Tractor Parts and Working Safely With Farm Machinery

BUSINESS · UNITED KINGDOM

Tractor Parts and Working Safely With Farm Machinery

PTO safety, maintenance, buying parts and the statistics that matter

Agriculture has one of the highest fatal injury rates of any industry, and a small number of hazards account for most of it.

The power take-off

An unguarded PTO shaft turning at 540 revolutions a minute pulls in clothing faster than anyone can react, and the injuries are catastrophic. Guards must be present, undamaged and secured with the restraining chain.

Never step over a rotating shaft, never work on an implement with the engine running, and never operate with a guard missing because a job is quick.

Safe stop

Handbrake on, controls in neutral, engine off, key out. Before any adjustment, blockage clearing or maintenance, every time. Most machinery deaths involve someone approaching a machine that was left running.

Being run over and crushed

Vehicles overturning and people struck by moving machinery are leading causes of death on farms. Never carry passengers on a tractor without a proper seat, use the seat belt where a rollover structure is fitted, and check behind before reversing.

Children should be kept out of the working area entirely.

Maintenance

Chock wheels and use stands rather than a jack alone. Release hydraulic pressure before disconnecting lines, since a hydraulic injection injury is a surgical emergency.

Never search for a hydraulic leak with a hand.

Buying parts

Match the part to the machine's serial number rather than the model, since specifications change mid-production. Check whether a part is genuine, OEM or aftermarket, and what the warranty covers.

Working alone

Tell someone where you are and when you expect to finish, carry a phone, and agree a check-in. A great deal of farm work is done alone and a delay in being found turns an injury into a fatality.

Keep a first aid kit in the vehicle and know where the nearest access point for an ambulance is.

Livestock

Cattle are involved in a substantial share of farm deaths, particularly cows with calves and bulls. Plan an escape route before entering a pen, never turn your back, and keep the public out of fields with cattle where you can.

Protective equipment

Hearing protection around machinery, eye protection for anything that throws debris, sturdy boots with toe protection, and respiratory protection in grain and dusty buildings.

Children on farms

Children are killed on farms every year, usually by vehicles and machinery. A designated safe play area away from the working yard, and never allowing children to ride on tractors or trailers, are the two rules that matter most.

Under-thirteens must not operate agricultural machinery, and there are age limits on many tasks.

Records

Keep a service log and inspect PTO guards, brakes and hydraulics regularly.

WHERE TO BUY

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