This document specifies safety requirements and measures for their verification for the design and construction of portable, hand-held, internal combustion engine-driven cut-off machines intended to be used by a single operator in the cutting of construction materials, such as asphalt, concrete, stone and metal. It is applicable only to those machines designed purposely for use with a rotating, bonded-abrasive and/or super-abrasive (for example diamond) cut-off wheel having a maximum outer diameter of 430 mm, centre-mounted on and driven by a spindle shaft where the top of the wheel rotates away from the operator (see Figure 1).

This document deals with all significant hazards, hazardous situations or hazardous events significant to these machines when they are used as intended and under conditions of misuse which are reasonably foreseeable by the manufacturer. See Annex F for a list of significant hazards.

This document specifies methods for the elimination or reduction of hazards arising from their use, as well as the type of information on safe working practices to be provided with the machines.

Cut-off wheel specifications are not considered in this document. Cut-off wheels are deemed to comply to existing cut-off wheel standards.

NOTE For example see Bibliography.

All through the document, portable, hand-held, internal combustion engine-driven cut-off machines are called "cut-off machines".

This document is not applicable to machines manufactured before the date of its publication.