Plant is a general term referring to machinery, equipment and appliances. Plant is present in most workplaces in some form, and includes items such as: forklifts, bulldozers, cranes, hoists, chain saws, scaffolding, boilers, power press, elevating work platforms, escalators, power tools, manufacturing equipment and machinery, ladders, lifts, amusement devices, filing cabinets, computer equipment, trolleys, plant under pressure (eg gas cylinders, pressure vessels), etc.
Plant is included in OHS legislation because of the potential injury which it can cause, such as crush injuries, hearing loss, burns, shock, fractures, sprains, strains, amputation, entanglement, and fatalities.
Each Australian state's and territory's plant safety legislation has been derived from nationally agreed standards designed to eliminate or minimise the health and safety risks arising from the use of plant, that is, machinery, appliences and equipment. This section is primarily based on requirements of the model Work Health and Safety Regulations which are applicable in all states and territories.
The plant safety provisions of the WHS Regulations set out the obligations of designers, manufacturers, importers, suppliers and people who install, construct or commission plant or structions, as well as the obligaions of persons conducting a business or undertaking involving the management or control of plant.
The
risk management provisions of the legislation requirerisks to be managed in accordance with the hierarchy of risk control, which means that as far as is reasonably practicable, plant safety hazards should be eliminated at the design stage.
This approach to plant means that everyone, from the designer to the end user has an obligation to ensure the plant is safe to use and is used in a safe manner.
In addition, for some types of equipmentm there is also a requirement to register the design for plant (for example, amusement devices, cranes and lifts), and to register the use of various items of plant with the state or territory WHS regulator.