Updated child labor provision for operating waste equipment

Because operating our equipment safely is a top priority at SP, it is important that we help spread the word on the latest labor laws pertinent to our industry.   

The US Department of Labor has published an important child labor provision regarding the operation of waste equipment by persons under the age of 18. The new law prohibits minors less than 18 years of age from loading, operating, and unloading power-driven paper processing machines, including all balers and compactors, guillotine paper cutters or shears, platen printing presses, and envelope die-cutting presses. There are limited exceptions that allow 16 and 17 year olds to load, but not operate or unload certain scrap paper balers and paper box compactors if the following requirements are met:

1. The equipment meets one of the following the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standards:

• ANSI Standard Z245.5-1990
• ANSI Standard Z245.2-1992
• ANSI Standard Z245.5-1997
• ANSI Standard Z245.2-1997
• ANSI Standard Z245.5-2004
• ANSI Standard Z245.2-2004
• ANSI Standard Z245.5-2008
• ANSI Standard Z245.2-2008

2. The equipment contains a poster or notice that:

• Identifies the specific ANSI standard that the equipment meets
• States that 16- and 17-year-olds may only load the equipment
• States that no one under 18 years old may operate or unload the equipment

3.The equipment must include an on/off switch with a key-lock or other system, and the control of the system must be in the custody of employees 18 years of age or older.


4. The on/off switch must be maintained in the off position when the equipment is not in operation.


5. The equipment cannot be operated while it is being loaded.

For more information, visit the Department of Labor website at http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs57.htm

SP President Denny Pool Talks ANSI Standards

ANSI standards for Stationary Compactors are constantly changing to maintain the utmost safety in manufacturing, installation, and operation. The newest version of Z-245.21 will be called Stationary Compactors – Safety Requirements for Manufacturing and Reconstruction, and the newest version of Z-245.2 will now be called Stationary Compactors – Safety Requirements for Installation, Training, Maintenance, Operation, Modification, and Repair. These standards cover ALL installers. Moreover, ANY person or company that reconstructs/rebuilds a unit, or maintains, operates, modifies, or repairs a unit shall comply with these standards.


These two standards cover construction, component requirements, testing, safeguards, guarding, containers, cart lifters, auto starting, markings or labels, lock-out/tag-out, confined space, adequate clearance, operation, training, and more. The only way to truly know them is to read them.

Everything in these standards is important, but I’d like to refresh your memory of a couple points to which you should pay extra attention.

ANSI/NFPA 70-2009 NEC Section 110 is a normative reference that discusses adequate clearances around and ingress/egress of electrical equipment.

NFPA-70E Electrical Safety in the Workplace covers all electrical systems to be protected from ARC FLASH/BLAST as well as procedures to follow for protection.

Section 5.4 Controls states: “A lockable mechanism (e.g. interlock, key lock switch) shall be provided at the discharge end of a compactor to prevent activation of the compaction cycle when the container is being exchanged if the discharge end is not visible from the operator controls.”

Section 5.9 Guarding states that protection for personnel shall be provided when contacting ANY moving parts or MATERIAL loaded at the point of operation or other mechanical operation’s. There are three different methods explained in the standard, one of these must be accomplished completely, not just in part. This means that even though you have a 42” high load lip, you do not automatically comply if you can still touch the ram or material movement. You must still provide 84” of clearance away from materials or equipment in order to comply. This has been an OSHA regulation since 1970 for machine guarding and walking working surfaces.

Section 5.12 states that “continuously operating and unattended compactors with automatic start-up systems shall have start-up alarms both audible and visible.” If you supply or have a compactor that can start automatically without someone performing a manual task (e.g. turning a key, pushing a button, closing & locking a door) it shall have an auto-start-up alarm system. These types of systems are explained in this section.

Lastly, there are some additions to the Signage or Decals section. New decals for Lock-out/Tag-out, Confined Space, ARC Flash/Blast, and Beware of the Hazard have replaced old decals and alert people to the different hazards in and around stationary compactors.

ANSI standards have been requirements in our industry since 1975 so if you’ve never heard of these safety standards or are not aware of the changes, it is time to become very familiar with them. Knowing and applying them will save lives and money.

Reading the standards from start to finish is the best way to understand everything that is involved with this equipment. The Normative references at the beginning tell you all the other published standards that also comply with this equipment. Next the definitions are designed to correlate to our environmental industry. They will explain the many differences between equipment and terms like reconstruction, modification, and/or repair.

Thank you for reading, and as always feel free to contact me with any questions/comments at 800.592.5959 or denny@sp-industries.com.
Denny Pool

“Greener” Recycling

The three R’s: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle have become a sort of social mantra that communities and households operate under to create environmental awareness and promote sustainability. What many people do not know is that these terms are part of a hierarchy. This means that one should first reduce or use less; whether you purchase fewer products, take shorter showers, turn off unused lights, or unplug unused chargers.


Next, reusing is a straightforward reference to using an item more than once for their original purpose. This is conventional reuse. But, with some creativity people can reuse everyday items for many different purposes. For instance, old CDs, toothpaste tubes, yard debris, and tires have several uses around the house: http://www.squidoo.com/reuse-everything

Finally, recycling refers to the processing of old products into new ones in order to reduce wasting valuable materials. One of the major concerns with recycling now-a-days speaks to the carbon footprint that results from transporting recyclables around the country and around the globe. Cars, garbage haulers, lorries, pettibones, and ships all use energy to transport recyclables and it is important that this “environmental cost” does not outweigh the costs and energy saved throughout the recycling process.

One major change that can take place to reduce carbon emissions is simply taking less trips. Naturally, taking less trips and maximizing the efficiency of waste transportation requires packing waste containers as full as possible. Whether traveling overseas or across town, recycling is simply “greener” when more waste is transported less often. On the commercial and industrial levels, SP Industries prides itself on manufacturing the highest quality compaction systems that maximize the load size of containers in waste transportation.

Ultimately, following through with the three R’s takes personal sacrifice and being conscious of the carbon footprint your lifestyle produces. Another challenge should be for people to re-think or “pre-cycle” by reconsidering what they are purchasing, how it can be disposed of, and whether other products or services are better alternatives.

Do you have any creative ways that you have reused household products? What environmental considerations do you think are most important when you make purchases?

Recycling That Starts Small and Finishes Big

A great deal of what we read, talk about, and learn is found online. The explosion of mediated communication over the last 15 years is best understood by looking at the exponential increase in texts, emails, and video chats sent every year. Meanwhile, hard copy books are still being printed, magazines are still published weekly or monthly, and snail mail and fax machines are still around. And, of course, millions of newspapers still roll off production lines daily.

Obviously, it is important to remember that these old media can and should be recycled. In fact paper makes up over 30% of all recyclables in the United States every year. Newsprint and office paper are two of the largest sources of scrap paper in the US adding to the 68 million total tons produced each year. The reason newspapers stand out among other types of paper grades such as magazines and telephone directories is that 89% of scrap newspaper is recovered and reused again in products like Scotch tape, lamp shades, coffee filters, insulation, and more newspapers.

What are your options for pitching in and making yesterdays news tomorrows news? Many schools and organizations have turned to old-fashioned paper drives to recycle newspapers, raise a bit of money, and ultimately help the environment. This takes partnering with a fundraising company and making a recycling dumpster available in your collection area. Next, you can arrange for a one time curbside pick-up of the dumpster or make this an ongoing fundraiser in which case you organize with a company that will pick up your container regularly. Here are other options for organizing your drive: http://bit.ly/10nlk0

On the commercial side, paper mills load semi-trailers with scrap newsprint. The more scrap that can be placed into a trailer equates to less trips to and from each mill during the recycling process. Our NP-165 Newsprint Loading System is designed to load trailers with up to 40,000 pounds of scrap newsprint and provide “hands free” processing at these mills. In turn, efficiently transporting scrap newsprint means an important reduction in a company’s carbon footprint.

So, while recycling efforts may start small with local paper drives, SP Industries helps them finish big by providing the most efficient means of transporting scrap newspaper. For more information visit http://www.bestcompactors.com/Newspaper_Loaders.htm and to watch how this happens visit http://bit.ly/k3zi0d

Have you coordinated any recycling efforts at work, school, or home? Let us know via comment, facebook, or Twitter how you have pitched in or any ideas you have for successful recycling campaigns.

It is Good to be Back!

After a minor break, we are now firing back up our blog posts, Facebook updates, and now, Twitter feeds! Yes, SP is now an active member of the Twitter community so feel free to follow us @SP_Industries for useful information about our products, photos, industry news, and insights from our interesting Parts Manager, Sid.  The entire team at SP is excited about opening up a conversation with our customers so don’t hesitate to comment, suggest, reply, message, email, like, call, or follow us.