cutting) and you're side-grinding ANYTHING you ARE risking too much, way too much.

Thanks HEF for your support and helping in getting the word out, most of us think of OSHA as a four letter word when in reality they generally only add reg's after enough people have been seriously injured or killed. We should always remember that...


OSHA letter:

July 22, 2010

Letter # 20090917-9271

Re: Hand-held gas-powered cut-off saws.

Question #1: Employees use hand-held gas-powered cut-off saws with abrasive blades to cut ductile iron pipe and then grind a bevel onto the cut end. Blade manufacturers specifically warn against this practice. Do OSHA construction standards prohibit this use of cut-off saws?

Answer #1:

Yes, OSHA construction standards prohibit the use of the cut-off saw in the manner that you describe.

29 C.F.R. 1926.303 (Abrasive wheels and tools) provides:

(d) . . . All abrasive wheels and tools used by employees shall meet . . . applicable requirements of American National Standards Institute, B7.1-1970, Safety Code for the Use, Care and Protection of Abrasive Wheels.
ANSI B7.1-1970 provides, in relevant part:

9.9 Side Grinding. Side grinding shall only be performed with wheels designed for this purpose.
Grinding a bevel onto the end of a cut ductile iron pipe is side grinding, because the cutting is taking place perpendicular to the cut surface. Wheels on cut-off saws are not designed for side grinding (or lateral pressure); they are constructed for radial pressure only. Indeed, you indicate in your letter that blade manufacturers specifically warn against use of the cut-off saw in the manner you describe. Thus, using a cut-off saw to grind a bevel onto the end of a cut ductile iron pipe is contrary to ANSI B7.1-1970 and prohibited by 29 C.F.R. 1926.303(d).

We note that you are located in Arizona, which administers its own OSHA-approved state plan. Such a state is required by law to have a program of standards and enforcement that is at least as effective as the federal OSHA requirements. However, it may enact more stringent requirements. Employers in that state are then required to follow the state's more stringent requirements. For specific information on Arizona's interpretation and enforcement policy with regard to your question, please contact:


Arizona Division of Occupational Safety and Health
Phoenix Office
800 West Washington Street, 2nd floor
Phoenix, Arizona 85007
Phone: (602) 542-5795
Fax: (602) 542-1614

If you need further clarification on this subject, please contact us by fax at: U.S. Department of Labor, Directorate of Construction, Office of Construction Standards and Guidance, fax # 202-693-1689. You can also contact us by mail at the above office, Room N3468, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210, although there will be a delay in our receiving correspondence by mail.


Sincerely,



Bill Parsons, Acting Director
Directorate of Construction

 

[JDOFMEMI]

Wow, that is eye opening. It has been common practise for years to bevel pipe that way. We always cautioned people to "cut" the bevel in, not to "grind" it in with the side of the blade, for all the reasons described, but you always end up using the side to smooth a rough spot or something.

Thanks to SeaMac for spreading the word.

 

[docdirt.net]

Wow, that is eye opening. It has been common practise for years to bevel pipe that way. We always cautioned people to "cut" the bevel in, not to "grind" it in with the side of the blade, for all the reasons described, but you always end up using the side to smooth a rough spot or something.

Thanks to SeaMac for spreading the word.

Yea, good to get that formally expressed by an authority.

OJT these days is not what it used to be related to the safety conditioning that has people automatically examining what they are doing to find dangerous aspects and make their own rules that do not model or create hazardous practices.

On second thought, we need more craftsmen that think things through and never misuse tools in such ways WITHOUT an authority dictating. Schools need to teach these things from early on as a way of avoiding injury/pain.

 

[OzDozer]

It behoves all of us with extensive experience, knowledge, and understanding - to warn younger co-workers, employees, and other equipment users, of the traps involved in using particular items of equipment.
Learning doesn't stop when you leave school or a trade college, or other educational institution - as many of these places of education still don't arm students with every piece of knowledge they need to survive.

As a result, it pays to never stop learning, it pays to never fail to take the good advice of older and wiser operators - and always treat high-powered, high-speed cutting/grinding devices, with the extreme care that they demand.
Of all the machines and equipment I have been around for nearly 50 years - high-powered, high speed cutting/grinding machines, feature in a very large, and very disproportionate number, of accidents involving injuries and fatalities.

 

[SeaMac]

I'm happy to see this thread's gaining some traction. In the same vein that being safety related, I would like to add this as well; If you're using wire rope (cable) chokers to lift and or handle pipe etc. be absolutely sure to check it EVERYDAY for frays or damage. Also, be darn sure it still has its tag attached to it. Nothing will get you like a cable choker turned "rattlesnake". Be safe HEF members.......always think before you move!

 

[wnydirtguy]

Glad I came across this. It was the way I was shown and the way it has been done for so long. Time to make some changes on how stuff is done. Thanks for bring it to our attention.

 

[Dozerboy]

I guess I'm not surprised. When I was learning to lay pipe I was told to always check the blades before each use. They had one almost come apart on a guy before I started. I saw the pic the blade was almost cracked in half. I have never seen a crack on one or on come apart myself.

 

[SeaMac]

Hi All,

Since this thread has again gained some traction I thought I would add some fresh and pertinent information. My company recently hired a new fuel/lube truck driver, on his first day at my crew's project I noticed he looked as if he had been on the receiving end -in a bad way- of a sword fight. I asked him what had happened, he informed me that five years ago while beveling DIP with an abrasive blade it grenaded on him and filleted his right cheek and apparently cost him his right eye as well. Food for thought. Be SAFE!