Code of Practice — Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace

The full title is the Code of Practice: Managing the Risk of Plant in the Workplace, published by Safe Work Australia. The code becomes legally binding from 1 July 2026 under Section 26A of the WHS Act. The code applies to all plant as defined in the WHS Act, which includes machinery, equipment, appliances, containers, implements, and tools, as well as any component of plant and anything fitted or connected to plant. This broad definition captures everything from hand tools and portable power tools through to heavy industrial machinery, mobile plant, and pressure equipment. The code covers hazard identification for plant including mechanical, electrical, thermal, noise, vibration, and radiation hazards, risk assessment considering the plant design, installation, operation, maintenance, and foreseeable misuse, the hierarchy of controls with emphasis on guarding and isolation, plant registration requirements, and maintenance and inspection obligations.

The code applies to every person in the plant lifecycle. Designers must ensure plant can be manufactured, used, and maintained safely. Manufacturers must build plant in accordance with the design and applicable standards. Importers and suppliers must verify that plant meets Australian safety standards before it enters the market. PCBUs who install and commission plant must ensure it is installed safely and in accordance with the designer's specifications. PCBUs who use plant must manage the ongoing risks through guarding, isolation, maintenance, inspection, and operator competency. Workers who operate plant must follow safe work procedures and report defects. The code also applies to PCBUs who hire or lease plant, requiring them to ensure the plant is fit for purpose and maintained, and to PCBUs who dispose of plant, requiring them to manage end-of-life hazards. The breadth of application means that virtually every business in Australia has duties under this code.

The code requires PCBUs to conduct a risk assessment for each item of plant considering all foreseeable hazards including entanglement, crushing, cutting, shearing, impact, ejection of materials, electrical contact, thermal burns, noise, and vibration. Guards must be provided for all accessible moving parts, nip points, and ejection zones, and must comply with the applicable Australian Standards for guard design and interlocking. Isolation procedures must be established for all plant maintenance, cleaning, and adjustment tasks, with lockout-tagout systems implemented where the WHS Regulation requires them. Plant must be maintained in accordance with manufacturer recommendations and a documented maintenance schedule, with inspection records retained. High-risk plant including cranes, hoists, pressure equipment, and certain industrial lifts must be registered with the state regulator and inspected at defined intervals by a competent person. Operators of high-risk plant must hold current high-risk work licences. Pre-start inspections must be conducted before each use of mobile plant and other equipment where operational defects could create immediate risk.

First, compile a plant register listing every item of plant in the workplace and conduct a guarding audit, identifying any machinery with accessible moving parts, nip points, or ejection zones that are not adequately guarded in accordance with the code and applicable Australian Standards. Second, review isolation procedures for every item of plant that requires maintenance, cleaning, or adjustment, and implement lockout-tagout systems where they are not already in place, with documented procedures for each plant item. Third, audit plant maintenance records against manufacturer recommendations and the documented maintenance schedule, and bring overdue maintenance current. Fourth, verify that all high-risk plant is currently registered, that registration inspections are current, and that all operators hold the required high-risk work licences with current competency verification. Fifth, review pre-start inspection procedures for mobile plant and other equipment, and implement a documented checklist system that captures pre-start inspection results and triggers corrective action for identified defects.

Plant safety failures frequently result in amputations, crush injuries, and fatalities. The $750,000 penalty against Hilltop Meats for injuries from unguarded plant and the $840,000 penalty imposed by SafeWork SA for multiple safety failures including inadequate guarding illustrate the severity of enforcement action. After 1 July 2026, failure to follow the code constitutes a standalone offence. Prohibition notices are routinely issued for unguarded plant, immediately halting production until guards are installed and verified. The production downtime from a prohibition notice on a critical machine can cost more than the penalty itself. Where plant injuries involve amputations or fatalities, Category 1 and industrial manslaughter charges are available with maximum penalties of $18,513,000 for a body corporate and 25 years' imprisonment for industrial manslaughter. All WHS penalties are uninsurable in NSW since 10 June 2020.