Occupational Safety, Health and Environment
What this domain tests
This domain checks whether you can identify hazards in a sewing or textile unit and choose controls in the right order. Expect questions on machine guarding, electrical safety, chemical handling, ergonomics, fire response and waste management.
Core rules and concepts
- Hazard vs risk: a hazard is the potential source of harm; risk is the likelihood and severity of harm from it.
- Hierarchy of controls: elimination → substitution → engineering controls → administrative controls → PPE. PPE is the last line of defence, not the first.
- Machine safety: guards on pulleys, belts, flywheels and needle areas; needle guards; two-hand controls where required; lockout/tagout before maintenance or needle change.
- Electrical safety: earthing, insulated cables, no daisy-chained extension boards, dry hands and floors, trained electricians only.
- Chemicals: dyes, mordants and solvents need labels, MSDS/SDS access, gloves, eye protection, ventilation and separate storage.
- Fire: remove fuel, oxygen or heat. Use water/foam for Class A solids, CO₂ or dry powder for electrical and flammable-liquid risks, and never water on live electrical equipment.
- Ergonomics: adjustable chairs, footrests, correct table height, micro-breaks and task rotation reduce musculoskeletal strain.
- Environment: segregate fabric waste, reuse cut pieces, control dust and lint, and treat dyehouse effluent before discharge.
Worked example
An unguarded rotating pulley has likelihood 4 and severity 5 on a 1–5 scale. Risk score = 4 × 5 = 20 (high). Fitting a fixed guard is an engineering control that reduces likelihood to 1: new score = 1 × 5 = 5 (low). Giving workers gloves alone would not control the entanglement hazard.
Traps that cost marks
- Listing PPE as the main control instead of last resort.
- Using water on an electrical fire.
- Treating a near miss as unimportant because no one was injured.
- Ignoring ergonomic hazards because they do not cause immediate accidents.