BlueSafe
Printing Safety Risk Assessment

Printing Safety Risk Assessment

  • • 100% Compliant with Australian WHS Acts & Regulations
  • • Fully Editable MS Word & PDF Formats Included
  • • Pre-filled Content – Ready to Deploy Immediately
  • • Customisable – Easily Add Your Logo & Site Details
  • • Includes 2 Years of Free Compliance Updates

Printing Safety Risk Assessment

Product Overview

Identify and control organisational risks associated with Printing operations using this management-level Printing Safety Risk Assessment, focused on systems, governance and WHS planning rather than task-by-task procedures. This document supports executive Due Diligence, strengthens WHS Risk Management frameworks, and helps demonstrate compliance with the WHS Act while protecting your business from operational liability and enforcement action.

Risk Categories & Hazards Covered

This document assesses risks and outlines management controls for:

  • WHS Governance, Consultation and Safety Culture: Assessment of leadership commitment, consultation mechanisms, safety responsibilities, and the integration of WHS into printing business governance and decision-making.
  • Plant Procurement, Design and Modification Governance: Management of due diligence processes for selecting, installing and modifying printing presses and associated equipment, including lifecycle risk assessment and change management controls.
  • Guarding, Interlocks and Access Control Systems: Evaluation of engineering controls for printing machinery, including fixed and interlocked guarding, access restriction, verification of safety functions and inspection regimes.
  • Energy Isolation, Lockout/Tagout and Maintenance Systems: Protocols for isolating electrical, pneumatic, hydraulic and mechanical energy sources during maintenance, cleaning and fault-finding, including permit-to-work and authorised person controls.
  • Hazardous Chemicals, Solvents and Inks Management: Management of procurement, storage, labelling, decanting and use of inks, solvents, cleaning agents and other hazardous chemicals, including SDS management and substitution strategies.
  • Airborne Contaminants, Ventilation and Indoor Air Quality: Assessment of exposure to vapours, mists, fumes, dust and odours from printing operations, with controls for local exhaust ventilation, general ventilation, monitoring and maintenance.
  • Fire and Explosion Risk Management: Controls for flammable liquids, combustible dusts, ignition sources and hot surfaces, including segregation, hazardous area considerations, fire detection and suppression systems.
  • Machine Operation Competency, Training and Supervision: Systems for ensuring operators, setters and maintenance personnel are competent, authorised and supervised, with role-specific training and verification of competency.
  • Safe Work Procedures, Work Instructions and Standardisation: Development, implementation and review of documented procedures for set-up, operation, cleaning, clearing jams and shutdown of printing machinery and associated plant.
  • Manual Handling, Paper Roll Manipulation and Ergonomics: Management of risks from lifting, pushing, pulling and positioning paper reels, plates and consumables, including use of mechanical aids and ergonomic workstation design.
  • Fatigue, Workload and Shift Management: Assessment of extended hours, night shift, repetitive tasks and production pressures, with controls for rostering, breaks, staffing levels and workload planning.
  • Contractor, Labour Hire and Visitor Management: Systems for pre-qualification, induction, supervision and coordination of contractors, service technicians, labour hire workers and visitors in printing areas.
  • Emergency Preparedness, Response and First Aid: Planning for fires, chemical spills, entanglement, crush injuries and medical emergencies, including drills, equipment, first aid resources and communication protocols.
  • Housekeeping, Traffic Management and General Workplace Environment: Management of floor conditions, storage, accessways, forklift and pallet jack movements, lighting, noise and general amenity in and around printing plant.
  • Health Monitoring, Injury Management and Wellbeing: Systems for health surveillance where required, early reporting, rehabilitation, return-to-work and worker wellbeing in printing environments.

Who is this for?

This Risk Assessment is designed for Business Owners, General Managers, Production Managers and Safety Officers responsible for planning, governing and reviewing Printing operations across their organisation.

Hazards & Risks Covered

Hazard Risk Description
1. WHS Governance, Consultation and Safety Culture
  • • Lack of clear WHS policy specific to printing and finishing operations
  • • Insufficient board and senior management oversight of printing-related risks
  • • Poor consultation mechanisms with operators across shifts and sites
  • • Failure to integrate WHS Act 2011 due diligence duties into management roles
  • • Inadequate incident reporting and learning culture leading to under-reporting
  • • Confusion over responsibilities between host employer, labour hire and contractors
  • • No systematic review of WHS performance indicators for printing operations
2. Plant Procurement, Design and Modification Governance
  • • Procurement of Auto-Platen, Hand-Platen and Cylinder Die Cutters without adequate guarding or safety interlocks
  • • Balloon screen printer, C-screen and silkscreen curing equipment lacking proper engineering controls at purchase
  • • Large format digital printers and plotters supplied without emergency stop systems or safe access features
  • • Uncontrolled modifications to label presses, Heidelberg cylinder presses or curing systems bypassing original safety design
  • • Failure to obtain and retain manufacturer’s instructions, design verification, and conformity documentation
  • • Purchasing second-hand machinery without formal suitability and compliance assessment
3. Guarding, Interlocks and Access Control Systems
  • • Inadequate or missing fixed and interlocked guards on Auto-Platen, Hand-Platen and Condor cylinder die cutters
  • • Defeated or overridden interlocks on cylinder presses, label printing presses and curing tunnels
  • • Uncontrolled access to in-running nips, rollers, grippers and cutting areas
  • • Inadequate guarding around moving paper rolls and unwind/rewind systems
  • • Poorly designed access platforms and ladders around large format digital equipment
  • • Lack of lockable isolation points leading to maintenance conducted on live equipment
4. Energy Isolation, Lockout/Tagout and Maintenance Systems
  • • Maintenance or cleaning on Auto-Platen, cylinder or label presses without isolation of electrical, pneumatic or hydraulic energy
  • • Unexpected start-up during jam clearance on paper roll feeds, plotters or curing lines
  • • Lack of standardised lockout/tagout procedures across all printing and finishing areas
  • • Reliance on informal isolation practices or verbal instructions only
  • • Inadequate preventative maintenance program leading to malfunction of brakes, clutches and safety devices
  • • Use of unqualified personnel to conduct repairs or bypass safety systems
5. Hazardous Chemicals, Solvents and Inks Management
  • • Use of solvent-based printers and inks without adequate controls for vapours and skin contact
  • • Storage and handling of flammable solvents near ignition sources or hot curing systems
  • • Inadequate chemical inventory and Safety Data Sheet (SDS) management for inks, thinners and cleaning agents
  • • Improvised decanting and labelling practices leading to unknown substances on the floor
  • • Lack of risk assessments for hazardous chemicals used in screen printing and curing processes
  • • Inconsistent training on safe handling of cleaning solvents and screen reclaiming chemicals
6. Airborne Contaminants, Ventilation and Indoor Air Quality
  • • Accumulation of solvent vapours from solvent-based printers in poorly ventilated spaces
  • • Aerosolised inks and mists from screen printing and curing processes
  • • Ozone and other by-products from large format digital equipment
  • • Inadequate general and local exhaust ventilation around curing tunnels and drying racks
  • • Failure to monitor airborne contaminant levels against exposure standards
  • • Health impacts from chronic low-level exposure such as headaches, respiratory irritation and long-term illness
7. Fire and Explosion Risk Management
  • • Ignition of flammable solvent vapours near silkscreen curing units and solvent-based printers
  • • Build-up of combustible dust or paper off-cuts around paper roll manipulation and die cutting machinery
  • • Inadequate control of hot surfaces associated with curing ovens and drying tunnels
  • • Improper storage of flammable liquids and rags soaked in solvents
  • • Lack of formal hot work control processes for maintenance on presses and curing lines
  • • Insufficient emergency firefighting equipment or inappropriate extinguisher types
8. Machine Operation Competency, Training and Supervision
  • • Operators of Auto-Platen, Hand-Platen and cylinder presses not formally assessed as competent
  • • Inconsistent induction training for new staff and labour hire workers on printing risks
  • • Reliance on informal on-the-job instruction with no standardised training materials
  • • Insufficient supervision of high-risk operations such as die cutting and paper roll handling
  • • Inadequate training for plotter usage, large format digital machinery and label presses
  • • No formal process to verify understanding of emergency stop, isolation and fault reporting procedures
9. Safe Work Procedures, Work Instructions and Standardisation
  • • Absence of documented safe operating procedures for different printing plant types
  • • Variation in practices between shifts leading to unsafe shortcuts on die cutters and presses
  • • Procedures not updated after equipment modifications or incident learnings
  • • Workers unable to access or understand procedures due to poor format or language barriers
  • • Overly generic procedures that fail to address risks of specific equipment such as balloon screen printers or plotters
10. Manual Handling, Paper Roll Manipulation and Ergonomics
  • • Systematic reliance on manual lifting, pushing and pulling of heavy paper rolls and print stock
  • • Inadequate roll manipulation equipment or poor layout around unwind/rewind stations
  • • Repetitive and awkward postures at screen printing, curing and plotter workstations
  • • Lack of job rotation policies leading to cumulative musculoskeletal disorders
  • • Insufficient training in manual task risk control for printing and finishing tasks
11. Fatigue, Workload and Shift Management
  • • Extended hours and night shift operation of presses and curing lines without structured fatigue management
  • • High production pressures encouraging bypassing of safety systems and shortcuts
  • • Insufficient staffing levels leading to excessive workloads for key operators
  • • Lack of documented break scheduling and rest periods for continuous run jobs
  • • Inadequate consideration of fatigue risks for on-call maintenance support to printing plant
12. Contractor, Labour Hire and Visitor Management
  • • Contractors conducting maintenance on Auto-Platen, cylinder presses or curing systems without understanding site-specific risks
  • • Labour hire staff operating printing equipment without adequate training or supervision
  • • Visitors entering production areas without awareness of printing hazards
  • • Poor communication of isolation procedures, emergency arrangements and PPE requirements to non-employees
13. Emergency Preparedness, Response and First Aid
  • • Inadequate planning for entrapment, crush or amputation incidents on die cutters and presses
  • • Poorly developed response procedures for solvent spills, fires or chemical exposures
  • • Insufficient first aid resources and training for printing-specific injuries (cuts, crush, chemical splashes)
  • • Unclear roles and communication channels during emergencies in noisy production environments
  • • Lack of drills involving realistic printing incident scenarios
14. Housekeeping, Traffic Management and General Workplace Environment
  • • Paper waste, pallets and finished goods obstructing access routes and emergency exits
  • • Uncontrolled movement of forklifts and roll handling equipment around presses and plotters
  • • Slips, trips and falls due to off-cuts, ink spills and solvent drips on walkways
  • • Inadequate lighting and noise control in printing and finishing areas
  • • Poor segregation of pedestrian routes from mobile plant movements
15. Health Monitoring, Injury Management and Wellbeing
  • • Undetected health effects from chronic exposure to solvents, inks and noise
  • • Delayed reporting and management of musculoskeletal disorders from repetitive tasks
  • • Inadequate processes for early intervention following near misses and minor injuries
  • • Psychosocial hazards including high workload, shift work and production pressure in printing environments
  • • Poor return-to-work coordination leading to aggravation of injuries
16. WHS Performance Monitoring, Audit and Continuous Improvement
  • • Failure to detect deteriorating safety performance in printing operations
  • • No systematic evaluation of the effectiveness of controls on printing plant and chemical risks
  • • Corrective actions from incidents and audits not implemented or closed out
  • • Over-reliance on lag indicators such as injury rates without considering leading indicators
  • • Lack of management review focused on printing-specific WHS issues

Need to add specific hazards for your workplace?

Don't worry if a specific hazard isn't listed above. Once you purchase, simply log in to your Client Portal and add your own custom hazards at no extra cost. We take care of the hard work—creating the risk ratings and control measures for free—to ensure your document is compliant within minutes.

Legislation & References

This document was researched and developed to align with:

  • Work Health and Safety Act 2011
  • Work Health and Safety Regulations 2017
  • How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks Code of Practice: Guidance on risk management principles and processes.
  • Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace Code of Practice: Requirements for the safe design, use and maintenance of plant such as printing presses and associated equipment.
  • Managing Risks of Hazardous Chemicals in the Workplace Code of Practice: Guidance for safe storage, handling and use of inks, solvents and cleaning agents.
  • Managing the Work Environment and Facilities Code of Practice: Requirements for ventilation, lighting, amenities and general workplace conditions.
  • Preparation of Safety Data Sheets for Hazardous Chemicals Code of Practice: Reference for SDS content and supplier obligations.
  • AS/NZS ISO 31000:2018: Risk management — Guidelines.
  • AS 4024 Safety of Machinery (series): Standards for machine guarding, interlocks, emergency stops and safety-related control systems in printing plant.
  • AS 1940:2017: The storage and handling of flammable and combustible liquids, relevant to solvent and ink storage.
  • AS/NZS 60079 (series): Explosive atmospheres, applicable where flammable vapours or combustible dusts may be present.
  • AS 1668 (series): The use of ventilation and air conditioning in buildings, relevant to contaminant control and indoor air quality.
Standard Risk Assessment Features (Click to Expand)
  • Comprehensive hazard identification for all activities
  • Risk rating matrix with likelihood and consequence analysis
  • Existing control measures evaluation
  • Residual risk assessment after controls
  • Hierarchy of controls recommendations
  • Action priority rankings
  • Review and monitoring requirements
  • Consultation and communication records
  • Legal compliance references
  • Sign-off and approval sections

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