HANDLE MATERIALS

AND EQUIPMENT
Lesson 5
HANDLE MATERIALS AND
EQUIPMENT
Just because an irrigation system and related
equipment works doesn’t necessarily mean it is safe or
will fail in a safe manner. To ensure safety during
operation, maintenance, inspection and testing of systems,
employees must be aware of the potential hazards they
might be exposed to and understand safe work practices
necessary around these systems.
 OBJECTIVE
3.2. Maintain a clean and safe work site
while undertaking irrigation activities in
accordance with OHS procedures
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVE
3.2.3. Safe work practices around
irrigation systems
VOCABULARY LISTS
Irrigation – the supply of water to land or crops to
help growth, typically by means of channels.
Safety – the condition of being protected from or
unlikely to cause danger, risk or injury.
PRE ASSESSMENT
 SAFETY AROUND IRRIGATION SYSTEMS
General safety training for any type of system involves the
following areas:
– Understanding Equipment and Installation Requirements
(What systems look like).
– Identifying Common Hazards.
– Understanding Safe and Unsafe Work Practices.
– Communicating Unsafe Equipment and Installations to
Appropriate Entities.
 IRRIGATION SYSTEM SAFE WORK PRACTICES
- Wear appropriate clothing and use any necessary personal
protective equipment.
- Visually inspecting the equipment prior to touching.
• Look for unguarded drive-lines and other mechanical
hazards.
• Locate the equipment disconnect switches/devices.
• Look for broken or damaged equipment and electrical
insulation on cords and open or damaged electrical
enclosures.
 IRRIGATION SYSTEM SAFE WORK
PRACTICES
• Test the equipment (voltmeter and/or backhand)
• Disconnect energy sources prior to repair,
maintenance and testing.
• Practice Lockout/Tagout
 IRRIGATION SYSTEM ACCIDENTS
There are different types of potential accidents that can cause
injury or death when working on or around irrigation systems
including:
• Electrical Contacts/Accidents
• Contacts/Entanglements with Moving Parts
• Chemical Exposures/Poisonings
• Falls from the System
• Drowning
• Physical (Head, Eye, Ear, Hand & Foot) Accidents
 IRRIGATION PROBLEM AREAS
Typical irrigation accidents fall into the following three
categories or combinations including:
• Faulty Equipment and/or Installation by manufacturer, dealer
or installer.
• Equipment/Installation correct but modified or poorly
maintained by owner (state of disrepair).
• Unsafe work practices by individuals during maintenance,
repair and testing.
SAFE WORK PRACTICES
Even if the equipment and
installation is correct and the system
has been well maintained, people
still need to use safe work practices
to avoid the normal hazards
associated with operation of the
equipment.
SAFE WORK PRACTICES
Irrigation Safety Requirements
• Manufacturers must design equipment to safety
standards.
• Dealers must install equipment correctly.
• Owners, Irrigators and Service people must
maintain equipment correctly.
• Owners, Irrigators and Technicians must use
Safe Work Practices.
IRRIGATION SYSTEM HAZARDS INCLUDE:
1.Electrical Contacts – overhead power line contacts, short
circuits, working on energized equipment, lightning strikes.
2.Contact/Entanglement with Moving Parts – working on
energized equipment including PTO's, drivelines, gearboxes,
tires, etc.
3.Chemical Exposures/Poisonings – exposure vs ingestion
4.Falls from the System
5.Drowning- rivers, lakes, canals, ponds, pits, etc.
6.Physical Damage (Head, Eye, Ear, Hand & Foot)
DROWNINGS
Drowning are not a common source
of irrigation accidents. Accidents do
occur and the potential for hazard is
always there due to the amount of water
present with systems pumping from
lakes, rivers, streams, ponds, or pits.
DROWNINGS
Most accidents involve falls and
slips or recreational activities in water
bodies such as rivers, lakes, ponds, or
pits used for irrigation. Be aware of
possible fall and slip hazards when
working in the vicinity of bodies of
water such as rivers, lakes, ponds, and
pits used for irrigation.
 FALLS
Many irrigation systems are tall
enough that falls from their structure
can cause serious injury or death.
Depending on where a person falls from
the system, they may make contact with
structural members and other sharp
objects during the fall.
CHEMICAL EXPOSURE/POISONING
Increased use of chemigation/fertigation through
irrigation systems has resulted in increased numbers of
chemical exposures & poisonings. Chemical exposures
can be through exposure to system water, standing water,
or crops or drinking water from systems used for this
purpose.
ENTANGLEMENTS
Do not approach or work around unguarded power
takeoff shafts, belts and other and other power
transmitting devices. Alert others in the vicinity and the
owners or operators to the hazard.
Avoid wearing loose clothing or long hair in the
vicinity of rotating equipment.
ENTANGLEMENTS

Be alert to unguarded
power take-off shafts,
belts, and other power
transmitting devices.
ELECTRICAL CONTACTS
Electrical safety concerns related to irrigation systems are
important because:
• Pumps and other equipment operate in a wet or damp
environment increasing the chance of equipment failure if
parts become wet.
• Personnel working around this equipment are often wet or
damp so their susceptibility to electric shock is greater.
• Many of these systems may not have had proper
maintenance performed on them over the years.
ELECTRICAL CONTACT ACCIDENTS
• Faulty Equipment & Wiring Installations &
Maintenance.
• Unsafe Work Practices – Failure to turn off power
before working on system.
• Lightning
• Overhead Power Lines – Irrigation Pipe, Standing on
Systems, Spraying Water on Overhead Lines.
ELECTRICAL SAFETY
• Don’t let any part of your body be a path for electricity
to flow through you.
• Many pumping systems and water distribution systems
are electrically powered and many irrigation accidents
are the result of electrical contacts or not turning off the
power.
• Irrigation Systems should be wired to at least the
requirements of the National Electrical Code (NEC).
ELECTRICAL SAFETY
• Installation of the safest and best maintained electrical
system can still result in electrical accidents if unsafe
work practices are used by personnel performing repair,
maintenance or testing of the system.
• Safety Signs are required on electrical enclosures
containing live electrical parts and potentially hazardous
voltages to alert personnel performing repair &
maintenance to the potential hazard.
•
ELECTRICAL SAFETY

• The electrical voltage to most irrigation machines will

be 240 or 480 volts three phase.
LIGHTNING
• Stay away from self-propelled irrigation machines
during storms.
• The large metal structures make good paths to
ground and they tend to be large lightning
“receptors” due to their height in the field.
PRACTICE TASK 1
Safe Irrigation Plan
Layout a simple irrigation plan in the rice field. Consider the
safety factors in lay-outing the irrigation plan.
Scoring Rubrics
Composition – 45%
Skills and Technique – 20%
Organization – 20%
Creativity – 15%
Total 100%
PRACTICE
TASK 2
Be creative. Make your own
signage for safe work
practices around irrigation
systems
POST ASSESSMENT
ASSIGNMENT/ADDITIONAL
ACTIVITY

What are the importance of

irrigation to the farmers?
ANSWER KEY
Pre/Post Assessment
1.Electrical Contacts
a.Don’t let any part of your body be a path for electricity to flow through you.
b.Turn off power.
c.Irrigation Systems should be wired to at least the requirements of the National Electrical
Code (NEC).
d.Installation of the safest and best maintained electrical system can still result in electrical
accidents if unsafe work practices are used by personnel performing repair, maintenance or
testing of the system.
e.Safety Signs are required on electrical enclosures containing live electrical parts and
potentially hazardous voltages to alert personnel performing repair & maintenance to the
potential hazard.
ANSWER KEY
2. Contact/Entanglement with Moving Parts
a.Do not approach or work around unguarded power takeoff shafts, belts and other and
other power transmitting devices. Alert others in the vicinity and the owners or operators to
the hazard.
b.Avoid wearing loose clothing or long hair in the vicinity of rotating equipment.
c.Be alert to unguarded power take-off shafts, belts, and other power transmitting devices.
d.Industry standards require manufacturers to provide safety signs on motors/equipment
that could start automatically to alert personnel performing repair & maintenance to the
potential hazard and to shut off power before working on the system.
e.Never attempt to remove vegetation or other foreign materials from rotating equipment
while it is moving or the equipment is energized. ALWAYS shut down the machine for
repair or maintenance.
ANSWER KEY
3. Chemical Exposures/Poisonings-
a.Be careful of exposure to spray systems or crops under them when chemicals or
fertilizers have been injected into the water.
b.Don’t drink from any system used to apply chemicals.
c.Avoid areas of obvious chemical spills.
4. Falls from the System
a.Use a good ladder or stable lift
b.Safety sign for children
5. Drowning
a.Used safety sign
b.Be aware of possible fall and slip hazards when working in the vicinity of bodies of
water such as rivers, lakes, ponds, and pits used for irrigation.
ANSWER KEY
6. Physical Damage
a. Wear PPE
b. Avoid the exposure to hazards
QUIZ:
Direction: TRUE OR FALSE. Write T if the statement is True and F if it is not. Write your
answer on the blank before each number

_1. Do not stay away from self-propelled irrigation machines during storms.
_2. Wear appropriate clothing and use any necessary personal protective
equipment.
_3. Be alert to unguarded power take-off shafts, belts, and other power
transmitting devices.
_4. Most accidents involve falls and slips or recreational activities in water
bodies such as rivers, lakes, ponds, or pits used for irrigation.
_5. Don’t let any part of your body be a path for electricity to flow through
you.
 QUIZ ANSWER KEY
1. F
2. T
3. T
4. T
5. T
THANK YOU