Safe Operation of Bale Press SWMS

Suits recycling centres, warehouses, factories and waste facilities that run a paper, cardboard, plastic or scrap bale press with a feed conveyor. It follows the work from the pre-start check and material checks through feeding, baling, tying, bale handling, jam clearing, cleaning and maintenance.

Bale press operation is not high risk construction work by itself, so a SWMS is legally required under WHS Regulation s 299 only when the work is construction work that also meets a high risk item in s 291; otherwise it works as a written safe work procedure or task risk assessment.

New to SWMS? Read What is a safe work method statement?

What is covered in our safe operation of bale press SWMS?

After the standard pre-start checks, the job steps run from “Pre-start check of the bale press and conveyor” to “Maintenance and repairs”. The hazards and controls include:

• Crushing by the ram and entanglement in conveyors
• Missing or bypassed guards and interlocks
• Stored hydraulic energy and unexpected start-up
• Hydraulic oil injection and burst hoses
• Aerosols, batteries and gas cylinders in the feed
• Sharps, glass and strapping cuts
• Whipping wire and strapping
• Noise from the press and conveyor
• Dust, fibres and mould
• Forklifts and pedestrians around bales
• Falling or toppling bale stacks
• Jam clearing and confined space entry
• Fire in the hopper or machine
• Manual handling when feeding and sorting

High risk construction work

None of the high risk construction work items (WHS Regulation 2011 (Qld) s 291) are pre-ticked, because this job is not high risk construction work by itself. Tick any that apply on your site.

Licences, training and competency

• Task-specific training and competency sign-off on the bale press and feed conveyor, based on the manufacturer’s operating instructions
• Training in the site isolation (lock-out and tag-out) procedure for operators, cleaners and maintenance workers
• High risk work licence for the forklift truck class where a forklift is used to move bales
• Electrical work licence for any electrical fault-finding, repair or testing
• Competent person (maintenance) for servicing, repairs and changes to guards or interlocks
• General construction induction training card (white card) if the bale press is operated as part of construction work on a construction site
• Site induction

Legislation and codes of practice referenced

• Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld)
• Work Health and Safety Regulation 2011 (Qld)
• How to Manage Work Health and Safety Risks Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Risks of Plant in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Noise and Preventing Hearing Loss at Work Code of Practice 2021
• Hazardous Manual Tasks Code of Practice 2021
• Managing Risks of Hazardous Chemicals in the Workplace Code of Practice 2021
• Confined Spaces Code of Practice 2021 (if anyone must enter the hopper or chamber)
• Welding Processes Code of Practice 2021 (where hot work is needed)
• Electrical Safety Act 2002 (Qld) and Electrical Safety Regulation 2026 (Qld) for electrical work
• Electrical Safety Code of Practice 2021 – Managing electrical risks in the workplace
• Safe Work Australia model Code of Practice: Managing the risks of biological hazards at work (guidance)

What you get

• An editable Microsoft Word document (15 pages), laid out on A4 landscape pages. Type your business, client and job details once and they fill in on every page, with a space for your logo
• 11 job steps for this work, each with its hazards, controls, initial and residual risk scores and the person responsible
• PPE listed for this job: safety boots; close-fitting high-visibility clothing (no loose sleeves, jewellery or hanging items near moving parts)
• Emergency arrangements for: person trapped in the press or on the conveyor, person overcome or buried in the hopper or chamber and fire in the hopper, a bale or the machine
• Plus the parts every Work Safety QLD SWMS shares, from the s 291 checklist to the worker sign-on sheet (see the layout in our free SWMS template)

Adjust it for your site, plant and crew, and talk it through with your workers before work starts.

Checked against the Queensland laws and codes of practice listed above. Last reviewed October 2026.