06/17/15

Skid-Steer Loader Safety

A critical incident involving the operation of a skid-steer loader happened this past week in Indiana. Fortunately, the incident didn’t result in a fatality – but it could have easily.

Incident Summary

The operator was using a skid-steer loader with an attachment requiring several hydraulic hoses to power various parts. After the machine was in operation for a time, one of the hoses disconnected from the attachment. The operator stopped the machine and exited the cab to disentangle the hose, which had fallen between the attachment and the front tire. Once he freed and reconnected the hose to the attachment, he reentered the cab. As he did, his foot slipped and pressed down on the pedal control of the hydraulic system. This actuated the hydraulics and lifted the attachment suddenly. As the attachment lifted to full height, it crushed the operator in the pinch point between the lifting attachment and the cab structure. The operator sustained severe bruising to the upper body and head, along with deep lacerations to the right arm requiring emergency treatment.

Conditions

Observers said the operator wasn’t totally familiar with the controls of this particular type of skid-steer loader, and he left the machine running when he exited the cab. An examination of the skid-steer revealed that the seat belt was fastened and pushed to the back of the operator’s seat, and the parking brake wasn’t activated.

Root Causes

No one likes unexpected interruptions when they are focused on getting a job done. Interruptions can make many people feel impatient and aggravated. We typically want to eliminate the distraction and get on with the job as fast as possible. This impatient mind frame causes us to do things without thinking, and sometimes in a way that we might not ordinarily do them. This could lead us to take risks that we normally wouldn’t take – like in this case when the operator left the engine running and didn’t activate the emergency brake. The hydraulics would not have engaged when he slipped on the pedal if the operator had taken these two steps.

Sometimes, workers with years of experience become overconfident in their ability to do a task – even if it’s a task they don’t do regularly. A worker may have operated a variety of machines, but that doesn’t guarantee expertise on every machine, especially newer models with reconfigured controls. New machines and tools are often changed and improved, and workers need to familiarize themselves with the safe and correct operating procedures for each one.