Machine Manuals and Warning Labels: Must They Be in Chinese, and Which Labels Are Needed?

The Role of Manuals and Warning Labels

The order for dealing with machine safety is: first eliminate hazards by design, then add guards and safety devices, and finally communicate the remaining risks to users through warning labels and manuals. Article 5, Paragraph 2 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act requires designers, manufacturers, or importers of machinery to carry out risk assessments at each stage; the residual risks after assessment are communicated to the plants that use the machine through manuals and labels.

Must There Be a Chinese Manual?

No Taiwanese regulation says "every machine must come with a Chinese manual," but several provisions are relevant:

• Commodity Labeling Act (商品標示法; current text last amended May 18, 2022):
  • Article 6: Products must be labeled with the name, the name, address, and phone number of the domestic company, origin, main ingredients or materials, quantity, date of manufacture, and so on.
  • Article 7: Products that are hazardous, related to hygiene and safety, or have special properties requiring special handling must be labeled with their use, methods of use and storage, and other precautions.
  • Article 10: Labeling may be on the product itself, the inner or outer packaging, or the manual.
  • Article 11: Labeling text must be primarily in Chinese, and may be supplemented with English or other foreign languages.
    How this applies to industrial machinery can be confirmed with the Ministry of Economic Affairs or local governments.
• Commodity Inspection Act Article 11: For commodities subject to inspection, the product name and the name and address of the party obligated to apply for inspection must be labeled on the product, packaging, label, or manual.
• OSH Act: Employers must provide necessary safety and health training under Article 32 and establish safety and health work rules under Article 34; a manual that employees can't read makes it hard to fulfill these obligations.

Section 1.7.4 of Annex I of the EU Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC explicitly requires machinery to be accompanied by instructions in the official language of the country of use. For machines exported to Europe, this is a basic requirement.

What a Manual Should Include

Based on international requirements for machinery instructions, a practical food machinery manual usually includes:

1. Manufacturer name and address, model, serial number, year of manufacture.
2. Intended use and the range of suitable ingredients, as well as reasonably foreseeable misuse (for example, don't use it to grind hard objects, don't push material by hand).
3. Installation conditions: power specifications, grounding, space, floor, drainage.
4. Operating steps: pre-start checks, starting, adjustment, stopping.
5. Safety device descriptions: emergency stop locations, cover interlocks, reset methods.
6. Cleaning and disassembly: which parts can be removed, the order of disassembly and assembly, recommended cleaning agents, and the steps to stop and cut power before cleaning.
7. Maintenance: lubrication points and lubricants used (food grade in food-contact areas), maintenance intervals, and a list of wear parts.
8. Troubleshooting: common problems and how to deal with them, and when to contact the manufacturer.
9. Residual risks and recommended protective equipment.
10. Specifications: dimensions, weight, power, noise value (if measured).

Which Warning Stickers Are Needed

Based on the machine's hazards, place labels near danger points where operators can see them. Common ones on food machinery:

• Entanglement hazard: Near rollers, conveyor belts, screw feeders, and mixing arms: "Do not reach in while running."
• Crushing hazard: Where forming molds, pressure plates, and cutters open and close.
• Electric shock hazard: On electrical cabinet doors and wiring terminals: "Authorized personnel only."
• Hot surface hazard: Heating plates, steam piping, frying equipment.
• Stop, cut power, and lock out before cleaning or maintenance: Near the main power switch.
• Emergency stop markings: Article 45 of the Occupational Safety and Health Facilities Regulations requires emergency brake devices to be clearly marked.
• Switch function labels: Article 248 requires devices for switching motors or electrical equipment on and off to be clearly labeled with their switching operation and purpose.
• Noise: Article 300 requires workplaces with noise above 90 decibels to be marked and display notices on preventing noise hazards.

Labels with pictograms plus Chinese are easier for floor staff to understand than English alone; stickers should resist oil, water, and cleaning agents, and be replaced when faded or peeling.

Dong-Yih's Manuals

For the contents of the documentation supplied with each Dong-Yih model, please call 06-257-4644 or visit our contact information page. For the shutdown procedure during cleaning, see lockout rules; for how to evaluate safety devices, see Emergency Stops, Safety Interlocks, and Guards.

FAQ

Q: Must a machine have a Chinese manual?
A: No Taiwanese regulation explicitly requires every machine to come with a Chinese manual; but Article 11 of the Commodity Labeling Act requires labeling text to be primarily in Chinese, and Article 7 requires products that are hazardous or related to hygiene and safety to be labeled with methods of use and precautions, which may be placed in the manual. For exports to the EU, the Machinery Directive requires instructions in the official language of the country of use.

Q: Which warning stickers are needed?
A: It depends on the hazards. Common labels cover entanglement, crushing, electric shock, hot surfaces, stopping and locking out before cleaning, emergency stop locations, and switch functions, placed near danger points where they can be seen.

Q: What's the most important content in a manual?
A: Besides operation, the cleaning and disassembly steps (including stopping and cutting power), safety device descriptions, maintenance and food-grade lubricants, and residual risks are what food machinery users ask about most.

Q: What if an imported machine only has an English manual?
A: Ask the supplier for a Chinese version or translate the key parts yourself; at a minimum, translate the safety, cleaning, and maintenance sections into language floor staff can understand, and include them in training and the safety and health work rules.