1.3.1 - General Safety

Objective: Follow Team 2064 and Region 15 shop rules before you touch a tool, a battery, or the robot.

Module 4: Fabrication Tools and Safety

Danger

This page is the general rule. It does not authorize you on a mill, lathe, or any other machine. A student cannot authorize another student. No mentor present, no equipment.

FIRST and Region 15 safety rules apply in the workshop, on the robot outside the workshop, and at any event where shop work is happening. A mentor, advisor, or staff member can require PPE at any time.

2064 Safety Guidelines

Member and parent safety guidelines as a team member.

Open the handbook

FIRST Safety Manual

FIRST official safety manual.

Open the FIRST manual

Required PPE

1. Glasses. ANSI-approved safety glasses in the shop, and when working on the robot anywhere. Wear them over prescription lenses.

2. Shoes. Closed toe and closed heel, substantial, whole foot covered. No flip-flops, sandals, mules, Crocs, or slippers. This applies on or near the robot, not only at a machine.

3. Hair and clothes. Hair tied back. No loose clothing. No hanging keychains or ties around the robot, tools, or power equipment. Gloves stay off power equipment. They catch.

4. Headphones and earbuds. Computer work only. One ear stays uncovered, and the volume stays low enough to hear the room.

Equipment

Do not run a machine you have not been trained on. Authorization comes from a staff member or advisor who is already authorized on that machine. A damaged or missing guard means the machine is out of service. Tell that advisor. Do not use it.

That covers the mill, the lathe, shop equipment, power tools, hand tools, and the 3D printers.

Energy

A robot that is not in use is off. Unused power sources disconnected. Batteries disconnected.

• Battery. Terminals clean, tight, and dry. A damaged or leaking battery does not go on anything. Tell an advisor. Use the spill kit. The kit is inspected once a year.
• Cables. A damaged cable gets reported to an advisor, mentor, or staff member. Do not tape it and keep going.
• Air. Stored tanks read zero when not in use. Then close the valves.

In the room and in the pit

No running. No horseplay. That includes mentors, staff, and volunteers.

Do not climb to an unsecured height over 4 feet. That includes the loft. A ladder is fully open and stable, no one stands on a step marked “Do not use,” and one person spots.

Lift with your legs. Ask a senior member or a mentor before you move something you are not sure of.

In the pit, children under 12 stay with an adult 18 or older. Visitors are brief, and they wear PPE and meet consent and release rules. Keep the pit to the people who need to be there. Electrical work stays neat.

If you see a safety problem on another team, help. That is part of the job.