Wood Chipper Operation Risk Assessment Template

Typical hazards & measures

• Communication failure in noisy environments — Confirm hand signals before work and practice them in briefing. Use radios or agreed visual signals when noise or PPE restricts speech. Pause work if signals unclear. Supervisors check crew understanding during operations.
• Kickback of branches — Prune forks and side branches to reduce snagging, stand to one side of the infeed, and keep stable footing. Use two-person control for awkward limbs. Do not force crooked lengths; let rollers grip and draw. Pause and re-present if movement becomes unpredictable.
• Foreign objects in brash — Survey and remove wire, fencing, stones and metal. Use a magnet sweep on yard arisings. Start with smaller test feeds from new piles; stop if vibration or noise changes. Record and brief on any finds before resuming.
• Flying debris — Establish a 15 m exclusion zone in the discharge direction, use barriers and a banksman, angle the chute away from people and glazing, and stop if anyone breaches the zone. Wear EN166 face/eye protection and long sleeves; inspect knives/anvils so chip size and throw are controlled.
• Inadequate briefing — Run a toolbox talk covering feed roles, stop signals, exclusion zones, traffic plan, and emergency stops. New starters shadow a competent operator. Supervisor completes dynamic reviews at breaks and after any deviation from plan.