Know the winder danger zones and related safety equipment

Working in the winder area involves risk to operators and maintenance personnel. Guards and warning lights and horns help to improve safety, but workers must always be aware of the risks involved in each section of the winder.

Overview: guarding, fencing and warning alarms

Moving parts such as drive shafts, couplings, brakes and belts are typically equipped with fixed guards. When a potentially dangerous device does not have a guard, the area around it should be surrounded with a safety fence or light curtain.

Areas inside safety fences can only be accessed through gates. Some safety gates are locked and will not open until dangerous machine sequences have been completed. Other gates are not locked, but will stop or slow machine actions when opened. Gates and light curtains typically require deliberate resetting of the safety relay circuit before normal machine operation may resume.

Acoustic alarms are typically used to warn personnel when crawl speed is initiated. The alarm is sounded for about 5 seconds. Machine action is delayed a little longer to allow personnel to leave the vicinity of the winder.

Emergency stop controls are located at control desks, at the most important field control boxes and on the winder frame. 

NOTE: Emergency stops are intended for emergency situations only and must never be used for normal stopping. Do not hesitate to use them if human beings are in imminent danger.

• Leave gates open when someone is working in the protected area. Only close and acknowledge a gate after checking that no one is in the protected area.
• Stay out of fenced areas while the machine is running and during loading/unloading of parent rolls and spools.
• Never use emergency stops for normal stopping.
• Make sure that sensors (i.e. limit switches and photoeyes) and actuators (i.e. cylinders, motors and solenoids) are in working order. Do not defeat or circumvent any safety device.
• Do not operate the winder without guards in place.
• Make sure to lock-out the machine before performing maintenance. 

NOTE: Valmet supplies lockable ball valves in hydraulic valve panels for mill personnel use.

Typically, air supply shut-off valves can be locked out with a padlock, and have an air vent. This allows the maintenance person to know that pneumatic energy has been removed and is locked out for the duration that work is done on the machine. Follow mill specified lock-out procedures.

Unwind section

Be careful during spool transfers; spools are heavy. Falling or rolling spools may cause death or severe crushing injury.

All personnel must leave the vicinity of the unwind during spool transfers. Stay out of the area between the rails or unwind stands.

Only experienced crane operators should transport spools. Never lift spools over personnel.

Do not attempt to lift a spool out of the unwind stands before the spool is uncoupled from the drive and unclamped from the stand.

Slitter section

Disable the top slitters before working near slitters in the machine. The slitter motors safety switch must be turned off before working on slitters.

Before changing a top slitter, turn off the air supply to the on/off actuator using the manual directional valves.

Slitters are sharp! Wear appropriate gloves when working with the slitters and exercise caution.

Automatic slitter positioning equipment can move without warning. Make sure that safety devices (such as light curtains/photocells) are functioning properly.

Winding section

Stay out of the vicinity of the rider roll while it is moving or during operation.

During operation, observe the nips between the rider roll and the roll set. If the rider roll loses contact with the set or if the rolls begin to vibrate, reduce running speed.

Make sure to use the correct length cores and that the ends are cut straight. Otherwise the cores may raise off the drums when the core chucks are closed.

Keep the core chucks open during threading.

Do not stand in front of the lowering cradle while the rolls are being lowered to the floor. The rolls are free to move in the lowering cradle area, which increases the risk of injury.

Make sure that the roll barrier is functioning.

Beware of the cut-off knife. It is sharp. Do not use the cut-off knife if the web is wound around the rear drum. Remove the web from around the drum before using the knife.

Do not touch the core loader or the cores inside the core loader while filling the core loader. The core loader may close automatically once it reaches full capacity.

Make sure to lock-out the core loader before performing maintenance on the roll ejector.

Before correcting any core feeding problems, lock-out the core feeder and return the core pusher to its home position.

Web threading

Beware of nips while threading, especially between guide rolls and web threading devices. Do not exceed crawl speed.

Keep clothing and all parts of the body away from the area between rotating rolls and stationary objects. There is a hazard of being drawn in or crushed by a rotating roll. Do not wear any loose clothing that could become entangled in the roll nips.

Never thread closed nips by hand.

Always keep the core chucks open during threading.

For more information on improving safety around your winder, contact your Valmet representative.