Four Elements Of Workover Rig Safety
Workover rigs are a must for any oil or gas production operation. While these massive tools are a requirement and highly beneficial, they also pose a number of significant injuries, especially when it comes to operator safety. If you're in the market for a workover rig, you can check out suppliers like workoverrigs.com.
Prior to purchasing a workover rig for your site, it's essential you know what safety concerns exist, so that you can work to minimize these hazards.
Daily Inspections
A workover rig should not be operated until it has undergone an inspection. The inspection must be performed each day to ensure optimal safety and should include a visual inspection of the operator platform, control panel, and setting readings. If any of these areas are not fully functional, the rig should not be operated until the necessary repairs have been made.
Hand Placement
Workover rigs can transfer hundreds of thousands of pounds of pressure at one time. In most instances, the transfer of this power is seamless. However, there are instances where a problem can trigger a blowback or backflow of pressure. If an operator is not paying attention and has their hands to close to the rig, the blowback can crush or amputate their hands or fingers. The operator must be conscious of their hand placement at all times.
Safety Equipment
Oil and gas are dangerous elements, and any level of exposure to these substances can be problematic. Just as pressure block back can occur in some instances, there are also scenarios when some of the poisonous gases from below the Earth's surface can travel upward through the rig. All operators who are standing on the platform should wear the proper safety gear at all times to protect themselves from ingesting these gases. It's equally important that anyone working in the vicinity of the rig also wear this gear as the gases can travel.
Routine Training
Working in the oil and gas industry is a lot of hard work. For this reason, it's common for site management to deal with somewhat of a revolving door of workers. It's essential you go over these, and other, safety tips routinely to ensure that all employees are on the same page as it pertains to workover rig safety. Workers should not be authorized to operate within the vicinity of the workover rig without this safety training, as the dangers of these machines can affect more than just the operator.
Make sure you keep safety a top priority for your workover rig, and your entire site. After all, safety is essential to high performance.