Grinding Wheel Failures Can Lead To Serious Injury Or Death

Recently an Atlanta eye surgeon told one of the Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP that his group sees at least two new patients a month with serious eye injuries caused by grinding wheel accidents. Often times , the hazards of using a grinding wheel are overlooked. When using a grinder there are several potential hazards to of which you should be aware. They include: cuts and amputations; eye injuries from flying particles; punctures from work piece or debris; hearing loss from noise; and inhalation of toxic materials, including dust and silica.
Exploding grinding wheels pose a very serious risk to users. For instance, the United States Department of Labor published “A Partial List of Accidents Involving Grinders” for the period of 1990 through 1997. Out of 27 accidents, 7 of them resulted in death as a result of the victim being struck by pieces of a disintegrating grinding wheel.
In terms of grind wheel safety, there are several things to keep in mind.
* Grinding wheels have a shelf life and you should use grinding wheels within two (2) years of their manufacture date.
* Improper mounting of the wheel to the tool can cause the wheel to break.
* Using a wheel at a speed greater than that for which it was designed can lead to failure.
* Personal Protection Equipment should ALWAYS be used when using a grinder.
It is thought that one reason for the number of grinding wheel failures may be that many of them may now involve imported and inferior wheels. If you or a loved one has been seriously injured as a result of an exploding or disintegrating grinding wheel it is critically important to preserve as much of the evidence as possible, including the tool itself and the wheel fragments. The product liability lawyers at at Finch McCranie, LLP will be happy to consult with you about the case.