Powered Pipe Reaming and Deburring

 

The powered reaming and deburring tool is used to remove burrs from plastic or metal piping and conduit.

Description:

Powered pipe reaming and deburring tools are engineering controls that help reduce repetitive and stressful hand and wrist motions.  The tool is available as an accessory bit for power drills or as a portable powered machine, and is used to quickly remove burrs from the cut end of a pipe.

There are two primary types of powered reamers and deburrers. The first type is an accessory bit that can be used in cordless or regular drills. The second type is a copper cut and prep machine that cuts, cleans, deburrs, and reams copper pipe in a workshop or on the job site. 

Accessory bit style reamers and deburrers come in many different shapes and sizes to accommodate the pipe or tubing being used. They are small and convenient to carry. Reamers are available to remove a broken pipe from a fitting.

Copper cut and prep machines are portable units capable of cutting, reaming, deburring, and cleaning copper pipe. They rotate at up to 450 rpms and can cut and prep pipe from ½ to 2 inches in diameter. Cutting blades last up to 10,000 cuts and all brushes, reamers, and cutting bits can be replaced. A smaller version is available that weighs 50 lbs and has a carry handle so it can be used at a job site.


Risks Addressed:

Stressful hand and wrist activity can cause musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) such as muscle strains; tendonitis, which is inflammation of elbow and wrist tendons; or carpal tunnel syndrome, which is compression of a wrist nerve, resulting in finger numbness and loss of hand strength.  The powered reaming and deburring tool reduces stressful hand and wrist activities by eliminating the need for workers to manually remove burrs.


How Risks are Reduced:

Accessory bit style reamers eliminate the need for repetitive wrist motions and allow the worker to maintain a neutral grip while the drill bit spins. 

Cut and prep machines also allow the user to maintain a neutral grip because the worker is holding the pipe while the machine’s reamer, brush, or cutting wheel rotates.  An added advantage of the copper cut and prep machines is they avoid the repetitive wrist motions normally associated with cutting copper pipe. 

There have not been independent published studies measuring the effect of using powered reaming and deburring tools.  However, forceful and repetitive hand exertions have been shown to be associated with MSDs such as carpal tunnel syndrome, tendinitis, and muscle strains (Bernard et al., 1997; Thomsen et al., 2007). 

Safety and health experts believe that automating repetitive hand and wrist movements helps to decrease risk of hand and wrist related MSDs.


Effects on Productivity:

Powered pipe reaming and deburring will increase productivity.


Additional Considerations:

Many pipe reamers allow workers to remove a broken pipe from a fitting or vice versa.  Replacement saves time and money because removal of the entire piping system is not necessary, and a worker can simply replace the broken pieces. 

Workers should not attempt to use power drills with hand reamers.  Hand reamers are not manufactured for use with power drills and will dig into the material at an uncontrollable rate, potentially causing injury to the worker.

 

Availability

Reed Manufacturing Company
To obtain information, visit www.reedmfgco.com or contact 1-800-666-3691 reedsales@reedmfgco.com

RIDGID Professional Tools
To obtain information, visit https://www.ridgid.com or contact 1-800-474-3443

Wheeler-Rex Manufacturing
To obtain information, visit http://www.wheelerrex.com or contact 1-440-998-2788 wheeler@wheelerrex.com

Return on Investment

To calculate the return on investment (ROI) for your specific application, please visit our Return on Investment Calculator. While a specific ROI example has not been developed for this particular solution, the ROI Calculator provides a useful tool and guidance on how to generate your own on investment analysis.