Two Texas trailer manufacturers under same ownership hit hard by OSHA for noise hazards, toxic fumes and other violations; fines total nearly $950,000

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited PJ Trailers Manufacturing Co. Inc. and Delco Trailers Co. Inc., a similar company owned by PJ Trailers, for seven willful, 26 serious, nine repeat and four other-than-serious violations. OSHA inspectors found workers exposed to unguarded machinery, fall hazards and accumulations of potentially hazardous dust, among other violations. Proposed penalties total $949,800.

“Employers have a responsibility to keep their workers safe and healthy. Willful and repeat citations, as well as significant penalties, reflect the fact that management knew workers were exposed to dangerous conditions yet failed to provide them with basic safety protections. That choice is unacceptable and needlessly placed these workers’ health and safety at risk,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Dr. David Michaels.

PJ Trailers Manufacturing and Delco Trailers are commonly owned, with the same president and management. They share a work site, a human resources division and a safety and health manager, and they have interrelated and integrated operations. PJ Trailers and Delco Trailers previously had been cited by OSHA for many of the same hazards that the agency found during its most recent inspection. Although the company had certified abatement of the prior hazardous conditions, many of the fixes were later abandoned to accommodate production. Since 2008, at least 15 workers have suffered eye injuries requiring medical treatment and or days away from work.

OSHA’s Dallas Area Office initiated a safety and health inspection at the company’s facility at 1807 Farm to Market 2352 in Sumner following receipt of a complaint that employees were not adequately protected from being injured by rotating machinery parts, and employees were exposed to toxic welding fumes while fabricating trailers and noise levels above approved health standards.

The willful violations involve failing to provide fall protection for employees working on stacked trailers, provide adequate machine guarding to prevent “caught-in” or “caught-between injuries,” provide employees with proper eye protection during cutting and welding operations, and establish and maintain an audiometric testing program. Audiometric testing is required when employees are exposed to high noise levels to determine if their hearing is being adversely affected. A willful violation is one committed with intentional, knowing or voluntary disregard for the law’s requirements, or with plain indifference to employee safety and health.

Repeat violations include failing to ensure that all spray booth areas were kept free from accumulated powder coating, guard several pieces of hazardous machinery, have all necessary lockout/tagout procedures, provide training on existing lockout/tagout procedures to protect employees from hazardous machinery starting up unexpectedly and ensure that medical evaluations were completed to determine employees’ ability to use respirators. A repeat violation exists when an employer previously has been cited for the same or a similar violation of a standard, regulation, rule or order at any other facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years. OSHA cited the company in September and October of 2006 and March 2010 for similar violations.

Serious violations include failing to provide required fall protection, provide training on electrical hazards and prevent exposure to welding fumes in excess of the average allowed during an 8-hour shift. A serious violation occurs when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.

Other-than-serious violations include failing to enter recordable injuries and illnesses on the OSHA 300 log within seven calendar days and properly certify the OSHA 300A form or its equivalent. An other-than-serious violation is one that has a direct relationship to job safety and health, but probably would not cause death or serious physical harm.

The workers’ compensation carrier insuring PJ Trailers and Delco Trailers is Farmington Casualty Co.

The citations can be viewed at http://www.osha.gov/ooc/citations/PJTrailers314181926.pdf* http://www.osha.gov/ooc/citations/PJTrailers314181876.pdf*.

OSHA cites Ashland, Ohio-based Americarb for 11 safety violations and nearly $200,000 in fines after death.

Americarb Inc.  has been cited for three willful, three serious and five other-than-serious safety violations at its Ashland facility. OSHA initiated an inspection after an employee was fatally injured in March when he was struck in the stomach by debris from machinery not properly equipped with guarding.

“Employers have a responsibility to ensure workers are protected from moving mechanical parts, and electrical and hydraulic hazards,” said Kimberly Nelson, OSHA’s Toledo area director. “There’s no excuse for not providing proper training, installing machine guarding, and implementing lockout and tagout procedures for energy sources.”

The willful violations involve a failure to have proper machine lockout/tagout procedures to prevent equipment from unexpectedly starting up; failure to have proper point-of-operation machine guarding in place; and using compressed air with pressure of more than 30 pounds per square inch. A willful violation is one committed with intentional knowing or voluntary disregard for the law’s requirements, or with plain indifference to worker safety and health.

The serious violations involve a lack of proper lockout/tagout training for workers, a lack of general machine guarding, and allowing workers to stand between an operating forklift and fixed objects. A serious violation occurs when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.

The other-than-serious violations involve a lack of proper record keeping and not providing employees with required respirator standards. An other-than-serious violation is one that has a direct relationship to job safety and health, but probably would not cause death or serious physical harm.

Americarb Inc., a graphite machining company, faces proposed penalties of $194,400 for the violations. The company has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA’s area director or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

Queensbury, NY, location hit for $57 Grand and OSHA urges the Pennsylvania-based retailer to examine safety at their other stores

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Dick’s Sporting Goods for six alleged violations of workplace safety standards after an OSHA inspection identified several hazards at the retailer’s store at the Aviation Mall in Queensbury. The Pennsylvania-based retailer faces a total of $57,300 in proposed fines.

OSHA inspectors found that workers at the Queensbury store were periodically required to enter a trash compactor that had not first been de-energized in order to remove cardboard blockages. Additionally, the store lacked the means and procedures for employees to enter and work safely in such a confined space, and training was not provided on the hazards and safeguards associated with work in a confined space. Finally, access to fire extinguishers was blocked and employees were not trained in how to use fire extinguishers in the event of a fire.

“Even in a retail outlet, employees can be exposed to deadly or disabling hazards if the proper safeguards and training are absent, as they were here,” said Edward Jerome, OSHA’s area director in Albany. “These workers could have been crushed or burned. For the safety and health of all of its employees, I urge this employer to examine safety and health issues at its other stores and promptly take corrective action.”

Two repeat violations with $33,000 in fines were cited for the blocked fire extinguishers and lack of fire extinguisher training. Four serious violations with $24,300 in fines were cited for the confined space hazards and a missing fire extinguisher.

A serious violation occurs when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known. A repeat violation exists when an employer previously has been cited for the same or a similar violation of a standard, regulation, rule or order at any other facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years. In this case, the repeat citations stem from OSHA having cited the retailer in May 2010 for similar hazards at a Melville, N.Y., store.

“One means of preventing hazards such as these is for employers to establish an injury and illness prevention program in which workers and management continually work to identify and eliminate hazardous conditions,” said Robert Kulick, OSHA’s regional administrator in New York.

US Labor Department’s OSHA cites Jamesville, NY, lumber mill for 35 serious safety violations $152,000 in fines following worker’s death

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited B&B Lumber Co. Inc. for 35 alleged serious violations of workplace safety standards following the Feb. 7 death of a worker at the Jamesville sawmill.

The worker, who was changing the blades on an edging saw, was killed when another employee inadvertently started the saw. OSHA’s inspection found that the saw’s power source had not been locked out, as required by OSHA’s hazardous energy control, or “lockout/tagout,” standard. That standard mandates that machines be shut down and their power sources locked out before employees perform maintenance.

“This is exactly the type of needless and devastating occurrence that the hazardous energy control standard is designed to prevent,” said Christopher Adams, OSHA’s area director in Syracuse. “One unintended or unknowing turn of a machine’s ‘on’ switch can end a worker’s life in seconds. That’s why effective lockout/tagout safeguards must be implemented and maintained at all times.”

OSHA’s inspection also identified several other unrelated hazardous conditions at the mill encompassing fall, electrical, machine guarding, ladder use and personal protective equipment hazards, as well as inadequate means of egress. Left uncorrected, they expose employees to the hazards of falls, electrocution, lacerations, amputation, being caught in moving machine parts and being unable to exit the workplace swiftly in the event of an emergency. B&B Lumber faces a total of $152,100 in proposed fines for these conditions.

A serious violation occurs when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known. Detailed information on OSHA’s hazardous energy control standard, including an interactive eTool, is available online at http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/controlhazardousenergy/index.html.

“One means of eliminating hazards such as these is for employers to establish an injury and illness prevention program in which workers and management continually work to identify and eliminate hazardous conditions,” said Robert Kulick, OSHA’s regional administrator in New York.

US Labor Department’s OSHA cites 3 Brooklyn, NY, tortilla manufacturers for safety and health hazards following worker fatality

OSHA has cited three Brooklyn tortilla manufacturers for a total of 34 alleged violations of workplace safety and health standards following inspections conducted in the wake of the January death of a worker at Tortilleria Chinantla Inc., located at 975 Grand St.

Juan Batten, a 22-year-old Guatemalan immigrant, died when he became caught in the auger of a mixing machine. OSHA’s inspection found that the mixer was not guarded to prevent employees from coming into contact with its points of operation.

“Proper and effective machine guarding would have eliminated this hazard and prevented this young worker’s death,” said Kay Gee, OSHA’s area director for Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens. “This was a clearly recognizable hazard that should have been addressed.”

In addition to other machine guarding hazards identified during the inspection, Tortilleria Chinantla lacked a hazardous energy control – or “lockout/tagout – program to prevent the unintended startup of machinery, a chemical hazard communication program and the required training for operators of powered industrial trucks. The company also failed to record the worker’s death on its illness and injury log. As a result, Tortilleria Chinantla was cited for one willful, six serious and one other-than-serious violation, carrying a total of $62,400 in proposed fines.

A willful violation is one committed with intentional knowing or voluntary disregard for the law’s requirements, or with plain indifference to worker safety and health. A serious violation occurs when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.

Separately, and in response to reports of possible hazards, OSHA also inspected two other tortilla manufacturers: Buena Vista Tortillas Corp., located at 219 Johnson Ave., and La Tortilleria Mexicana Los Tres Hermanos Corp., located at 271 Star St. Buena Vista Tortillas was cited for 13 serious and one other-than-serious violation with $39,000 in proposed fines for machine guarding, electrical, lockout/tagout, fire extinguisher, exit route, hazard communication and fall hazards. La Tortilleria Mexicana Los Tres Hermanos was cited for 12 serious violations with $33,600 in proposed fines for machine guarding, electrical, exit route, powered industrial truck and formaldehyde hazards.

“What is particularly disturbing is that we found a number of similar hazards at all three facilities,” said Gee. “While no fatalities have occurred at the other locations, I call upon these and other similar employers to review their workplaces to identify and eliminate hazards.”

“Safeguarding workers against occupational injuries and illnesses depends in great part on ensuring that workers know and understand the hazards and safeguards associated with their jobs. That is especially important in workplaces where English may not be the employees’ primary language,” said Diana Cortez, OSHA’s regional diverse workforce coordinator. “Employers must provide information and training in a way their workers will understand. OSHA has numerous resources available for Spanish-speaking workers and employers. I encourage both groups to seek out this vital information online or in person.”

Scenario: You have been hired as the new safety manager for a machine shop operation.  In the first few weeks, you are out on the plant floor with the maintenance manager reviewing the company’s energy control program.  You observe a maintenance person perform some servicing work on a piece of machinery.  You notice the lock he applies to the energy isolating device is a combination type lock and not a keyed lock.  You ask the maintenance manager about this and, to your surprise, he states that all their lockout locks are of a combination type, and the previous safety manager had no problem with this and in fact supported the practice.

Question: Is the maintenance manager correct in his belief that a combination type lock is acceptable for lockout/tagout? Or, is the company going to need to replace all the locks with keyed type locks and train all the employees about this change?

Answer:  If you read the definitions in 1910.147 (b) you will see the following: Lockout device. A device that utilizes a positive means such as a lock, either key or combination type, to hold an energy isolating device in the safe position and prevent the energizing of a machine or equipment. Included are blank flanges and bolted slip blinds.

OSHA proposes more than $1.9 million in fines against Alabama lumber mill for egregious and other safety violations

A lumber mill in Phenix Alabama is no stranger to Federal OSHA.  The latest visit has caused OSHA to propose penalties of $1,939,000 to the company and its principal, John M. Dudley, for egregious and other safety violations, including exposing employees to amputation and fall hazards.

Prior to these citations, Phenix Lumber Company had been cited 77 times by OSHA for serious safety and health violations since 2007.

“Phenix Lumber continues to put workers at risk by choosing not to implement safety measures that would prevent serious injuries to their employees,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. “Employers have a responsibility to keep their workers safe and healthy. One worker injured on the job is one too many.”

OSHA began an inspection on Dec. 15, 2010, in response to a complaint that employees working in the planer mill were exposed to amputation hazards while maintaining, cleaning and clearing jams on pieces of machinery that did not have their energy sources locked out to prevent their unexpected start up. Two months later, OSHA received a second complaint that an employee had suffered a partial finger amputation while clearing a piece of machinery that had not been locked out. At the opening of an inspection following the second complaint, the compliance officer learned of another employee who had just suffered a severe hand injury while working on unguarded machinery. Phenix Lumber had been cited numerous times during the past four years for allowing employees to work on unguarded machinery while it was operating.

“This situation reflects a systemic problem with the way this company approaches safety and demonstrates an egregious disregard for workers’ safety and health,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Dr. David Michaels.

OSHA has issued Phenix Lumber 13 citations for 24 willful violations, including failure to properly shut down and lock out 13 pieces of machinery before employees were required to perform tasks such as clearing jams and cleaning. These failures exposed employees to amputation hazards, as well as to the possibility of being caught between or struck by pieces of the machinery and falling lumber. The employer also failed to train 11 employees who performed this work on the hazards and how to shut down and lock out the machinery so that they could perform their tasks safely. OSHA proposed the maximum $70,000 penalty for each violation, totaling $1,680,000.

Citations for three additional willful violations allege that a worker was exposed to fall hazards while working from the top of a machine, locks were not issued to employees as required by the lockout standard, and the company failed to follow established lockout/tagout procedures. These citations carry additional penalties of $70,000 each, for a total of $210,000.

A willful violation is one committed with intentional knowing or voluntary disregard for the law’s requirements, or with plain indifference to worker safety and health. OSHA may propose separate penalties for distinct willful violations of the same OSHA standard where one or more of the seven criteria are met as identified in the OSHA directive “Handling of Cases to be Proposed for Violation-By-Violation” (compliance directive 02-00-080). The criteria include that the employer’s conduct taken as a whole amounts to clear bad faith in the performance of duties under the Occupational Safety and Health Act.

One citation for a repeat violation with a $35,000 fine was issued for failing to place machine guards on seven chains and sprockets. A violation is “repeated” if the employer previously was cited for a substantially similar condition, and the citation is a final, affirmed order of the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. This time is the third within three years that Phenix Lumber has been cited for failing to guard this type of equipment.

Citations for two serious violations, each with a maximum proposed penalty of $7,000, were issued for failing to guard a pinch point at a hydraulic pusher plate, which exposed employees to amputation hazards and caused one of the injuries; and to ensure that employees performing lockout/tagout tasks applied and removed their own locks. A serious violation occurs when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.

Copies of the citations are available at http://www.osha.gov/dep/citations/MDLGPhenixLumber315135954.pdf* and http://www.osha.gov/dep/citations/MDLGPhenixLumber315111930.pdf*.

OSHA

has proposed that the employer be included in the agency’s Severe Violators Enforcement Program. Initiated in 2010, the program is intended to focus on employers that endanger workers by committing willful, repeat or failure-to-abate violations in one or more of the following circumstances: a fatality or catastrophe; industry operations or processes that expose workers to severe occupational hazards; exposure to hazards related to the potential releases of highly hazardous chemicals; and all instance-by-instance enforcement actions under compliance directive 02-00-080. Inclusion in the program subjects employers to mandatory follow-up inspections; increased company/corporate awareness of OSHA enforcement; and, where appropriate, corporate-wide agreements, enhanced settlement provisions and federal court enforcement under Section 11(b) of the OSH Act. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov/dep/svep-directive.pdf*.

OSHA cites Shawnee, OK milling company $146,000 for 25 serious workplace violations

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Shawnee Milling Co. with 25 alleged serious violations following an inspection at the company’s facility in Shawnee that found multiple safety and health hazards. Proposed penalties total $146,000.

“An employer’s failure to effectively implement OSHA’s regulations exposes workers to potential hazards that could lead to serious injuries or death. Such safety and health violations will not be tolerated,” said David Bates, OSHA’s area director in Oklahoma City.

OSHA’s Oklahoma City Area Office began its investigation Nov. 23, 2010, at the company’s facility on South Broadway Street. About 276 workers produce consumer products such as flour, cornmeal and animal feed at the facility.

The violations include failing to properly reclassify confined spaces from permit-required to non-permit-required, to have the mandatory confined space entry permits, to provide adequate respirators to employees for emergency evacuation in the event of toxic chemical release, to provide an adequate lockout/tagout program of energy sources and to provide required machine guarding.

US Department of Labor’s OSHA cites Parker Hannifin facility in Mississippi with 33 safety and health violations, proposes more than $487,000 in fines

Federal OSHA has issued 33 citations to the Parker Hannifin Corp. plant in Batesville, alleging numerous safety and health violations as the result of an inspection that began November 2010. Proposed penalties total $487,700. Cleveland, Ohio-based Parker Hannifin has 170 facilities throughout the U.S. and manufactures machinery for hydraulics, air conditioning, refrigeration and aerospace systems.

OSHA issued 16 repeat citations with $407,000 in fines. Fifteen are safety-related and cover such violations as allowing the air pressure to exceed more than 30 pounds per square inch for cleaning equipment, failing to conduct periodic inspections of the lockout/tagout process in place to prevent accidental energy start-up, failing to train workers on lockout/tagout procedures, failing to unblock exit doors and routes, failing to provide machine guarding and failing to correct electrical deficiencies. One health-related violation was cited for failing to attach hazardous warning labels to five dipping tanks that contained hazardous substances such as potassium hydroxide and isoparaffinic hydrocarbon. A repeat violation exists when an employer previously has been cited for the same or a similar violation of a standard, regulation, rule or order at any other facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years. The repeat violations are based on previous inspections conducted at other company locations, including a facility in Olive Branch.

OSHA issued 17 serious citations with $80,700 in fines. Fifteen are safety-related and include such violations as exposing employees to struck-by hazards due to a defective safety latch on a hoist and damaged hooks on an overhead crane; allowing unapproved electrical equipment to be used in a hazardous location where flammable chemicals were present; failing to remove and replace spiral stairs with a conventional stairways; failing to post signage indicating the direction of travel to the nearest exit; failing to provide a danger permit-required confined space sign; failing to mark a web sling with the rated load capacity; and failing to require workers to wear goggles or suitable eye protection while welding. Two health-related citations cover failing to establish an effective hearing program and to provide personal protective equipment. A serious violation occurs when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.

“Companies that cut corners at the expense of worker safety must be held accountable,” said OSHA Assistant Secretary Dr. David Michaels. “In this case, Parker Hannifin not only failed to make safety its top priority, but the company ignored many violations that OSHA previously had brought to its attention.”

OSHA cites wind farm servicing company for 6 willful violations after worker suffers burns in wind tower resulting in proposed fines of $378,000

Outland Renewable Services has been issued six citations for willful safety violations after a wind farm technician suffered severe burns from an electrical arc flash on Oct. 20, 2010. The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued the citations following an investigation at the Iberdrola Streator Cayuga Ridge South Wind Farm near Odell. The company, a servicing and maintenance provider in the wind tower industry, faces proposed penalties of $378,000.

“Green jobs are an important part of our economy, and sectors such as wind energy are growing rapidly. That growth comes with a continued responsibility for employers to ensure that the health and safety of workers is never compromised,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. “Outland’s management was aware of the potentially hazardous conditions to which its workers could have been exposed and showed intentional disregard for employee safety by ignoring OSHA’s requirements for isolating energy sources during servicing operations. Employers must not cut corners at the expense of their workers’ safety.”

Outland Renewable Services was issued the citations for exposing maintenance technicians to electrical hazards from the unexpected energization of transformers in three wind turbine towers. A willful violation is one committed with intentional knowing or voluntary disregard for the law’s requirements, or with plain indifference to worker safety and health.

On the day of the incident, Outland Renewable Services failed to ensure technicians working in wind farm towers affixed their own energy isolation devices - also known as personal lock and tag devices - on the tower turbine switch gear at ground level. That created the possibility for other workers to energize transformers in the turbine towers, upon which technicians were working at a distance of approximately 350 feet above ground. The injured worker suffered third degree burns to his neck, chest and arms, and second degree burns to the face as a result of an arc flash that occurred when a transformer was unexpectedly energized by another worker.

The egregious violations in this case fall under the requirements of OSHA’s Severe Violators Enforcement Program. Initiated in the spring of 2010, the program is intended to focus on employers that endanger workers by committing willful, repeat or failure-to-abate violations in one or more of the following circumstances: a fatality or catastrophe; industry operations or processes that expose workers to severe occupational hazards; exposure to hazards related to the potential releases of highly hazardous chemicals; and all per-instance citation (egregious) enforcement actions. For more information about the Severe Violators Enforcement Program, visit http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=DIRECTIVES&p_id=4503.

Outland Renewable Services’ corporate offices are located in Canaby, Minn. This OSHA inspection was the first conducted at the Iberdrola Streator Caugya Ridge South Wind Farm.