Where people get hurt

MOM's 2025 national statistics record four deaths in manufacturing, up from two in 2024. The sector also had 120 major injuries. Its fatal and major injury rate was 28.8 per 100,000 workers, the lowest on record, but still above the national rate of 16.6.

Machinery incidents were the leading cause of fatal and major injuries, with 37 of 124. Slips, trips and falls and struck-by-falling-object incidents followed. Metalworking had 37 fatal and major injuries. Food and beverage manufacturing had 40, and its major injury rate rose to 58.3 per 100,000 workers.

Ill health matters too. Manufacturing had 339 of Singapore's 550 cases of noise-induced hearing loss in 2025, most of them in metalworking.

The hazards to plan for

  • Moving machinery: presses, lathes, saws, mixers, mincers, conveyors and rollers.
  • Cleaning, clearing jams and maintenance on machines that are still live.
  • Forklifts and pedestrians sharing aisles and loading bays.
  • Falls from racks, mezzanines, platforms and ladders.
  • Falling objects from shelves, stacks and overhead cranes.
  • Chemicals, fumes and combustible dust such as flour, sugar, wood and metal powders.
  • Noise, heat and manual handling.

What the rules require in Singapore

The WSH Act duties apply to every occupier and employer (MOM). The WSH (Risk Management) Regulations require a risk assessment before work starts. Most manufacturing sites are also factories, which brings extra rules.

  • Factory status: factories must notify or register with MOM before they operate. Metalworking factories with more than 100 workers are in the high-risk Group A for registration (MOM).
  • WSH officer: required in any factory with 100 or more employees, except garment factories (MOM).
  • Audits: a factory making fabricated metal products, machinery or equipment with 100 or more employees needs a yearly external audit. The audit covers its safety and health management system (MOM).
  • Training: manual workers in metalworking factories need Apply WSH in Metal Work. Their supervisors need Supervise Manufacturing Work for WSH. Forklift drivers in a factory need Operate Forklift (MOM course list).
  • Machine guarding: the WSH (General Provisions) Regulations require dangerous parts of machinery to be securely fenced, with guards kept in place while parts move (regs 12 and 15). Regulation 16 requires lock-out procedures for inspection, cleaning, repair and maintenance.
  • Higher-risk machines: since 1 January 2025, more machines carry design and supply duties under the WSH Act. They include lathes, milling machines, sheet benders and rollers, and industrial cutting, packaging, mixing and food-processing machines (MOM).
  • Combustible dust: packages must be labelled. Occupiers handling listed dust above the threshold quantity must notify MOM and the building owner (MOM).
Noise is a legal duty

Where 10 or more people may be exposed to excessive noise, the occupier must appoint a competent person to monitor it at least every three years. Exposed workers need yearly hearing tests (WSH Council hearing conservation guidelines).

Order of controls for machines

Buy safe machines first. Ask suppliers for fixed guards, interlocks and presence-sensing devices before you sign the order. The new Fifth Schedule duties help you here.

On existing machines, fit fixed guards over parts nobody needs to reach. Use interlocked guards where operators load or clear the machine. Add light curtains or two-hand controls on presses. Then write safe work procedures, train operators and supervise them. Gloves near rotating parts can drag a hand in, so choose PPE with care.

Lock out before you reach in

The WSH Council's April 2026 WSH Insights counts two deaths and 142 major injuries involving machines in 2024 and 2025. Many happen during cleaning, jam clearing and repair. Its recommended practice follows a simple order.

  • Write a safe work procedure for energy isolation. SS 571 is the reference standard.
  • Identify every energy source: electrical, mechanical, pneumatic and hydraulic.
  • Tell affected workers before you shut the machine down.
  • Isolate and lock each energy isolating device, and tag it with name, reason and expected finish.
  • Try to start the machine to prove it is dead before work begins.
  • Use a group lock box or hasp when several people work on one machine.

Other controls that matter

  • Mark forklift routes and walkways, and keep people out of loading zones.
  • Fit guard-rails on mezzanines and platforms. Never stand on forks or pallets to reach a shelf.
  • Store heavy items low, and inspect racks for damage.
  • Clean dust with wet methods or explosion-proof vacuums, never compressed air or dry sweeping.
  • Keep labels and safety data sheets for every chemical.
  • Run a hearing conservation programme where noise is high.

Common mistakes

  • Removing or bypassing a guard to speed up production.
  • Clearing a jam with the machine switched off but not locked out.
  • Buying a second-hand machine without checking its guards and controls.
  • Treating hearing protection as the whole noise programme.
  • Letting untrained workers drive forklifts "just for a minute".
  • Letting dust build up on beams and ledges.
The off switch is not a lock

Someone else can switch a machine back on. Stored energy in springs, air lines and hydraulics can also move parts. Only a personal lock and a tested isolation keep a worker safe.

Related topics on this site

  • Machinery safety, Electrical safety and Permit to work.
  • Vehicles and danger zones, and Falling objects.
  • Chemical safety, Fire and emergency, and Silica and dust.
  • Noise, Manual handling and PPE.
  • Risk assessment and Incident investigation.

In other countries

  • Malaysia: Under section 30 of Act 514, an employer must set up a safety and health committee where 40 or more people work, or when the Director General directs. Section 29A covers workplaces that are not listed as needing a safety and health officer. There, an employer with 5 or more employees must appoint an occupational safety and health coordinator.

Sources

  1. Workplace Safety and Health Report 2025: National Statistics, Ministry of Manpower.
  2. WSH Act: responsibilities of stakeholders, Ministry of Manpower.
  3. Workplace Safety and Health (Risk Management) Regulations, Singapore Statutes Online.
  4. Factory notification or registration requirements, Ministry of Manpower.
  5. Requirements for a safety and health management system, Ministry of Manpower.
  6. List of Workplace Safety and Health courses (updated 18 March 2025), Ministry of Manpower.
  7. Workplace Safety and Health (General Provisions) Regulations, Singapore Statutes (NUS mirror).
  8. Enhanced safety measures for higher-risk machinery and combustible dusts from 1 January 2025, Ministry of Manpower.
  9. WSH Insights: Working safely with machines, strengthening lockout tagout practices (April 2026), WSH Council.
  10. WSH Insights: Preventing combustible dust fires and explosions (January 2026), WSH Council.
  11. WSH Guidelines for Hearing Conservation Programme, WSH Council.
  12. Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994 (Act 514), updated text to 1 June 2024, DOSH Malaysia.

This is practical guidance, not legal advice. Laws and codes of practice change; always check the current official text and your site's own procedures.