Wednesday, September 21, 2011

New Guidance on Preventing Nail Gun Injuries


OSHA and NIOSH have released Nail Gun Safety – A Guide for Construction Contractors to help construction employers and workers prevent work-related nail gun injuries. According to OSHA, nail gun injuries lead to 37,000 emergency room visits each year. While nail guns are reportedly easy to operate and increase productivity, injuries can occur as a result of unintended nail discharge, and nails that bounce off a hard surface or miss the work piece and become airborne. Key preventive measures include using full sequential trigger nail guns, establishing proper work procedures and providing workers with PPE.