Hand & Power Tools : Tools & equipment fundamentals ~ Automotive As well Hottest Cars

Tools & equipment fundamentals:
Lockout/tagout
Cleaning tools & equipment
Identifying defective equipment
Compressed air equipment
Rolling road & brake testing equipment
Batteries & chargers
Vehicle inspection pits
Wheel & tire safety

Lockout/tagout
Lockout/tagout is specific set safety related practices and procedures which reduce the risk of harm from the unexpected activation of machinery or energization of electrical systems during maintenance activities. These procedures require workers engaged in service activities to disconnect the affected systems and either lock or tag the systems to prevent them from being reactivated by other workers who are unaware of the maintenance.
Standardized lockout/tagout procedures are mandated by workplace safety regulations by legislation in most countries. see your local legislation for specific practices in your location.

Cleaning tools & equipment

Part 1. Preparation and safety
Objective

Demonstrate the correct procedure for keeping work areas and equipment clean and operational.

Personal safety
Whenever you perform a task in the workshop you must use personal protective clothing and equipment that is appropriate for the task and which conforms to your local safety regulations and policies. Among other items, this may include:

Work clothing - such as coveralls and steel-capped footwear

Eye protection - such as safety glasses and face masks

Ear protection - such as earmuffs and earplugs

Hand protection – such as rubber gloves and barrier cream

Respiratory equipment – such as face masks and valved respirators

If you are not certain what is appropriate or required, ask your supervisor.
Safety check

Some cleaning agents are toxic. Refer to the MSDS on any cleaning agent and follow any recommendations before using it.

Do not use flammable cleaners or water on electrical equipment.

Make sure designated walkways are kept clear of any obstructions.

Always wear protective clothing and the appropriate safety equipment.

Make sure that you understand and observe all legislative and personal safety procedures when carrying out the following tasks. If you are unsure of what these are, ask your supervisor.

Points to note

Clean tools and equipment work more efficiently. At the end of each working day clean the tools and equipment you used and check them for any damage. If you note any damage, tag the tool as faulty and organize a repair or replacement.

Electrical current can travel over oily or greasy surfaces. Keep electrical power tools free from dust and dirt and make sure they are free of oil and grease.

All workshop equipment should have a maintenance schedule. Always complete the tasks described on the schedule at the required time. This will help to keep the equipment in safe working order.

Store commonly used tools in an easy-to-reach location. If a tool, or piece of equipment, is too difficult to return, it could be left on a workbench or on the floor where it will become a safety hazard.

Keep your work area tidy. This will help you work more efficiently and safely.

Have a waste bin close to your work area and place any waste in it as soon as possible.

Dispose of liquid and solid waste, such as oils, coolant and worn components, in the correct manner. Local authorities provide guidelines for waste disposal with fines for non-compliance.

When cleaning products lose their effectiveness they will need to be replaced. Refer to the suppliers' recommendations for collection or disposal. Do not pour solvents or other chemicals into the sewage system. This is both environmentally damaging and illegal.

Always use chemical gloves when using any cleaning material because excessive exposure to cleaning materials can damage skin.

Some solvents are flammable. Never use cleaning materials near an open flame or cigarette.

The fumes from cleaning chemicals can be toxic, so wear appropriate respirator and eye protection wherever you are using these products.

Part 2: Step-by-step instruction
Clean hand tools
Keep your hand tools in good, clean condition with two sets of rags. One rag should be lint-free to clean or handle precision instruments or components.
The other should be oily to prevent rust and corrosion.

Clean floor jacks
Wipe off any oil or grease on the floor jack and check for fluid leaks. If you find any, top up the hydraulic fluid.
Occasionally, apply a few drops of lubricating oil to the wheels and a few drops to the posts of the safety stands.

Clean electrical power tools
Keep power tools clean by brushing off any dust and wiping off excess oil or grease with a clean rag.
Inspect any electrical cables for dirt, oil or grease, and for any chafing or exposed wires.
With drills, inspect the chuck and lubricate it occasionally with machine oil.

Clean air powered tools
Apply a few drops of oil into the inlet of your air tools every day. Although these tools have no motor, they do need regular lubrication of the internal parts to prevent wear.

Clean hoists and heavy machinery
Locate the checklist or maintenance record for each hoist or other major piece of equipment before carrying out cleaning activities.
You should clean operating mechanisms and attachments of excess oil or grease.

Identifying defective equipment

Part 1. Preparation and safety
Objective

Demonstrate warning procedures for isolating vehicles and equipment.

Personal safety
Whenever you perform a task in the workshop you must use personal protective clothing and equipment that is appropriate for the task and which conforms to your local safety regulations and policies. Among other items, this may include:

Work clothing - such as coveralls and steel-capped footwear

Eye protection - such as safety glasses and face masks

Ear protection - such as earmuffs and earplugs

Hand protection – such as rubber gloves and barrier cream

Respiratory equipment – such as face masks and valved respirators

If you are not certain what is appropriate or required, ask your supervisor.
Safety check

Do not use tools and equipment that have been tagged as faulty.

Make sure that you understand and observe all legislative and personal safety procedures when carrying out the following tasks. If you are unsure of what these are, ask your supervisor.

Points to note

Lock out and tag out procedures have been developed to prevent avoidable and unnecessary workshop accidents.

The tag notifies other users that the tool or component is dangerous to use. Any equipment that is found to be faulty needs to be identified so that other users are not put at risk. Write the fault, the date and your name on the tag. Attach the tag to the tool. Smaller equipment should also be tagged and placed in a location where it is not forgotten. Notify your supervisor so that repairs or a replacement can be organized.

If a machine is faulty, the tag out process is slightly different. Large workshop equipment is permanently wired to the electrical supply, and it will have an isolation switch that will disconnect the electrical power. A defect tag should be placed on the isolation switch as well as the equipment. Turn the machine off at the power and master switches, attaching the tag in a manner that prevents the switches from being turned on. Once again, notify your supervisor so repairs can be arranged.

The lock out and tag out procedure is also used to notify other technicians that a vehicle is not drivable.

Your workshop will have a procedure to lock out and tag out a vehicle. It will involve the technician filling out a defective vehicle label stating the nature of the defect, name of the technician and date and time of the defect.

If you remove the vehicle keys, do not keep them in your pocket or on your workbench. Attach a label or tag to the keys that identifies the vehicle they belong to and store them in a secure key cupboard.

If a vehicle is going through a relearn process (the car's computer communicating with another computer), it may be necessary to leave the ignition "on" for many hours. In this case, tag the vehicle with instructions to leave the ignition "on", otherwise a passing technician may inadvertently turn it off.

If a vital component has been removed for service, it may not be obvious to a casual observer. It is necessary to tag the vehicle, to notify others of the defect, remove the ignition key and store it in a safe place.

Ask your supervisor to demonstrate the lock out and tag out process used in your workshop, and show you the location of the key cupboard.

Part 2: Step-by-step instruction
Tag faulty hand tools
Basic workshop tools that are broken or worn should be replaced.
Make sure you tag the tool as faulty or broken and do not use it until you buy a replacement. Then discard the tool.

Tag faulty power tools
Other tools that have been identified as faulty, due to failure of parts, should also be tagged and set aside.
The tool can only be used again after an authorized agent has made the repair.

Fill out disabled vehicle warning notice
Isolation tags are also used on disabled vehicles or vehicles undergoing a repair.
In this case you will have to locate and complete the “Disabled Vehicle” warning notice.
Write the registration number of the vehicle.
Then the nature of the defect.
Write your name.
Then the date and time you completed the notice.
Attach the notice to the driver’s window or the steering wheel.

Store the keys
Remove the keys, if necessary, and lock the vehicle.
Attach a tag to the keys that identifies the vehicle they belong to.
Store the keys in a key cupboard and notify your supervisor.

Compressed air equipment

Compressed air can kill
Serious, sometimes fatal injuries can be caused by compressed air being injected into the body through the skin or into a body opening, such as your mouth or ear. Internal human blood vessels and organs will rupture at much lower pressures than those found in compressed airlines.

Treat compressed air with respect
Compressed air is quite capable of penetrating ordinary work clothes as well as your skin, so always handle air equipment carefully and with respect. Be extra careful when working with air equipment in a confined or awkward space, such as in or under a vehicle, and when clearing or cleaning the equipment. Do not ever play with air equipment.

Check breathing apparatus
Compressed air equipment is sometimes used to supply breathing air to respirators. Before using one of these devices, check that you know how to operate it correctly, and that the correct filters are in place.

Seek medical advice if a penetration injury occurs
If air, or paint, or any other substance, is injected into someone’s body, it is not always easy to tell how much damage has been done, so always seek medical advice if any kind of penetration injury occurs
Rolling road & brake testing equipment
Serious injuries can result from technicians attempting to make adjustments to vehicles while they are on a rolling road that is moving. A rolling road should always be stationary before making adjustments to the vehicle.

Access to the area where testing is carried out should be restricted during testing. Where this restriction is difficult to maintain, guards should be fitted to the sides of the rolls.
“Dead man’s controls” should be fitted to rolling roads and functional during testing.

Batteries & chargers

A battery has a big kick!
Motor vehicle batteries can give you a powerful shock – remember, they have to deliver enough power to turn over a cold engine. They produce enough power to melt a metal rod resting across the terminals, so always treat batteries with care and respect.

Take off rings, watches, and bracelets
Always remove your hand or wrist jewelry before working with batteries. If it comes into contact with the battery terminals it can cause a short circuit. You will receive painful skin burns from the very rapid heating of the metal you are wearing, or even flash burns from arcing current. A wristwatch is much harder to take off if it is melted to your arm!

Batteries create explosive gas
Batteries give off hydrogen gas while they are being charged, and for some time afterwards. Hydrogen is a light and highly explosive gas that is easily ignited by a simple spark. Batteries are also filled with sulphuric acid, so if the hydrogen does explode, the case can rupture and spray everything and everyone nearby with this dangerous and corrosive liquid.

Be extra careful when charging a battery
Be very careful not to create a spark when you are connecting or disconnecting a charger to the battery terminals. Clean the battery terminals and the charger’s crocodile clips, and switch off the charger before connecting and disconnecting them from the battery.

Wait for the battery to cool down
Do not try to charge a battery faster than the battery manufacturer recommends, and you should never use a battery discharge tester immediately after charging a battery. This is because charging and rapidly discharging a battery both generate heat, and if you do not wait for a battery to cool down after charging it before discharge testing it you will increase the risk of distorting the plates inside the battery, as well as increase the risk of explosion.
Vehicle inspection pits

Pits trap flammable vapor
Fuel, paints, and solvents can all give off flammable vapors that are heavier than air. Like water, these vapors tend to flow down and accumulate in places like vehicle inspection pits, increasing the risk of explosion and polluting the breathable air.

Use air tools instead of electric tools
Unless bulkier and more expensive explosion-protected power tools are available in your workshop, the only safe power tools to use in an inspection pit are the air-powered type which will not cause sparks that could ignite flammable gases.

Don’t take a hand lamp down a pit
Even low voltage hand lamps can still set off an explosion, so, where possible use an explosion-protected lamp that will not break even if it is dropped two meters. Lighting units in an inspection pit should be sealed behind toughened glass or polycarbonate and set into the pit walls so that falling objects will not damage them.

Pits are very easy to fall into
Many people have been injured falling into pits, even when they have been working in or near the pit for a long time. When there is no vehicle over the pit, you should fence it or place boards over the top to stop people from accidentally stumbling into it. If you have to leave a pit unguarded, do so for the shortest possible time, leave the pit lights on so that it is more likely to be noticed, and restrict general access to that work area.
Wheel & tire safety

Safety precautions

Always use correct lifting techniques when lifting a tire on and off a vehicle or a tire changer.

Never weld or flame cut a wheel to which a tire is still attached.

The tire tread comes in contact with many unknown substances that are transferred directly to your hands. For this reason it is recommended you wear protective gloves when handling tires.

If you do not wear gloves, wash your hands after the tire change is complete and before eating.

Always wear protective clothing and the appropriate safety equipment.

Make sure that you understand and observe all legislative and personal safety procedures when carrying out the following tasks. If you are unsure of what these are, ask your supervisor.

Deflating and removing tires

An inflated tire is a pressure vessel that must be treated with care and respect.

Raise and support the vehicle safely.

Use the correct well-maintained tools for removing wheel nuts and levering the tires off the wheels

Always fully deflate the tire before performing any repair tasks, by removing the valve core.

When removing a tire from a wheel, keep your hands clear of the bead breaker when it is operating. It applies great force to the tire that will cause you a severe injury if your hand is trapped.

Re-inflating and balancing tires

When the tire is being inflated, use an inflator that allows you to stand clear of the tire. This should have at least two meters of airline between the clip-on chuck and the inflator control.

The inflator should have a “dead man’s hand” control so that it stops inflating when you release the pressure on the inflator lever.

Keep hands and body away from the area of the tire.

Inflate a new or refitted tire without replacing the valve core first. This is so the tire can be inflated slowly and safely until both beads seat against the rim

Over inflated tires can explode. When a tire explodes, the tire, rim or components from the tire changer may cause serious injury or death to any person nearby. Do not inflate the tire to a pressure greater than 300 kilopascals or 45 pounds per square inch

Do not come into contact with the rotating wheel during balancing. This can result in friction burns or more serious injuries.