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Mine Safety and Health Administration MSHA's Accident Prevention Program
Safety Idea

Rim Wheel Assembly Hazards

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 Safety Something YOU can live with!
Mine Type: All Surface
Category: Maintenance


Drawing Depicting Rim Exploding off of tire Many miners have been killed due to improper installation, repair or servicing of rim wheels. Severe injury or death can occur if safe work practices and specific information on the rim wheel assemblies are not known. There are very subtle details you must know about certain multi-piece rim wheels to keep them from literally exploding apart.

A recent fatality occurred when a mechanic was killed as one of the two three-piece rim wheel assemblies that he was working on was put together with the lock ring installed backwards.



Three-piece M Style Rim
Do you know the danger signals of the specific rim wheels found in your operations?

Hazardous conditions exist even when experienced people work on rim wheel assemblies. Not all of these hazards are obvious and correct information for the specific product is necessary to do the job safely. You should check out the cautions for the specific rim wheel that you are working on and pay attention to these specific cautions when working with these rim wheel components.




IF you have equipment with multi-piece rim wheels, before you do any tire repairs, please do these few things:

Picture of Chart showing Safety Information 1) Identify the specific types of rim wheel assemblies used in your operations.

2) Obtain the manufacturer's safety information on these rim wheel assemblies. If you identify rim wheels made by the manufacturers listed below, call the toll free numbers listed. Request both the general safety information available and the safety information specific for the types of rim wheel assemblies that you found. Some safety tips and cautions have been compiled in a shop poster format and will be provided to you free of charge. If you have products other than those listed below, contact your local product dealer to obtain any information available.


Safety Information Contacts:
Accuride Corporation
(Also former Firestone Steel Products Company)
877-421-3736: Technical Information
Request 'safety Kit'		 Hayes-Lemmerz
(Also former Kelsey-Hayes Corporation, Hayes Wheels, Goodyear/Motor Wheel and Budd)
800-521-0515: Janie Guajardo
Alcoa
Wheel Products International
800-242-9898: Literature		 Redco Corporation
800-289-7332: John Spilker


Photo of Rim 3) Match your wheel components to those listed on any charts provided or within the manufacturer's product information to ensure component compatibility. This can easily be done during visual inspection of the components prior to assembly.

4) Post the applicable information in your workplace and include it in your training! This information is a helpful tool that is as important as any other personal protective measures taken to minimize the hazards of the job so make it readily available for everyone involved.



Reissued: 04/30/2002
Tag # AP2002-S045