A 15-Millimetre Gap: The Door Test That Keeps Injection Moulding Operators Out of the Danger Zone
Published on 10/20/2026 at 02:20 | Editorial boerse-global.de
Italian workplace-safety guidance is pushing plant managers to look again at the humble interlock switch on their injection moulding machines — and at the training paperwork behind it.
A report published by pmiservizi.it on 18 October 2026 sets the regulatory scene, tying machine-safety standards for plastics processing to the training modules now shaped by the 2025 State-Regions Agreement (Accordo Stato-Regioni 2025), the standing pact between Italy's national government and its regional authorities. The legal anchor is Decree DL 81/08, the consolidated occupational health and safety law that defines roles such as the workplace safety chief (RSPP), the deputy safety officers (ASPP) and the site safety coordinators (CSP/CSE). The piece names no deadlines or numeric thresholds of its own.
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Training under the framework is tiered by worker risk — low, medium and high (Lavoratori a rischio Basso/Medio/Alto) — and reaches every layer of a plant's hierarchy:
- external and in-house safety chiefs (RSPP),
- worker safety representatives (RLS/RLST),
- foremen and supervisors (Preposto),
- the employer (Datore di Lavoro).
Modules include job-specific instruction (Formazione Specifica) and refresher courses for Module B aimed at appointed RSPP and ASPP staff. A joint body (organismo paritetico) is charged with validating the training.
Where the paperwork meets the shop floor
Practical rules for running the machines themselves came in a separate report from diyifanwen.net on 19 October 2026. Its first principle is absolute: no body part and no object goes into moving machinery. Guards and protective devices stay where they are — removing or modifying them is off-limits.
Every shift begins with an inspection of the electrical, hydraulic and mechanical safeguards. Once production is running, the safety doors stay shut.
The document also spells out how to test the interlocks. Front-door switches (LS1/LS3), rear-door switches (LS2/LS4) and the mechanical lock (LS4a) are checked by cracking the door open 15 to 20 millimetres — the point at which switch LS1 must trip.
Maintenance carries its own drill: full disconnection from the mains, plus earthing at terminal E under the three-wire earthing rule. Hydraulic oil is highly flammable, so open flames are banned, and the oil pump must be switched off before any leak is dealt with. Cleaning raw material with high-pressure or high-speed equipment is not permitted either.
Upstream, the same discipline
Recycling equipment gets comparable treatment. For PET crushing and washing lines, xushimachinery.com issued its own guidelines on 18 October 2026, starting with thorough pre-start checks of mechanical condition, electrical insulation and earthing, and of every safety mechanism — emergency stop buttons, guards and interlocks included.
Operators must be trained, and personal protective equipment is mandatory: gloves, safety glasses and a mask. Before maintenance or fault-fixing, the line is stopped and fully de-energised.
Sustained operation depends on fixed maintenance schedules covering blades, conveyors, tanks and piping, backed by defined emergency plans for fires and power failures.
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