No matter how safe and attentive you try to be, a serious table saw accident could happen to you at any time if you regularly use a saw on the job. However, a miraculous new saw technology could save you from losing fingers in the event of a slip-up. “SawStop” is a special technology that will instantly stop the blade of a saw as soon as the device forms an electrical contact with your finger.

SawStop blades have an electrical signal in them. The SawStop safety system is constantly monitoring this signal. If your skin accidentally makes contact with the saw blade, it causes a conduction to occur through the skin sending an instantaneous signal to the safety system to engage. The blade immediately locks and stops moving.

SawStop stops saw blades so fast that the worst users receive is a very minor nick on the skin, versus — for example — having their entire finger cut off or mangled. SawStop braking systems use aluminum brake springs that clamp against the spinning blade and cause it to stop in under 5 milliseconds. This is lightning fast. Best of all, it’s fast enough to prevent noteworthy injuries. Angular momentum also causes the blade to go immediately under the table saw table which prevents the risk of further contact.

If you use a table saw on the job, you might want to talk to your employer about getting a SawStop table saw, or another similar safety technology. Although you can pursue workers’ compensation benefits to pay for the medical care associated with a severed limb or finger, it’s clearly better to avoid the risk of such injuries in the first place.

Source: sawstop.com, “The Technology,” accessed Aug. 11, 2017