Professional tool reviews for the average Joe: Here it comes. If you can't get it passed in the federal government - just bring it to California, they'll mandate anything in the name of safety. We are just now hearing that California has taken up Steven Gass' cause to effectively implement SawStop technology in all table saws sold in California after Jan. 1, 2015. The specific law being proposed is AB 2218 Table Saw Safety Act, proposed on February 24, 2012.
Friday, March 16, 2012
California Looks to Usher in SawStop Mandate for Table Saw Market
Professional tool reviews for the average Joe: Here it comes. If you can't get it passed in the federal government - just bring it to California, they'll mandate anything in the name of safety. We are just now hearing that California has taken up Steven Gass' cause to effectively implement SawStop technology in all table saws sold in California after Jan. 1, 2015. The specific law being proposed is AB 2218 Table Saw Safety Act, proposed on February 24, 2012.
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8 comments:
This bill poses a interesting issue. In today's society, I feel that the people are now being treated like children and this leads them to act and think like children as well. Table saws have been around for decades and have always been a staple in any woodworkers shop and through all these years, people have survived and have been trained to use these tools without this technology. While I do concede that safety measures should always be used, making this mandatory for all table saws is kinda ridiculous. The use of these may be helpful in educational setting when inexperianced users are opperating the tool, but for woodworkers who have been trained properly and have a respect for the tool use it, the risk should be little to none if used properly. I feel that by making this SawStop technology mandatory, the next generation of woodworkers will treat the saw with less care and respect because of this safety. If you expect them to cut their fingers off, then thats what they'll do. If you expect them to treat this tool (or any tool for that matter) with respect and care, that's what they'll do.
Like Tim, I question whether flesh-detecting technology needs to be mandated for everyone. It would make more sense to require flesh-detecting technology only for table saws used in high school shops and other settings in which shop workers generally have a lower level of training and experience. That being said, whether flesh-detecting table saw technology is required in a few shops or in all shops, no one man or company should have the patents for this technology. I thought that monopolies were supposed to be prevented, not encouraged by legislation. This technology is smart and would probably save a few fingers in certain settings, but it should absolutely not be required if it financially benefits one party and one party only. Gass' intentions are questionable...is he more concerned about peoples' safety or his own bank account??
Making the table saw detect flesh may make that particular tool safer, but ultimately I feel that it has the potential to make every other tool in the shop less so, because by lowering the risk for one tool, you lower the respect for all, and that is a dangerous proposition. I think that this legislation would only increase accidents with other tools, such as the radial arm saw, or even the band saw, by making it more likely for woodworkers to become complacent.
Dear California,
Please stop making shops more dangerous. Or I won't come back.
Thanks.
Meg
To elaborate... (just bear with me)
Does anyone know what happened when seat belts were required in cars? I do.
More accidents, more deaths. The number of driver and passenger deaths went down only slightly. Pedestrian deaths skyrocketed.
Do you know how to make everyone into a good driver? I do.
Put a spike in the center of the steering wheel. Everyone will drive carefully. Fewer accidents. Fewer deaths.
Okay, so obviously as a nation we are not going to put spikes on steering wheels, but it would help with accident reduction. This is the basic economic/life principle that says, the riskier an endeavor, the more cautious a person is. By making table saws "safer" we are creating a generation of reckless table saw users (just like how many younger people are reckless drivers). This means people will be more relaxed working with power tools and will generally pay less attention and focus less on the work and the surrounding areas. The sphere of awareness will decrease in addition to more people just throwing wood on the saw. I can only guess that the result will be a slightly lower rate of blade/finger accidents and kickback will skyrocket. Or something like that such that in attempting to solve one issue another is created and the initial in modified, not fixed. So please, tell your state congressman no on SawStop.
I agree with Tim and Shannon. The use of this technology is not quite to a point where it should be mandated for everyone, or at a point where legislation should be passed to make it a requirement in any case. Shannon's comments brings up a good point, that currently this technology is a monopoly, which would make this legislation illegal. We shouldn't turn tools into the drug industry. Soon we'll have generic and name brand saw stops. Oh joys. This technology is great, it might save a finger, but like Lindsay says, it could give people a false sense of awareness. Also, you do have to turn off the technology to cut certain items, so what would prevent people from turning it off all the time, or damaging a blade on accident?
I agree with Lindsay. At some point these technological phenomenons that we develop will create a lax environment in the shop. I believe that as an accommodation rather than a mandatory these accessories are useful... but if we integrate them as a mandatory component into each table saw produced - a half ass job can get past the saw that will not get past any other tool.
I disagree with the mandatory implementation of SawStop-like technology in table saws. Like others, I agree that proper training and the proper use of the tool can help prevent as many accidents as possible as is without having to increase the price of the tool or lead to an uneven monopoly-like distribution to such a limited design. The way Gass has patented SawStop-like technology and almost any conceivable variant is not okay.
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