OSHA initiated an investigation against Custom Rubber Products, LLC in September of 2013. At that time, OSHA was notified of an incident where a machine operator’s arms were crushed. On Thursday, OSHA released a report citing Custom Rubber Products for eight willful, egregious violations surrounding a lack of machine guarding. Theses violations come with proposed penalties totaling $560,000.

“In an instant, moving machine parts can crush workers or amputate fingers or limbs,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational and Health Dr. David Michaels. “Safeguards are essential to protect workers from these preventable injuries. Employers must ensure that guards are functioning on machines that can cause these injuries, and there is no excuse for failing to provide them.”

The eight willful violations were cited for failing to provide one or more methods of machine guarding to protect the operator and other workers in the machine area from hazards created by rotating parts while operating seven manual lathes and other equipment. A proper inspection of plant safety could have prevented this horrible injury and saved this company from a very hefty OSHA inspection.

If you have machinery in your facility, it is important to ensure your machine guarding is properly in place and that all guarding is up to code and properly functioning. If you have not reviewed your machine guards recently, or have not recently reviewed your policies surrounding machine guards, it is advisable to contact a third party safety and health auditing firm to review  your facility and your procedures.

If you have any questions about machine guarding, please contact us. If you have anything to add about the recent fines for Custom Rubber Products or about the importance of machine guards, please leave a comment.